Automates

Peter Duffy, an AI-first legal tech consultant at Titans, dives into the transformative role of AI in the legal sector. He illustrates how AI can act as a knowledge partner, enhancing human capabilities rather than replacing them. The discussion covers the challenges of tech adoption and the importance of human expertise amidst rapid change. Duffy also debunks myths around Agentic AI, while exploring the blurred lines in the legal tech landscape. Expect practical tips and insights that are sure to elevate your understanding of AI's potential!

Jana Blount, a legal innovation consultant who previously led change strategy at DLA Piper, shares her insights on driving radical change in the legal industry. She discusses the distinction between radical change and innovation, emphasizing the impact of design thinking on problem-solving. Jana expresses her distaste for the term 'just' in budgeting, advocating for tech tools to access existing strengths to foster greatness. She believes AI should facilitate meaningful change in law, not just financial gain, and highlights the importance of strong client relationships.

Matt Miller, VP at Litera, shares insights from his 18-year journey in legal tech. He discusses the contrasts between scale-up and large tech environments, emphasizing the need for innovation as companies grow. Matt highlights law firms seeking tech-savvy individuals and the demand for modern applications. The conversation also delves into the challenges of leveraging data in the AI age and the importance of understanding customer needs to drive generative AI adoption. It's a fascinating look at the intersection of technology and legal services!

Jon Bartman, Co-founder of a law tech consultancy and board member of the European Legal Tech Association, shares his insights on the journey from lawyer to tech innovator. He discusses the hurdles and potential in today's crowded legal tech market. Jon emphasizes that implementing technology isn't just for big law firms. They also reflect on the significance of community at legal tech events and explore how generative AI is reshaping legal teams, encouraging firms to adapt to stay competitive.

This episode of Automates features values-driven Caitlin McFee, Head of Growth at Capacity. Caitlin explains: Her reasons for getting behind the mission of Capacity and how it helps firms operate as better businessesThat firms must look beyond 'wellbeing days' to truly transforming the experience of working in a law firmUsing work allocation as a lever to affect changeThe inherent challenges in attempting to fundamentally change the way the legal industry worksBalancing the needs of the firm and the associates with the desire of the partner to have controlThe cultural differences between the UK and US in adopting techCreating an open and flexible startup culturePlus, here's a link to the referenced must sign up newsletter about everything the legal industry cares about https://legaldigest.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Our guest this episode is Greg Lambert, Chief Knowledge Services Officer at Jackson Walker, co-creator of 3 Geeks and a Law Blog and one half of The Geek in Review podcast, a true OG in the online legal sphere. Some standout points covered:The ease of information sharing within an industry as nuanced as the legal industryThe merits of an emerging technologies committeeHow listening to and understanding the business is the starting point for pinpointing the right solutions to their challenges, and the answer is not always technology!How the AI buzz can spark valuable conversations within the business that otherwise would not have come to beThe importance of delving beyond pouring data into LLMs but thinking about how to make use of that data and extract value The tough fact that using Generative AI to handle legal research is one of the hardest things you could do with Generative AI!Plus a two minute summary of changes in the macro environment over the last 20 years. And - he *only* received two sales emails from vendors pitching tech during the one hour recording of this session!

This episode, Ben speaks to Bighand CMO Briana McCrory about all things marketing. Bri offers her perspective on:The importance of company culture in encouraging long staff tenuresBuilding a marketing function around changing buyer behaviourEvolving from a single product company to a multi product companyThe value of data-led research reports at various stages of the buying journeyRapid growth and fostering a growth mindsetThe collaborative legal tech community - competitors or not!

Catriona Wolfenden talks us through her journey from reluctant solicitor to Product & Innovation Director at Weightmans.  Discussing the firm's (much to Ben's fascination) 34-strong Product & Innovation team, Catriona covers:Striking the right balance between virtual work and physically getting together with some sharpies and Post-Its.Maintaining culture when split across different offices and hybrid working arrangementsThe predicament that there are always way too many product & innovation projects than you can ever service The sometimes 'alien' function of sales within a law firmAdapting to wearing a software vendor hat The soft skills to look out for in fresh out of university legal engineersShifting from billable hours to the 'it's ok to fail' mentality of innovation And many more topics. Whether you're considering legal career, a law grad, an experienced lawyer looking to cross over to the world of innovation, a supplier or simply a legaltech fanatic, there's something for everyone here, folks!

Our guest this episode is Jason Dirkx, Director of Practice Technology Solutions at Paul Hastings. Jason offers some excellent insights into the law firm/tech vendor relationship and the optimal set up for a law firm's tech & innovation department.Some snippets:Contrary to popular opinion, lawyers don't need to learn to code or prompt, leave it to the experts!The law firm of the future recognises cross-discipline expertiseDon't think of the relationship as client and vendor, think of it as a partnershipStartups and tech companies don't always have to focus on growth at all costsInnovation teams aren't a deliberate blocker to successful legal tech sales

Catherine Bamford, CEO of BAM Legal, specializes in legal tech and community building. In this conversation, she shares insights on best practices for navigating the tech landscape and selecting solutions for law firms. Catherine discusses the importance of process mapping and embracing the complexities of legal workflows. She highlights the role of community in driving innovation within legal tech and how AI is reshaping document automation while stressing the need for human oversight. A fascinating dive into the future of law technology!