professional wordpress themes

“8 Legal Tech Trends Transforming Practice in 2024” [lawyer-monthly.com] + several other legaltech-related items

On 08/28/2024, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Blockchain, business, data related items, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, research, surviving, trends, UK, United States, vendors, Virtual courts and law firms, by Daniel Christian

8 Legal Tech Trends Transforming Practice in 2024 — from lawyer-monthly.com

Thanks to rapid advances in technology, the entire scenario within the legal landscape is changing fast. Fast forward to 2024, and legal tech integration would be the lifeblood of any law firm or legal department if it wishes to stay within the competitive fray.

Innovations such as AI-driven tools for research to blockchain-enabled contracts are thus not only guideline highlights of legal work today. Understanding and embracing these trends will be vital to surviving and thriving in law as the revolution gains momentum and the sands of the world of legal practice continue to shift.

Below are the eight expected trends in legal tech defining the future legal practice.

Building your legal practice’s AI future: Understanding the actual technologies — from thomsonreuters.com by
The implementation of a successful AI strategy for a law firm depends not only on having the right people, but also understanding the tech and how to make it work for the firm

While we’re not delving deep here into how generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and large language models (LLMs) work, we will talk generally about different categories of tech and emerging GenAI functionalities that are specific for legal.

Ex-Microsoft engineers raise $25M for legal tech startup that uses AI to help lawyers analyze data — from geekwire.com by Taylor Soper

Supio, a Seattle startup founded in 2021 by longtime friends and former Microsoft engineers, raised a $25 million Series A investment to supercharge its software platform designed to help lawyers quickly sort, search, and organize case-related data.
…
Supio focuses on cases related to personal injury and mass tort plaintiff law (when many plaintiffs file a claim). It specializes in organizing unstructured data and letting lawyers use a chatbot to pull relevant information.

“Most lawyers are data-rich and time-starved, but Supio automates time-sapping manual processes and empowers them to identify critical information to prove and expedite their cases,” Supio CEO and co-founder Jerry Zhou said in a statement.

ILTACON 2024: Large law firms are moving carefully but always forward with their GenAI strategy — from thomsonreuters.com by Zach Warren

NASHVILLE — As the world approaches the two-year mark since the original introduction of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, law firms already have made in-roads into establishing generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) as a part of their firms. Whether for document and correspondence drafting, summarization of meetings and contracts, legal research, or for back-office capabilities, firms have been playing around with a number of use cases to see where the technology may fit into the future.

Thomson Reuters acquires pre-revenue legal LLM developer Safe Sign Technologies – Here’s why — from legaltechnology.com by Caroline Hill

Thomson Reuters announced (on August 21) it has made the somewhat unusual acquisition of UK pre-revenue startup Safe Sign Technologies (SST), which is developing legal-specific large language models (LLMs) and as of just eight months ago was operating in stealth mode.
…
There isn’t an awful lot of public information available about the company but speaking to Legal IT Insider about the acquisition, Hron explained that SST is focused in part on deep learning research as it pertains to training large language models and specifically legal large language models. The company as yet has no customers and has been focusing exclusively on developing the technology and the models.

Supio brings generative AI to personal injury cases — from techcrunch.com by Kyle Wiggers

Legal work is incredibly labor- and time-intensive, requiring piecing together cases from vast amounts of evidence. That’s driving some firms to pilot AI to streamline certain steps; according to a 2023 survey by the American Bar Association, 35% of law firms now use AI tools in their practice.

OpenAI-backed Harvey is among the big winners so far in the burgeoning AI legal tech space, alongside startups such as Leya and Klarity. But there’s room for one more, says Jerry Zhou and Kyle Lam, the co-founders of an AI platform for personal injury law called Supio, which emerged from stealth Tuesday with a $25 million investment led by Sapphire Ventures.

Supio uses generative AI to automate bulk data collection and aggregation for legal teams. In addition to summarizing info, the platform can organize and identify files — and snippets within files — that might be useful in outlining, drafting and presenting a case, Zhou said.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

The future of legal services + other items re: legaltech

On 08/26/2024, in Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), cost of getting a degree, Cost of legal services - including access, future, game-changing environment, ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, research, society, sociology, trends, UK, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

ILTACON 2024: Selling legal tech’s monorail — from abajournal.com by Nicole Black

The bottom line: The promise of GenAI for our profession is great, but all signs point to the realization of its potential being six months out or more. So the question remains: Will generative AI change the legal landscape, ushering in an era of frictionless, seamless legal work? Or have we reached the pinnacle of its development, left only with empty promises? I think it’s the former since there is so much potential, and many companies are investing significantly in AI development, but only time will tell.

