New York in February saw the latest in legal news, predictions and buzz for three days at Legalweek 2017. We picked the 10 best tweets from the conference, revealing the essential legaltech trends.
1. The minority in the legal profession are making the major changes. Stark findings from the In-house team at Microsoft showed that innovation is only being driven by around 10% of the profession. The majority are lagging behind.
Microsoft research shows that lawyers spend 90% of their day in Outlook and Word. Really? Still?!?! 🙀#Legalweek17
— Evolve Law (@EvolveLawNow) February 1, 2017
2. The dawn of Artificial Intelligence has arrived. LawGeex, the contract review and approval automation platform, showcased the technology through hundreds of product demos, reflecting the buzz for new technology. The direct slogan at the booth, “Hire a robot. Get sh*t done”, was very well received, as were the robot give-aways. In the keynote speech Andrew Mcafee, MIT scientist and author of the Second Machine Age, said AI in legal was “ready to go”. Discussing the likely pace of change, he quoted Ernest Hemingway: “How does a person go broke? It’s gradually, and then it’s suddenly.”
Looking forward to meeting in-house counsel at #Legalweek17. Come say hi and grab a robot at booth 528. pic.twitter.com/gxQ9hPWZnZ
— Lawgeex (@lawgeex_) January 30, 2017
3. Technology will stop chores and see more law. Bob Ambrogi, the legal and tech evangelist and expert, and Andrew Arruda of Ross Intelligence (bringing AI to legal research) summed up the essential message of the show in one great tweet.
"Technology can help lawyers overcome challenges…and practice more law" – @bobambrogi#Legalweek17 #LTNY17 pic.twitter.com/KO2iwkRNcF
— andrew arruda 🎸 (@AndrewArruda) January 31, 2017
4. The end of the billable hour is a decade away. Stanford Codex Fellow Monica Bay in a special panel discussion of eDiscovery, said: “There tends to be a lot of “protectionism” from lawyers about the unique value they offer as attorneys, but ultimately “lawyers’ entire jobs are going to dramatically change.”
https://twitter.com/KarynHarty/status/827237937783910402
5. The millennial lawyer has arrived. Ian Connett who blogs as MillennialGC, and is Legal Director of Collective in New York, knows a thing or two about the clash of old and new. He was among those at a session showing the impact as tech-ready millennials start to take on more leadership roles.
Fun panel today at #Legalweek17 in NYC! Is your #lawfirm ready for the millennial transition? https://t.co/aQFKjNqS3w
— Ian Connett, Esq. (@QuantumJurist) January 31, 2017
6. Clients wont tolerate inefficiency. With higher client demands and younger and more forward-thinking firms starting to focus on efficiency, we’re now seeing resistance to efficiency crumbling, paving the way for digital innovation.
#Legalweek17: @JulieTaylorKYL nails it: "Clients don't mind firms making $. They just don't want firms to make MORE b/c they're inefficient"
— Justin Hectus (@justinhectus) February 1, 2017
7. In-house counsel are finding better ways to get data faster. In-house counsel are finding better and more organic ways to collaborate to get data and manage it faster during an investigation.
.@AriKaplan explaining how in-house counsel are tackling the data challenges of the modern investigation at #LTNY17 #Legalweek17 pic.twitter.com/BH1OkGqQUl
— Rhys Dipshan (@R_Dipshan) January 31, 2017
8. The Cloud is the new norm. In the words of Dennis Garcia, assistant General Counsel at Microsoft “Big Law is Going to go Big Cloud in 2017”. Among law firms, 71% are using more cloud computing (such as used by LawGeex award-winning solutions) in 2016 compared to 2015. ALM Intelligence also found nearly 66% of lawyers use mobile devices to complete legal work with clients.
Majority of law firms say they will adapt cloud-based solutions. #Legalweek17 #tech #data pic.twitter.com/qHepf8mHqi
— Legaltech©news (@Legaltech_news) January 31, 2017
9. Any conference can be enlivened by cute puppies. There were lots of cute pictures of puppies from the show. Patrick Gleason Vice President Legal & Corporate Consulting at Chase Cost Management tweeted it best on puppy power’s ability to survive any technological shifts (kudos to howtomanageasmalllawfirm.com for providing the puppy lawyers).
Who could resist the low tech booth attraction of ….Puppies!!! ?#Legalweek17 pic.twitter.com/AhnUGP0WYX
— Patrick F. Gleason (@PatrickFGleason) February 1, 2017
10. Finally, it just wouldn’t be Legaltech without the weather. Brad Schaffel Litigation Support Manager at WilmerHale snapped the picture of the event, showing the charm of New York in February.
https://twitter.com/bradnerd/status/826471945457848320
Jonathan Marciano, Communications Director at LawGeex, is originally from London. He is currently in Tel Aviv, helping to bring about the legal and robot revolution, one press release at a time. Follow him on Twitter. @J_Marciano
LawGeex‘s artificial intelligence solution helps legal teams automate the review and approval of contracts. We make in-house legal work easy, efficient and impactful, allowing our customers to focus on the big picture instead of getting lost in the paperwork.
