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After 40 Years of Constant Change, What’s Next for the Legal Industry?  [Packel]

On 09/04/2019, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, change, changing business models, Cost of legal services - including access, disruption, future, ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, law schools, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, new business models, society, technology (general), tools, trends, UK, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

After 40 Years of Constant Change, What’s Next for the Legal Industry?  — from law.com by Dan Packel
Few could have anticipated the dramatic shift in scope and scale the industry has undergone since The American Lawyer’s founding 40 years ago. We asked some of the law’s brightest thinkers what we can expect over the next 10.

Excerpts (emphasis DSC):

Technology and Upheaval
While it’s easy to conclude that the technological revolution that’s already been unleashed will continue to drive transformation over the next 10 years, it’s harder to pinpoint how.

Expect more and more tasks to become subject to automation—not just contracts and e-discovery but also areas like trademarks and due diligence for mergers, for starters.

Technology and artificial intelligence on their own are noteworthy, but what’s more compelling is the impact they will have on how firms are structured.

“Everything that can be taken out of the hands of subject-matter experts and handed over to the process experts and technologists will be,” says Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Chairman and CEO Mitch Zuklie. “There will be far fewer associates sitting in rooms with documents and more strategic partnerships among law firms and legal tech providers.”

This transition could help chip away at the supremacy of the billable hour.
…
Not only will technology move up the value chain for litigation, it will also emerge as a greater player on the deal side. Jae Um, director of pricing strategy at Baker McKenzie, expects to see a much greater focus on compliance and regulatory technology in the next five years.

As AI solutions, which depend upon machine learning, are slowly deployed in the marketplace, their efficacy will inevitably grow.

 

How about a little wild speculation to wrap this up?  With more nonlawyer specialists finding professional homes in law firms, it’s a short leap to hybrids between law firms and professional services operations. Imagine consultants and accountants working together with lawyers and technologists to solve clients’ increasingly complex problems. And what about a high-profile merger between a Big Four firm and a global law firm? I wouldn’t rule it out.

 

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Four Big Themes Of Legal Tech + Innovation in 2019 [artificiallawyer.com]

On 09/04/2019, in entrepreneurship, future, innovation, law schools, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, by Daniel Christian

Four Big Themes Of Legal Tech + Innovation in 2019 — from artificiallawyer.com

Excerpt:

Many people are now heading off on holiday after what has been a frenetic period of change in the realm of legal tech and law firm innovation. In this article Artificial Lawyer identifies four key themes that help to make sense of what is happening.

These four themes are:

  1. Consolidation and Platformization;
  2. Continued Proliferation of Legal Tech Companies;
  3. Incubator/Accelerator Growth;
  4. More Than Law – Law Firms as Tech Producers.
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Western Michigan’s Law School Cuts Tuition [Fain]

On 09/01/2019, in cost of getting a degree, Cost of legal services - including access, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Michigan, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Western Michigan’s Law School Cuts Tuition — from insidehighered.com by Paul Fain

Excerpt:

While several highly selective law schools for the first time are charging more than $100,000 per year in total cost of attendance, Western Michigan University‘s Cooley Law School this week announcedthat it was reducing tuition rates beginning next year from $1,750 per credit hour to $1,375, a decline of 21 percent.

 

Cooley Law School to lower tuition by 21%, close Auburn Hills campus — from mlive.com by Julie Mack

Excerpt:

Western Michigan University Cooley Law School plans to cut its tuition by 21% in fall 2020, close its campus in Auburn Hills in December 2020 and “reduce the footprint” of its Lansing campus.

No staff reductions are planned, a press release said.

The school’s Board of Directors approved the “bold plan” this week to “sustain and strengthen the law school’s access mission” and “current and future campus efficiencies,” the press release said.

 

Disclosure from DSC:
The WMU-Cooley Law School is where I’ve worked since March 2018. I’m very happy to see this reduction in tuition! I’d like to see this type of price reduction occur throughout higher education.

I have learned a lot in my time at Cooley, and I have a lot more to learn. But I just wanted to say that I’m so impressed with the people who work at Cooley! They are a very welcoming, classy, caring, extremely knowledgeable, talented, mission-driven group of people. They have developed an organization that works to positively change the world and provide greater access to justice.