From LegalZoom to AI-Powered Platforms: The Rise of Smart Legal Services — from tmcnet.com by Artem Vialykh

In today’s digital age, almost every industry is undergoing a transformation driven by technological innovation, and the legal field is no exception. Traditional legal services, often characterized by high fees, time-consuming processes, and complex paperwork, are increasingly being challenged by more accessible, efficient, and cost-effective alternatives.

LegalZoom, one of the pioneers in offering online legal services, revolutionized the way individuals and small businesses accessed legal assistance. However, with the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and smart technologies, we are witnessing the rise of even more sophisticated platforms that are poised to reshape the legal landscape further.

The Rise of AI-Powered Legal Platforms
AI-powered legal platforms represent the next frontier in legal services. These platforms leverage the power of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing to provide legal services that are not only more efficient but also more accurate and tailored to the needs of the user.

AI-powered platforms offer many advantages, with one of them being their ability to rapidly process and analyze large amounts of data quickly. This capability allows them to provide users with precise legal advice and document generation in a fraction of the time it would take a human attorney. For example, AI-driven platforms can review and analyze contracts, identify potential legal risks, and even suggest revisions, all in real-time. This level of automation significantly reduces the time and cost associated with traditional legal services.

AI, Market Dynamics, and the Future of Legal Services with Harbor’s Zena Applebaum — from geeklawblog.com by Greg Lambert

Zena talks about the integration of generative AI (Gen AI) into legal research tools, particularly at Thomson Reuters, where she previously worked. She emphasizes the challenges in managing expectations around AI’s capabilities while ensuring that the products deliver on their promises. The legal industry has high expectations for AI to simplify the time-consuming and complex nature of legal research. However, Applebaum highlights the need for balance, as legal research remains inherently challenging, and overpromising on AI’s potential could lead to dissatisfaction among users.

Zena shares her outlook on the future of the legal industry, particularly the growing sophistication of in-house legal departments and the increasing competition for legal talent. She predicts that as AI continues to enhance efficiency and drive changes in the industry, the demand for skilled legal professionals will rise. Law firms will need to adapt to these shifts by embracing new technologies and rethinking their strategies to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving market.

Future of the Delivery of Legal Services — from americanbar.org
The legal profession is in the midst of unprecedented change. Learn what might be next for the industry and your bar.

What. Just. Happened? (Post-ILTACon Emails Week of 08-19-2024) — from geeklawblog.com by Greg Lambert

Here’s this week’s edition of What. Just. Happened? Remember, you can track these daily with the AI Lawyer Talking Tech podcast (Spotify or Apple) which covers legal tech news and summarizes stories.

From DSC:
And although this next one is not necessarily legaltech-related, I wanted to include it here anyway — as I’m always looking to reduce the costs of obtaining a degree.

Improve the Diversity of the Profession By Addressing the Costs of Becoming a Lawyer — from lssse.indiana.edu by Joan Howarth

Not surprisingly, then, research shows that economic assets are a significant factor in bar passage. And LSSSE research shows us the connections between the excessive expense of becoming a lawyer and the persistent racial and ethnic disparities in bar passage rate.

The racial and ethnic bar passage disparities are extreme. For example, the national ABA statistics for first time passers in 2023-24 show White candidates passing at 83%, compared to Black candidates (57%) with Asians and Hispanics in the middle (75% and 69%, respectively).

These disturbing figures are very related to the expense of becoming a lawyer.

Finally, though, after decades of stability — or stagnation — in attorney licensing, change is here. And some of the changes, such as the new pathway to licensure in Oregon based on supervised practice instead of a traditional bar exam, or the Nevada Plan in which most of the requirements can be satisfied during law school, should significantly decrease the costs of licensure and add flexibility for candidates with responsibilities beyond studying for a bar exam.  These reforms are long overdue.

Thomson Reuters acquires Safe Sign Technologies — from legaltechnology.com by Caroline Hill

Thomson Reuters today (21 August) announced it has acquired Safe Sign Technologies (SST), a UK-based startup that is developing legal-specific large language models (LLMs) and as of just eight months ago was operating in stealth mode.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“Best Legal Tech 2024” [Theorem] + “Essential Types of Legal Cases Every Business Owner Should Know” [lawfuel.com]

On 08/25/2024, in law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Best Legal Tech 2024 — from ecosystem.theoremlegal.com

Nothing but the best enterprise legaltech.
Find the best software for anything and everything you want to accomplish, as decided by software buyers on the world’s largest and most trusted legal tech marketplace.

Theorem is proud to share our 2024 LEGAL TAM & Best LegalTech Awards List
Each day, new and returning users visit Theorem to leverage our growing community of trusted users, contributors and reviewers, to feel empowered to make intelligent software buying decisions for their business.

