Reinventing Professionals

I spoke with Tom O’Connor, a nationally-recognized consultant, speaker, and writer in the field of computerized litigation support systems, who is also a member of the global advisory board for the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists. We discussed why professionals seek certifications, the challenges associated with obtaining one, their impact on one’s career, and how they are evolving.

I spoke with Tom Dreyfus, the CEO and co-founder of Josef, an Australian legal automation platform. Prior to founding Josef, Tom worked as a litigator in Melbourne, Australia and clerked at the High Court of Australia. We discussed the genesis of Josef, why legal professionals should leverage automation, the benefits and risks of a distributed or ground-up approach to legal automation, and the future of legal work.

I spoke with Steve Tover, the founder of Anylaw, a free legal research platform. We discussed the genesis of Anylaw, how it differs from other legal research solutions, the company’s business model, and where the legal research sector is headed.

I spoke with Alex Babin, the CEO of ZERØ, an AI-powered email platform. We discussed the genesis of Zero, how it leverages artificial intelligence to help users manage their email, the value of ZERØ Lite, how law firms can reinvent themselves in a remote-first working environment, and the advantages of applying automation to law firm operations.

I spoke with Patrick DiDomenico, the chief innovation officer for Jackson Lewis, a large national labor and employment-focused law firm with more than 60 offices throughout the United States, and the author of Knowledge Management for Lawyers (American Bar Association, 2016). We discussed his mission at the firm, key challenges in the current crisis, best practices for law firms adapting to a completely remote working environment, and the role of legal technology in this transformation.

I spoke with Tom Jones, the founder and CEO, and Jeff Suhr, the senior vice president for Intellistat and Steere, respectively, for Iridium Technology, a business intelligence and financial analytics company. We discussed the genesis of Iridium Technology, the drivers of analytics in the legal field, and how the availability of robust and actionable data is driving change in the legal industry.

I spoke with Josh Maley, the founder of Theorem, a platform designed to aggregate legal technology applications for law firms and corporate legal departments. We discussed the genesis of Theorem, how using it impacts how organizations manage their application suite, and advice for law firm and legal department leaders who are driving innovation.

I spoke with Marco Maggio, the vice president of Strategic Practices for the All Covered division of Konica Minolta. We discussed the key trends impacting the legal industry in 2020, those which are most important to your clients, why the predictability of outcomes has become so important, and whether legal innovation is at a tipping point.

I spoke with Debbie Reynolds, the founder of Debbie Reynolds Consulting, who provides guidance to corporations on global data privacy, data protection, and legal technology issues. We discussed the genesis of her consulting practice, the most pressing data privacy issue that companies are facing today, best practices that companies should implement to maintain compliance, and the impact of the CCPA on data privacy in the US.

I spoke with Jim Wagner, the president of Seal Software, a leader in enterprise contract analytics. We discussed his role at Seal Software, whether artificial intelligence has come of age for contract review, the demand for contract analytics software, what should potential users of contract analytics software should recognize before leveraging this technology, the biggest surprise in the legal profession’s journey toward digital transformation, and where the sector is headed.

I spoke with Chris Osborn, the co-founder of Reeltime Creative Learning Experiences, a national provider of continuing education and professional development programs. We discussed the genesis of Reeltime Creative Learning Experiences, the programs it offers, how the delivery of continuing legal education has changed, and how it will continue to evolve.

I spoke with Jerry Ting, the CEO and co-founder of Evisort, an AI-powered contract analysis system. We discussed the genesis of Evisort and its recent $15 million investment, advice for legal tech entrepreneurs seeking investors in 2020, how investors should evaluate early-stage, pre-revenue companies in legal, ways that hopeful entrepreneurs could carve out their niche, and where legal tech is headed.

I spoke with Nehal Madhani, the founder and CEO of Alt Legal, a company whose cloud-based IP docketing software helps legal professionals prepare and manage hundreds of thousands of IP filings and deadlines daily. We discussed the expansion of Alt Legal’s docketing business, its upcoming trademark law conference called Alt Legal Connect, the keynote presentation by Jack Newton, the co-founder and CEO of Clio, and how Alt Legal Connect and other events are influencing the distribution and development of legal technology.

During Legalweek, I had the privilege of interviewing an array of legal industry leaders about issues ranging from machine learning and hybrid e-discovery to practical innovation and the business of law. This is a mixtape of their perspectives.

I spoke with Jonah Paransky, the executive vice president and general manager of Wolters Kluwer ELM Solutions. We discussed how customers are leveraging ELM Solutions, their appetite for artificial intelligence, how AI aligns with legal operations, and lessons about how legal teams should apply AI.

I spoke with Tim Pullan, the founder and CEO of ThoughtRiver, an intelligent contract pre-screening platform. We discussed the genesis of ThoughtRiver, how its technology works, ways that its platform differs from others on the market, the value for its clients, and where the usage of this technology is headed.

I spoke with Varun Mehta, the CEO of Factor, formerly Axiom Managed Solutions, an organization focused on performing complex legal work at scale. We discussed Factor’s primary focus, whether it is necessary for a “new law” company to concentrate on a particular service or technology to succeed, what Factor is disrupting, who it is replacing in the buying cycle, and how legal services are evolving.

I spoke with Matthew Prinn, the principal of RFP Advisory Group, a consulting firm that specializes in RFPs for the legal industry. We discussed key trends in how corporate legal departments are using RFPs, the biggest mistakes law firms make in responding to RFPs, and how RFPs and related technology are evolving.

I spoke with Mary DeSpain, the founder of Destination CLEs, a company that combines vacation with continuing legal education. We discussed the genesis of Destination CLEs, the advantage of associating leisure activities with professional education, and how this model of educating legal professionals reflects the changing nature of the practice.

I spoke with Richard Susskind, the author of the newly released book, Online Courts and the Future of Justice, among many others, including The End of Lawyers? and The Future of the Professions. We discussed his inspiration for writing Online Courts, how it aligns with his prior work, the key messages that he hopes readers will take from the book, which courts will change first, and how listeners can be bold in transforming their careers and practices to prepare for a different future in the law.