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Why GCs Aren’t Buying What Legal Tech Is Selling and Why It Matters for Firms [Warren & Cipriani]

On 08/28/2019, in 21st century, corporate / business world, Cost of legal services - including access, emerging technologies, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, society, tools, vendors, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Why GCs Aren’t Buying What Legal Tech Is Selling and Why It Matters for Firms — from law.com by Zach Warren and Gina Passarella Cipriani
Legal technology companies have to get out of their own way in vying for law department adoption, and buyers need to know what they want.

Excerpt:

The legal technology industry has some significant hurdles to overcome in its increased push to sell into legal departments, general counsel say. And GCs admit that they are part of the problem.

On the one hand, technology companies aren’t doing themselves any favors by flooding the market with, at times, dozens of the same offerings, few of which solve specific problems the in-house community has, GCs say. But at the same time, general counsel admit to being distracted, budget-constrained and often unfamiliar with the capabilities of the products they are being pitched.

“It’s overwhelming,” says HUB International chief legal officer John Albright. “There are hundreds of these vendors, and most of them you’ve never heard of.”

As Albright sees it, the legal technology industry is “heavily fragmented,” with vendors selling solutions to a discrete issue that doesn’t necessarily solve the full problem he has or fit into the larger organization’s information systems.

 

Also see:

  • Artificial Intelligence Further Exacerbates Inequality In Discrimination Lawsuits — from forbes.com by Patricia Barnes
    Excerpt:
    The legal system just keeps getting more and more unequal for American workers who are victims of employment discrimination, wage and hour theft, etc. The newest development is that America’s top employers and the law firms that represent them are using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to automate their responses to workers’ legal claims, thereby increasing efficiency while cutting costs.
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Eight tips to thrive in the evolving legal landscape [Runyon]

On 08/27/2019, in 21st century, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, communications, data related items, law schools, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, productivity / tips and tricks, relationships, tools, vendors, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Eight tips to thrive in the evolving legal landscape — from lawtechnologytoday.org by Bethany Runyon

Excerpt:

There is no question that technology has changed the way lawyers work, shaped how law firms operate and affected organizational culture. The business of law is more complex and competitive than ever, and it will only continue to evolve as alternative service providers gain ground, pricing structures change and client expectations shift.

To get you prepared, our team at HighQ would like to offer eight tips to thrive in the evolving legal landscape.

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Reflections on “Uh-oh: Silicon Valley is building a Chinese-style social credit system” [Elgan]

On 08/27/2019, in 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Asia, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, corporate / business world, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, data related items, emerging technologies, ethics, face-to-face, Facebook / Meta Platforms, future, game-changing environment, generational differences, Google, hearts -- matters of the heart, intelligent systems, internet, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Microsoft, morals/values, platforms, policy, political science, privacy, society, surviving, the downsides of how people use tech, tools, trends, United States, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Uh-oh: Silicon Valley is building a Chinese-style social credit system — from fastcompany.com by Mike Elgan
In China, scoring citizens’ behavior is official government policy. U.S. companies are increasingly doing something similar, outside the law.

Excerpts (emphasis DSC):

Have you heard about China’s social credit system? It’s a technology-enabled, surveillance-based nationwide program designed to nudge citizens toward better behavior. The ultimate goal is to “allow the trustworthy to roam everywhere under heaven while making it hard for the discredited to take a single step,” according to the Chinese government.

In place since 2014, the social credit system is a work in progress that could evolve by next year into a single, nationwide point system for all Chinese citizens, akin to a financial credit score. It aims to punish for transgressions that can include membership in or support for the Falun Gong or Tibetan Buddhism, failure to pay debts, excessive video gaming, criticizing the government, late payments, failing to sweep the sidewalk in front of your store or house, smoking or playing loud music on trains, jaywalking, and other actions deemed illegal or unacceptable by the Chinese government.
…
IT CAN HAPPEN HERE
Many Westerners are disturbed by what they read about China’s social credit system. But such systems, it turns out, are not unique to China. A parallel system is developing in the United States, in part as the result of Silicon Valley and technology-industry user policies, and in part by surveillance of social media activity by private companies.

Here are some of the elements of America’s growing social credit system.

 

If current trends hold, it’s possible that in the future a majority of misdemeanors and even some felonies will be punished not by Washington, D.C., but by Silicon Valley. It’s a slippery slope away from democracy and toward corporatocracy.

 

From DSC:
Who’s to say what gains a citizen points and what subtracts from their score? If one believes a certain thing, is that a plus or a minus? And what might be tied to someone’s score? The ability to obtain food? Medicine/healthcare? Clothing? Social Security payments? Other?