Best Software awards are earned by companies across the globe that provide best-in-class products and experience for their customers, as determined by verified users from our network of leading legal organizations.

Essential Types of Legal Cases Every Business Owner Should Know — from lawfuel.com

Running a business requires more than just a sharp mind for strategy and a keen eye for market trends. Legal awareness is crucial for safeguarding your business against potential liabilities. In this article, we will explore the key legal cases every business owner should know, with a particular focus on premises liability and product liability cases.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“As we enter the Age of Accessible Law” [Furlong] + other legaltech-related items

On 08/15/2024, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Access to Justice (A2J), Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, Canada, emerging technologies, future, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, tools, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

How Generative AI will change what lawyers do — from jordanfurlong.substack.com by Jordan Furlong
As we enter the Age of Accessible Law, a wave of new demand is coming our way — but AI will meet most of the surge. What will be left for lawyers? Just the most valuable and irreplaceable role in law.

AI can already provide actionable professional advice; within the next ten years, if it takes that long, I believe it will offer acceptable legal advice. No one really wants “AI courts,” but soon enough, we’ll have AI-enabled mediation and arbitration, which will have a much greater impact on everyday dispute resolution.

I think it’s dangerous to assume that AI will never be able to do something that lawyers now do. “Never” is a very long time. And AI doesn’t need to replicate the complete arsenal of the most gifted lawyer out there. If a Legal AI can replicate 80% of what a middling lawyer can do, for 10% of the cost, in 1% of the time, that’s all the revolution you’ll need.

From DSC:
It is my sincere hope that AI will open up the floodgates to FAR great Access to Justice (A2J) in the future.

It’s the Battle of the AI Legal Assistants, As LexisNexis Unveils Its New Protégé and Thomson Reuters Rolls Out CoCounsel 2.0 — from lawnext.com by Bob Ambrogi

It’s not quite BattleBots, but competitors LexisNexis and Thomson Reuters both made significant announcements today involving the development of generative AI legal assistants within their products.

Thomson Reuters, which last year acquired the CoCounsel legal assistant originally developed by Casetext, and which later announced plans to deploy it throughout its product lines, today unveiled what it says is the “supercharged” CoCounsel 2.0.

Meanwhile, LexisNexis said today it is rolling out the commercial preview version of its Protégé Legal AI Assistant, which it describes as a “substantial leap forward in personalized generative AI that will transform legal work.” It is part of the launch of the third generation of Lexis+ AI, the AI-driven legal research platform the company launched last year.

Thomson Reuters Launches CoCounsel 2.0 — from abovethelaw.com by Joe Patrice
New release promises results three times faster than the last version.

It seems like just last year we were talking about CoCounsel 1.0, the generative AI product launched by Casetext and then swiftly acquired by Thomson Reuters. That’s because it was just last year. Since then, Thomson Reuters has worked to marry Casetext’s tool with TR’s treasure trove of data.

It’s not an easy task. A lot of the legal AI conversation glosses over how constructing these tools requires a radical confrontation with the lawyers’ mind. Why do attorneys do what they do every day? Are there seemingly “inefficient” steps that actually serve a purpose? Does an AI “answer” advance the workflow or hinder the research alchemy? As recently as April, Thomson Reuters was busy hyping the fruits of its efforts to get ahead of these challenges.

Though this next item is not necessarily related to legaltech, it’s still relevant to the legal realm:

A Law Degree Is No Sure Thing— from cew.georgetown.edu
Some Law School Graduates Earn Top Dollar, but Many Do Not

Summary
Is law school worth it? A Juris Doctor (JD) offers high median earnings and a substantial earnings boost relative to a bachelor’s degree in the humanities or social sciences—two of the more common fields of study that lawyers pursue as undergraduate students. However, graduates of most law schools carry substantial student loan debt, which dims the financial returns associated with a JD.

A Law Degree Is No Sure Thing: Some Law School Graduates Earn Top Dollar, but Many Do Not finds that the return on investment (ROI) in earnings and career outcomes varies widely across law schools. The median earnings net of debt payments are $72,000 four years after graduation for all law school graduates, but exceed $200,000 at seven law schools. By comparison, graduates of 33 law schools earn less than $55,000 net of debt payments four years after graduation.

From DSC:
A former boss’ husband was starting up a local public defender’s office in Michigan and needed to hire over two dozen people. The salaries were in the $40K’s she said. This surprised me greatly, as I thought all lawyers were bringing in the big bucks. This is not the case, clearly. Many lawyers do not make the big bucks, as this report shows:

…graduates of 33 law schools earn less than $55,000 net of debt payments four years after graduation.

.

