Proposal and Pitch Preparation Checklist

Record the prospect name, matter type, governing jurisdiction, and hard submission deadline in the BD pipeline (Lawmatics, Clio Grow, or your CRM of record). Note Q&A cutoff, mandatory pre-bid call, and any e-portal upload requirements — Coupa, Ariba, and Onit-hosted RFPs each have their own quirks.

The pitch committee reviews strategic fit, win probability, rate pressure, and bandwidth before committing partner hours. Declining early is cheaper than losing a $40K pitch effort on a panel where incumbents are entrenched.

Use the BD team's standard decline template — thank the procurement contact, note availability for future panels, and log the decline reason in the pipeline for future analysis. Keeps the door open for the next cycle.

Search the conflicts database (Intapp Open, Clio Conflicts, or LegalKEY) across the prospect, parent company, named subsidiaries, board members, and likely adverse parties. Rule 1.7 / 1.10 imputation means a hit on any current or recent representation must be cleared before pitch time is invested — not after the prospect signs.

Draft the waiver letter naming both representations and the screening measures proposed. The responsible partner for the existing client signs off before the waiver request goes out. No pitch work proceeds until the signed waiver is in the matter file.

Pull 10-Ks, recent litigation dockets (PACER, Bloomberg Law), press releases, and analyst coverage. Identify the GC, deputy GC, and procurement decision-maker on LinkedIn. Note pending matters, recent M&A activity, and the industry-specific regulatory exposure (FDA, FERC, OCC, etc.) that will shape the proposal's themes.

Identify who scores the proposal (GC, procurement, business unit head), what weighting they apply (rate, diversity, experience, technology), and whether the panel uses a formal scoring rubric. Many corporate clients now publish their evaluation criteria in the RFP — read them literally.

• Decision-maker names and roles
• Scoring weight by category if disclosed
• Diversity reporting requirements (Mansfield, ABA Model Diversity Survey)

Name the relationship partner, lead pitch author, subject-matter partners, BD lead, and pricing analyst. Confirm each member's availability through submission date — vacation conflicts, trial calendars, and closing schedules sink more pitches than weak content does.

Three to five themes the proposal will hit on every page: bench depth in the relevant practice, specific regulatory experience, geographic coverage, technology investment, diversity track record, AFA flexibility. Avoid generic claims of excellence — name the cases, the deals, the regulators.

Model standard hourly rates, blended rates, fixed-fee phases, and a success-fee variant. Most corporate panels expect at least one alternative fee arrangement. Run realization scenarios with the finance team before quoting — a 20% discount that destroys realization is worse than losing the pitch.

Map every RFP question to a proposal section so nothing falls through. Procurement scorers deduct points for unanswered questions even when the substantive response is strong. Use a compliance matrix to track question-by-question coverage.

The executive summary is what the GC reads; everything else is what associate counsel verifies. Lead with the prospect's named problem, the firm's specific response, and the team. Keep it under two pages.

Select five to eight matters from the experience database that align with the prospect's industry, deal size, and regulatory posture. Scrub each matter for client confidentiality — Rule 1.6 covers former-client matter descriptions even when public dockets disclose them. Get sign-off from the responsible partner before naming a client.

Use bios tailored to this pitch — generic firm-website bios score poorly. Highlight directly relevant experience, bar admissions in the prospect's jurisdictions, and language capabilities. Include the staffing grid with hours-by-role estimates if the RFP requests it.

Most Fortune 500 RFPs now require Mansfield Rule certification status, ABA Model Diversity Survey data, or a custom diversity reporting plan. Pull the firm's current attestation from the HR director — figures from last year's pitch are stale by Q2.

Two partners outside the pitch team read cold and score against the published RFP criteria. They flag generic language, weak themes, and anywhere the proposal sounds like a brochure rather than an answer. Schedule this with enough runway to act on the feedback — a same-day red team is decorative.

The CFO or finance director re-runs the fee model with current rates, factoring in any discount the pitch committee accepted during red team. A pitch priced below 85% realization needs explicit managing-partner approval.

The BD coordinator runs a final pass for typos, attorney name and title accuracy, bar-admission citations, and brand template adherence. A proposal that misspells the prospect's GC's name on page one rarely recovers.

The managing partner approves the final pricing, the named relationship partner, and any non-standard commitments (volume discounts, SLA commitments, secondment offers). Capture the approval in writing — verbal go-aheads disappear when realization slips two years in.

Upload through the prospect's procurement portal (Coupa, Ariba, Onit) or email the named procurement contact per the RFP instructions. Save the timestamped confirmation — disputes over whether the submission was timely are not uncommon. Submit at least one business day before the deadline to leave room for portal failures.

Five business days after submission, the relationship partner reaches out to confirm receipt and offer a clarification call. Track the prospect's evaluation timeline in the BD pipeline and tickle the next follow-up; pitches that go silent for 30 days usually go to a competitor.