We are giving a huge amount of power to a handful of corporations…trust comes into play…at least for me. Even internally, the big tech co’s seem to be struggling as to the ethical ramifications of what they’re working on (in a variety of areas). 

Is the stage being set for a “Person of Interest” Version 2.0?

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International Legal Tech Conference Breaks Attendance Record [Skolnik]

On 08/23/2019, in 21st century, Blockchain, innovation, law schools, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, professional development, society, tools, by Daniel Christian

International Legal Tech Conference Breaks Attendance Record — from biglawbusiness.com by Sam Skolnik

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Law firms are cashing in on blockchain through the growth of practice groups that represent blockchain developers and users. Attorneys are also are considering growing their use of “smart contracts,” which are blockchain based.

In addition to seeking continued growth in its membership and conferences, ILTA in the coming year will be focusing on diversity and inclusion within the legal tech sector, said Rush.

Legal tech investments have skyrocketed from $233 million two years ago to $1.7 billion in 2018, according to figures from the Legal Tech Sector Landscape Report by Tracxn Technologies.

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Amazon, Microsoft, ‘putting world at risk of killer AI’: study

On 08/23/2019, in Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, emerging technologies, ethics, Europe, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Microsoft, morals/values, society, the downsides of how people use tech, United States, by Daniel Christian

Amazon, Microsoft, ‘putting world at risk of killer AI’: study — from news.yahoo.com by Issam Ahmed

Excerpt:

Washington (AFP) – Amazon, Microsoft and Intel are among leading tech companies putting the world at risk through killer robot development, according to a report that surveyed major players from the sector about their stance on lethal autonomous weapons.

Dutch NGO Pax ranked 50 companies by three criteria: whether they were developing technology that could be relevant to deadly AI, whether they were working on related military projects, and if they had committed to abstaining from contributing in the future.

“Why are companies like Microsoft and Amazon not denying that they’re currently developing these highly controversial weapons, which could decide to kill people without direct human involvement?” said Frank Slijper, lead author of the report published this week.

Addendum on 8/23/19:

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Armies of delivery robots, drones, pods: Do we really want to create this kind of future?

On 08/22/2019, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, assistive technologies, corporate / business world, emerging technologies, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, robotics, society, the downsides of how people use tech, tools, trends, by Daniel Christian

Autonomous robot deliveries are coming to 100 university campuses in the U.S. — from digitaltrends.com by Luke Dormehl

Excerpt:

Pioneering autonomous delivery robot company Starship Technologies is coming to a whole lot more university campuses around the U.S. The robotics startup announced that it will expand its delivery services to 100 university campuses in the next 24 months, building on its successful fleets at George Mason University and Northern Arizona University.

 

Postmates Gets Go-Ahead to Test Delivery Robot in San Francisco — from interestingengineering.com by Donna Fuscaldo
Postmates was granted permission to test a delivery robot in San Francisco.

 

And add those to ones formerly posted on Learning Ecosystems:

 

From DSC:
I’m grateful for John Muir and for the presidents of the United States who had the vision to set aside land for the national park system. Such parks are precious and provide much needed respite from the hectic pace of everyday life.

Closer to home, I’m grateful for what my parents’ vision was for a place to help bring the families together through the years. A place that’s peaceful, quiet, surrounded by nature and community.

So I wonder what kind of legacy the current generations are beginning to create? That is…do we really want to be known as the generations who created the unchecked chaotic armies of delivery drones, delivery robots, driverless pods, etc. to fill the skies, streets, sidewalks, and more? 

I don’t. That’s not a gift to our kids or grandkids…not at all.

 

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Executive Interview: Khalid Al-Kofahi, Head of AI at Thomson Reuters [aitrends.com]

On 08/20/2019, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, emerging technologies, intelligent systems, IT in HE, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, by Daniel Christian

Executive Interview: Khalid Al-Kofahi, Head of AI at Thomson Reuters — from aitrends.com

Excerpt:

Can you talk about any new products or services, or innovative work that you’re doing now?

In the last 12 months, we released three major AI-powered products for our customers: Westlaw Edge for our legal customers, Checkpoint Edge for our tax and accounting customers, and in July of this year we released Westlaw Edge Quick Check, an AI-powered document analysis tool to help attorneys write better briefs and motions, as well as defend against briefs and motions from opposing counsel.