Also relevant/see:

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Forget everything you think you know about law firms [Furlong]

On 07/26/2024, in 21st century, law schools, leadership, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, strategy, by Daniel Christian

Forget everything you think you know about law firms — from jordanfurlong.substack.com by Jordan Furlong
Preface your strategic planning by explicitly rejecting all the accumulated conventions of the law firm model. The (legal) world has changed. Open up your strategic vistas. Prepare to start brand new.

Push aside the invisible guardrails of what’s been done before. Don’t take for granted any “normal” aspect — positive, negative, or neutral — of how your law firm looks and behaves, how it’s constituted, who it serves, who works there, how it creates value, how it competes, how it makes money. It’s all up for grabs.
…
But the real advantage now will belong to those strategic planners ready to go further and question all our assumptions about the law firm itself. You can’t conduct effective strategic planning or future-proofing for your firm unless you first shake yourself loose of every conventional “fact” about what law firms are, what they’re for, and how they operate. Those assumptions have become burdens. They will slow you down and compromise your strategy.

From DSC:
This advice seems appropriate for many businesses to do these days!

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

AI Tools for Legal Work: Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and More [americanbar.org]

On 07/23/2024, in Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, ideas, innovation, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, United States, vendors, videoconferencing, Virtual courts and law firms, by Daniel Christian

AI Tools for Legal Work: Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and More — from americanbar.org

Summary

  • Uncover four AI tools that can aid legal professionals, including Claude, Gemini, Copilot and ChatGPT.
  • Discover the capabilities of these tools and how their functionality can streamline law firm’s workflow, improving efficiency.
  • Learn how much these AI tools cost to incorporate into your tech stack, and determine if there are any security risks to be aware

Also relevant, see:

 

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

The race to deploy GenAI in the legal sector [Nicol-Schwarz]

On 07/19/2024, in Access to Justice (A2J), Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, business, changing business models, corporate / business world, emerging technologies, Europe, experimentation, future, game-changing environment, innovation, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, Open AI, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, UK, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

The race to deploy GenAI in the legal sector — from sifted.eu by Kai Nicol-Schwarz
LegalFly’s €15m Series A is the latest in a string of raises for European GenAI legaltech startups

Speak to any lawyer and you’ll soon discover that the job is a far cry from the fevered excitement of a courtroom drama. Behind the scenes, there’s an endless amount of laborious and typically manual tasks like drafting, reviewing and negotiating contracts and other legal documents that have to be done manually daily.

It was this realisation that led four product managers at dating app giant Tinder, frustrated by what they saw as a lack of AI adoption at the company, to jump ship and found Belgium-based LegalFly last year. The startup is building a generative AI copilot for lawyers which eventually, it says, will be able to automate entire workflows in the legal profession.

“We were looking at what GenAI was good at, which is synthesising data and generating content,” says founder and CEO Ruben Miessen. “What industry works like that? Law, and it does it all in a very manual way.”

“The legal industry is a global behemoth that’s seen minimal innovation since the advent of Microsoft Word in the 90s,” says Carina Namih, partner at Plural. “GenAI — especially with a human in the loop to keep accuracy high — is ideally suited to drafting, editing and negotiating legal documents.”

Legal Technology Company Relativity Announces OpenAI ChatGPT Integration — from lawfuel.com

CHICAGO– July 18 – Relativity, a global legal technology company, today announced it is integrating with OpenAI’s ChatGPT Enterprise Compliance API. The integration adds ChatGPT Enterprise as a Collect in RelativityOne data source, allowing users to seamlessly collect and process human-to-AI conversational data.

“The future around human and AI interaction is changing rapidly, calling for innovative legal data management solutions to include novel data sources, such as conversations with AI agents,” said Chris Brown, Chief Product Officer at Relativity. “In answering that call, we are committed to equipping our community with the tools they need to traverse the evolving future of human-to-AI conversational data and putting users in control of this new data landscape.”

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

The race against time to reinvent lawyers [Furlong] + other items in the legal/legaltech world

On 07/11/2024, in Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, career development, change, curriculum, dangers of the status quo, emerging technologies, experimentation, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, political science, productivity / tips and tricks, reinvent, skills, strategy, technology (general), tools, by Daniel Christian

The race against time to reinvent lawyers — from jordanfurlong.substack.com by Jordan Furlong
Our legal education and licensing systems produce one kind of lawyer. The legal market of the near future will need another kind. If we can’t close this gap fast, we’ll have a very serious problem.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Lawyers will still need competencies like legal reasoning and analysis, statutory and contractual interpretation, and a range of basic legal knowledge. But it’s unhelpful to develop these skills through activities that lawyers won’t be performing much longer, while neglecting to provide them with other skills and prepare them for other situations that they will face. Our legal education and licensing systems are turning out lawyers whose competence profiles simply won’t match up with what people will need lawyers to do.

A good illustration of what I mean can be found in an excellent recent podcast from the Practising Law Institute, “Shaping the Law Firm Associate of the Future.” Over the course of the episode, moderator Jennifer Leonard of Creative Lawyers asked Professors Alice Armitage of UC Law San Francisco and Heidi K. Brown of New York Law School to identify some of the competencies that newly called lawyers and law firm associates are going to need in future. Here’s some of what they came up with:

  • Agile, nimble, extrapolative thinking
  • Collaborative, cross-disciplinary learning
  • Entrepreneurial, end-user-focused mindsets
  • Generative AI knowledge (“Their careers will be shaped by it”)
  • Identifying your optimal individual workflow
  • Iteration, learning by doing, and openness to failure
  • Leadership and interpersonal communication skills
  • Legal business know-how, including client standards and partner expectations
  • Receiving and giving feedback to enhance effectiveness

Legal Tech for Legal Departments – What In-House Lawyers Need to Know — from legal.thomsonreuters.com by Sterling Miller

Whatever the reason, you must understand the problem inside and out. Here are the key points to understanding your use case:

  • Identify the problem.
  • What is the current manual process to solve the problem?
  • Is there technology that will replace this manual process and solve the problem?
  • What will it cost and do you have (or can you get) the budget?
  • Will the benefits of the technology outweigh the cost? And how soon will those benefits pay off the cost? In other words, what is the return on investment?
  • Do you have the support of the organization to buy it (inside the legal department and elsewhere, e.g., CFO, CTO)?

2024-05-13: Of Legal AI — from emergentbehavior.co

Long discussion with a senior partner at a major Bay Area law firm:

Takeaways

A) They expect legal AI to decimate the profession…
B) Unimpressed by most specific legal AI offerings…
C) Generative AI error rates are acceptable even at 10–20%…
D) The future of corporate law is in-house…
E) The future of law in general?…
F) Of one large legal AI player…

2024 Legal Technology Survey Results — from lexology.com

Additional findings of the annual survey include:

  • 77 percent of firms have a formal technology strategy in place
  • Interest and intentions regarding generative A.I. remain high, with almost 80 percent of participating firms expecting to leverage it within the next five years. Many have either already begun or are planning to undertake data hygiene projects as a precursor to using generative A.I. and other automation solutions. Although legal market analysts have hypothesized that proprietary building of generative A.I. solutions remain out of reach for mid-sized firms, several Meritas survey respondents are making traction. Many other firms are also licensing third-party generative A.I. solutions.
  • The survey showed strong technology progression among several Meritas member firms, with most adopting a tech stack of core, foundational systems of infrastructure technology and adding cloud-based practice management, document management, time, billing, and document drafting applications.
  • Most firms reported increased adoption and utilization of options already available within their current core systems, such as Microsoft Office 365 Teams, SharePoint, document automation, and other native functionalities for increasing efficiencies; these functions were used more often in place of dedicated purpose-built solutions such as comparison and proofreading tools.
  • The legal technology market serving Meritas’ member firms continues to be fractured, with very few providers emerging as market leaders.

AI Set to Save Professionals 12 Hours Per Week by 2029 — from legalitprofessionals.com

Thomson Reuters, a global content and technology company, today released its 2024 Future of Professionals report, an annual survey of more than 2,200 professionals working across legal, tax, and risk & compliance fields globally. Respondents predicted that artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to save them 12 hours per week in the next five years, or four hours per week over the upcoming year – equating to 200 hours annually.

This timesaving potential is the equivalent productivity boost of adding an extra colleague for every 10 team members on staff. Harnessing the power of AI across various professions opens immense economic opportunities. For a U.S. lawyer, this could translate to an estimated $100,000 in additional billable hours.*

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Emerging Trends in Legal Tech [Joyner & Correia]

On 07/08/2024, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, United States, vendors, videoconferencing, Virtual courts and law firms, by Daniel Christian

Emerging Trends in Legal Tech — from legaltalknetwork.com by Rob Joyner & Jared D. Correia

Remote Work Continues to Thrive
In recent years, many firms have adopted a “just make it happen” attitude toward virtual meetings, mobility, and remote work. This has enabled law firms to reevaluate the tools and training necessary for legal professionals to utilize technology effectively, improving upon the traditional in-office setup. When executed correctly, this approach can yield long-lasting benefits for the firm. Implementing a remote work policy can help firms access a global talent pool, reduce operational costs, and create a better work-life balance for their staff.

In a recent episode of Legal Toolkit, Rob Joyner, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Centerbase, and Jared D. Correia, Esq., CEO of Red Cave Law Firm Consulting, discuss the debate between remote and in-office work, as well as the latest advancements in AI and other essential legal technology.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

DSC: I can not stay silent on Trump. He is dangerous to our democracy.