If you look at the underlying capabilities in each of these three products, for example, you will see things like document analysis, vertical search, question answering, summarization, and analytics to support data-driven decision makings, and so on. Plenty of opportunities remain in each of these areas, and while I can’t talk about specific products that we are working on, from a capability perspective, these are the kind of capabilities that we’d like to include in many of our products.

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Some interesting feedback re: the Bar Exam

On 08/20/2019, in Cost of legal services - including access, design, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, society, student-related, by Daniel Christian

Some interesting feedback re: the Bar Exam

Introduction

The National Conference of Bar Examiners’ (NCBE’s) Testing Task Force (TTF) is undertaking a comprehensive,future-focused study to ensure that the bar examination continues to test the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for competent entry-level legal practice in a changing legal profession. The collaborative study involves input from stakeholders at multiple phases and considers the content, format, timing, and delivery method for NCBE’s current tests, which make up all or part of the bar examination in most U.S. jurisdictions: the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE), the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), and the Multistate Performance Test (MPT). The study also includes the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), which is administered by NCBE and required for admission in most U.S. jurisdictions.

This Executive Summary provides a synthesis of the stakeholder listening sessions conducted during Phase 1 of the study between November 2018 and June 2019. The purpose of these sessions was to solicit input from various stakeholder groups about characteristics and considerations for the next generation of the bar examination. The sessions were facilitated by ACS Ventures LLC (ACS), an independent psychometric consulting firm. Summaries of the stakeholder input from the sessions are appended to this Executive Summary.

 

From DSC:
Hmmm…I wonder what some design thinking experts might say about the complexities involved here:

  • The Multistate Bar Examination (MBE)
  • The Multistate Essay Examination (MEE)
  • The Multistate Performance Test (MPT)
  • The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE)

 

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A single platform to install, use & manage the abundance of legal tech products available

On 08/17/2019, in innovation, internet, law schools, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, tools, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Big Law ‘App Store’ Reynen Court Officially Launches, Announces Elevate Partnership — from law.com by Krishnan Nair and Zach Warren
Reynen Court’s aim is to provide law firms with a single platform to install, use and manage the abundance of legal tech products available to firms from various vendors.

Excerpt:

The company has now launched the platform, with Elevate agreeing to make three of its technologies available on Reynen Court’s legal tech app. These three products include a legal AI and document analytics platform called ContraxSuite; legal project management app, Cael Project; and a billing app called Cael BillPrep.

Elevate VP of software products Sharath Beedu said in a statement: “In essence, it’s a private, curated ‘app store’ where products are pre-packaged for easy installation within each firm’s respective IT environment. This enables firms to try new systems without using third-party cloud environments, which is prohibited by many of their clients.”


Also see:

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ABA Profile of the Legal Profession [americanbar.org]

On 08/16/2019, in law schools, legislatures / government / legal, society, by Daniel Christian

ABA Profile of the Legal Profession — from americanbar.org

Excerpt:

The state of the legal profession changes every year. Fortunately, the ABA has access to data that makes it possible to capture a snapshot of the profession at a moment in time and presents its first ABA Profile of the Legal Profession report.

View and download the report here.

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New Michigan court program could let you resolve legal disputes for free online [Keith]

On 08/16/2019, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Cost of legal services - including access, ideas, internet, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Michigan, society, by Daniel Christian

New Michigan court program could let you resolve legal disputes for free online — from freep.com by Emma Keith

Excerpts:

If you’ve got an issue with your landlord, a friend who owes you money or a serious problem with your neighbors, you may not have to take it to court.

Thanks to a new tool from the Michigan court system, some Michiganders can now solve civil disputes and small claims cases online.

MI Resolve offers users in certain Michigan counties a chance to go through an online resolution and mediation process whether or not their case has gotten to court.

The program is meant to increase equitable access to legal resources and respond to Michigan residents’ goals for their state courts, said Bridget McCormack, chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court.
…
The program is meant to resolve small claims, contract disputes, neighborhood disputes, and small landlord/tenant matters. It won’t handle an eviction but will handle rent or maintenance issues.

 

Also see:

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Legal tech can differentiate young lawyers at law firm interviews [Reed]

On 08/15/2019, in career development, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Legal tech can differentiate young lawyers at law firm interviews — from law.com by Dan Reed
This hiring season, law students interviewing with law firms should lead on legal tech.

Excerpt:

Law firm interview season is almost upon us. Traditionally, this is when hiring partners quiz law students on their awareness of the law and trends in the wider legal industry. But in today’s rapidly changing legal climate, students can expect to confront a new topic: legal tech.

 

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