On 07/03/2024, in Daniel S. Christian, ethics, hearts -- matters of the heart, Legal operations, legal reform, legislatures / government / legal, morals/values, policy, political science, society, sociology, surviving, United States, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I realize I lose a lot of readers on this Learning Ecosystems blog because I choose to talk about my faith and integrate scripture into these postings. So I have stayed silent on matters of politics — as I’ve been hesitant to lose even more people. But I can no longer stay silent re: Donald Trump.

I, too, fear for our democracy if Donald Trump becomes our next President. He is dangerous to our democracy.

Also, I can see now how Hitler came to power.

And look out other countries that Trump doesn’t like. He is dangerous to you as well.

He doesn’t care about the people of the United States (nor any other nation). He cares only about himself and gaining power. Look out if he becomes our next president. 

From Stefan Bauschard:

Unlimited Presidential power. According to Trump vs the US, the “President may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for his official acts.” Justice Sotomayor says this makes the President a “king.” This power + surveillance + AGI/autonomous weapons mean the President is now the most powerful king in the history of the world.

Democracy is only 200 years old.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

Using OpenAI to cut costs of court battles + reducing drafting times in 1/2 in the UK

On 06/17/2024, in Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, productivity / tips and tricks, trends, UK, United States, by Daniel Christian

Brazil hires OpenAI to cut costs of court battles — from reuters.com by Marcela Ayres and Bernardo Caram

BRASILIA, June 10 (Reuters) – Brazil’s government is hiring OpenAI to expedite the screening and analysis of thousands of lawsuits using artificial intelligence (AI), trying to avoid costly court losses that have weighed on the federal budget.

The AI service will flag to government the need to act on lawsuits before final decisions, mapping trends and potential action areas for the solicitor general’s office (AGU).

Gen AI Cut Lawyers’ Drafting Time in Half, UK’s Ashurst Says — from news.bloomberglaw.com by Isabel Gottlieb

The firm’s findings included:

  • Using generative AI tools, lawyers saved 45% of the time they said it would otherwise have taken them to write a first draft of a legal brief—about 2.5 hours saved per briefing draft, the firm said in a release. They also saved 80% of the time it would have taken them to draft UK corporate filings “requiring review and extraction of information from articles of association”; and 59% of the time it would have taken them to draft reports about industries and sectors using company filings.
  • Output produced by generative AI was at least as accurate, or legally correct, as a human lawyer’s first draft in 67% of cases. Human output had higher average scores for accuracy, and the AI content had greater variations than human-created content in how accurate it was.
  • The panel was unable to identify half of the AI-created output as coming from AI, but it made no mistakes on identifying human-created content.

 

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“The Impact of Technology on Modern Legal Services” + other legaltech-related items

On 06/11/2024, in Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, emerging technologies, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, tools, trends, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

The Impact of Technology on Modern Legal Services — from smdailyjournal.com

In an ever-evolving digital landscape, the fusion of technology and legal services has ushered in a new era of efficiency, accessibility, and innovation. The traditional image of legal professionals buried in stacks of paperwork and endless research has been transformed by cutting-edge technologies that promise to revolutionize how legal services are delivered, accessed, and executed. From artificial intelligence to blockchain, cloud computing to automation, the impact of technology on modern legal services is palpable and profound.

Technology Trends Shaping Legal Services
The legal industry is experiencing a seismic shift driven by technology, with key trends reshaping legal services. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing legal research, document analysis, and predictive analytics, enabling legal professionals to streamline their workflow and deliver more accurate and timely insights to clients. Blockchain technology improves the safety and transparency of legal transactions, while cloud computing optimizes data storage and accessibility in the legal sector.

Clients Care About Legal Tech: Dig Into Legal Tech and Tech Related Careers. — from legaltalknetwork.com by Dan Lear and Adriana Linares
A new survey proves clients care about a lawyer’s tech skills. Hear about adding the latest tech and about emerging jobs in the legal tech field.

A new survey finds that clients care deeply about their attorney’s tech tools and tech skills. The numbers don’t lie: Legal tech matters. An efficient, integrated system is no longer “nice to have.” It’s table stakes, from case management to client communications to online filing and billing. 

 

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“No One Will Miss The ‘Good Old Days'” [Mack] + numerous other legaltech-related items

On 05/03/2024, in Access to Justice (A2J), Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, change, changing business models, culture, emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, experimentation, ideas, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, new business models, productivity / tips and tricks, tools, UK, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

The Digital Transformation Journey: Lessons For Lawyers Embracing AI — from abovethelaw.com by Olga V. Mack
The journey from the days of leather-bound law books to the digital age — and now toward an AI-driven future — offers valuable lessons for embracing change.

No One Will Miss The ‘Good Old Days’
I have yet to meet a lawyer nostalgic for the days of manually updating law reports or sifting through stacks of books for a single precedent. The convenience, speed, and breadth of digital research tools have made the practice of law more efficient and effective. As we move further into the AI era, the enhancements in predictive analytics, document automation, and legal research will make the “good old days” of even the early digital age seem quaint. The efficiencies and capabilities AI brings to the table are likely to become just as indispensable as online databases are today.

The Way We ‘Law’ Will Change For The Better
The ultimate goal of integrating AI into legal practice isn’t just to replace old methods with new ones; it’s to enhance our ability to serve justice, increase access to legal services, and improve the quality of our work. AI promises to automate mundane tasks, predict legal outcomes with greater accuracy, and unearth insights from vast data. These advancements will free us to focus more on the nuanced, human aspects of law — strategy, empathy, and ethical judgment.

AI to Help Double Legal Tech Market Over Five Years, Gartner Says — from news.bloomberglaw.com by Isabel Gottlieb (behind a paywall)

  • Tech to take up a bigger share of in-house legal spend
  • Generative AI boom has much longer to run

The legal tech market will expand to $50 billion by 2027, driven by the generative artificial intelligence boom, according to an analysis by market research firm Gartner Inc.

That growth, up from about $23 billion in 2022, will be driven by continued law firm spending on AI legal tech, as well as in-house departments allocating more of their overall budgets to technology, said Chris Audet, chief of research in Gartner’s legal, risk and compliance leaders practice. The market size prediction, released publicly on Thursday, comes from a late-2023 analysis for Gartner clients, and the 2022 market size comes from …

Legal Tech Market To See Huge Lift Off Thanks to GenAI — from digit.fyi by Elizabeth Greenberg

The global legal technology market has grown significantly in recent years and generative AI (GenAI) will accelerate this growth, meaning the market will reach $50 billion in value by 2027, according to Gartner.

“GenAI has huge potential for bringing more automation to the legal space,” said Chris Audet, chief of research in the Gartner for legal, risk & compliance leaders practice.

“Rapid GenAI developments, and the widespread availability of consumer tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard, will quickly increase the number of established legal technology use cases, in turn creating growing market conditions for an increasing number of legal-focused tools.”

“New technologies can fundamentally change the way legal organizations do business, and GenAI has enormous potential to do this,” an analyst at Gartner said.

Revolutionizing Legal Tech in 48 Hours — from law.stanford.edu by Monica Schreiber
At CodeX Hackathon, SLS Students Help Create Award-Winning AI Tools to Help Veterans and Streamline M&A

Disabled veterans seeking to file claims with the Veterans Administration are faced with multiple hurdles and reams of paperwork. Many vets resort to paying third-party companies thousands of dollars to help them with the process.

What if there were a way to streamline the claims process—to condense burdensome information gathering and data inputting into a linear, simplified set of tasks guided by a chatbot? How long would it take to roll out a tool that could accomplish that?

The answer: about 48 hours—at least for an interdisciplinary team of students from Stanford University’s schools of Law, Business, and Computer Science collaborating feverishly during Codex’s Large Language Model (LLM) Hackathon held recently on campus.

What If Your Law Firm Had A Blank Page For Legal Tech? — from artificiallawyer.com

f law firms had a blank page for legal technology and innovation, what would they do?

While organisations across all sectors are getting to grips with the opportunities and risks posed by genAI, forward-thinking law firm leaders are considering what it means for their businesses – today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow.

But some firms remain constrained by yesterday, due to legacy processes, ways of working and mindsets. To create the conditions for change, firms need to adopt a ‘blank page’ approach and review all areas of their businesses by asking: if we were starting afresh, how would we design the organisation to future-proof it to achieve transformative growth with genAI at the core?

From DSC:
This sentence reminds me of the power of culture:

But some firms remain constrained by yesterday, due to legacy processes, ways of working and mindsets.

Fresh Voices on Legal Tech with Sarah Glassmeyer — from legaltalknetwork.com by Dennis Kennedy, Tom Mighell, and Sarah Glassmeyer

What if, instead of tech competence being this scary, overwhelming thing, we showed lawyers how to engage with technology in a more lighthearted, even playful, way? The reality is—tech competency doesn’t have an endpoint, but the process of continuous learning shouldn’t be dull and confusing. Sarah Glassmeyer joins Dennis and Tom to talk about her perspectives on technology education for attorneys, the latest trends in the legal tech world and new AI developments, and growing your knowledge of technology by building on small skills, one at a time.
.

 

How Legal Technology Can Add Value to an M&A Practice — from lexology.com

Following is a primer on some of the A.I.-driven legal technologies, from contract review and automated due-diligence solutions to deal collaboration and closing-management tools, that can drive productivity and efficiency during the four phases of an M&A transaction, as well as enhance market insight and client service.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“The Legal Tech Ecosystem” [Levy] + “Virtual Legal Advising: Mastering Business and Property Matters Online” [Subhan]

On 04/04/2024, in innovation, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, tools, United States, vendors, videoconferencing, Virtual courts and law firms, by Daniel Christian

Colin Levy Discusses His New Book The Legal Tech Ecosystem & the Skills Needed to Succeed in Legal Tech — from tlpodcast.com by Chad Main

In the latest episode, legal tech guru and Head of Legal at contract lifecycle management company Malbek, Colin Levy, discusses his journey into legal tech and insights from his new book “The Legal Tech Ecosystem“. His book is a plainly written look into the legal tech field, emphasizing practical tools over AI hype and underscoring the importance of adaptability, risk-taking, and continuous learning in this evolving industry.

Also see:

Virtual Legal Advising: Mastering Business and Property Matters Online — from ventsmagazine.com by Abdus Subhan

Digital transformation has dominated every industry, the legal industry has not been left behind. Virtual law, or providing legal services through online platforms, has emerged as a vital resource for individuals and businesses alike. This article explores the idea of online professional legal advice, focusing on business and property matters. It serves as a thorough guide to navigating legal issues in these domains with the aid of virtual law.

 

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 

“Preparing the Next Generation of Tech-Ready Lawyers” + other legaltech-related items

On 03/30/2024, in 21st century, Access to Justice (A2J), analytics, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, changing business models, credentialing, emerging technologies, Europe, innovation, law schools, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, new business models, policy, society, tools, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

Dr Abigail Rekas, Lawyer & Lecturer at the School of Law, University of Galway

Abigail is a lecturer on two of the Law micro-credentials at University of Galway – Lawyering Technology & Innovation and Law & Analytics. Micro-credentials are short, flexible courses designed to fit around your busy life! They are designed in collaboration with industry to meet specific skills needs and are accredited by leading Irish universities.

Visit: universityofgalway.ie/courses/micro-credentials/

The Implications of Generative AI: From the Delivery of Legal Services to the Delivery of Justice — from iaals.du.edu by

The potential for AI’s impact is broad, as it has the ability to impact every aspect of human life, from home to work. It will impact our relationships to everything and everyone in our world. The implications for generative AI on the legal system, from how we deliver legal services to how we deliver justice, will be just as far reaching.

[N]ow we face the latest technological frontier: artificial intelligence (AI).… Law professors report with both awe and angst that AI apparently can earn Bs on law school assignments and even pass the bar exam. Legal research may soon be unimaginable without it. AI obviously has great potential to dramatically increase access to key information for lawyers and non-lawyers alike. But just as obviously it risks invading privacy interests and dehumanizing the law.
…
When you can no longer sell the time it takes to achieve a client’s outcome, then you must sell the outcome itself and the client’s experience of getting there. That completely changes the dynamics of what law firms are all about.

Preparing the Next Generation of Tech-Ready Lawyers — from news.gsu.edu
Legal Analytics and Innovation Initiative Gives Students a Competitive Advantage

Georgia State University College of Law faculty understand this need and designed the Legal Analytics & Innovation Initiative (LAII) to equip students with the competitive skills desired by law firms and other companies that align with the emerging technological environment.

“As faculty, we realized we need to be forward-thinking about incorporating technology into our curriculum. Students must understand new areas of law that arise from or are significantly altered by technological advances, like cybersecurity, privacy and AI. They also must understand how these advances change the practice of law,” said Kris Niedringhaus, associate dean for Law Library, Information Services, Legal Technology & Innovation.

The Imperative Of Identifying Use Cases In Legal Tech: A Guiding Light For Innovation In The Age Of AI — from abovethelaw.com by Olga V. Mack
In the quest to integrate AI and legal technology into legal practice, use cases are not just important but indispensable.

As the legal profession continues to navigate the waters of digital transformation, the importance of use cases stands as a beacon guiding the journey. They are the litmus test for the practical value of technology, ensuring that innovations not only dazzle with potential but also deliver tangible benefits. In the quest to integrate AI and legal technology into legal practice, use cases are not just important but indispensable.

The future of legal tech is not about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about thoughtful, purpose-driven innovation that enhances the practice of law, improves client outcomes, and upholds the principles of justice. Use cases are the roadmap for this future, charting a course for technology that is meaningful, impactful, and aligned with the noble pursuit of law.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!

 
Previous Entries
© 2024 | Daniel Christian