Many of the following trends have existed for some time but were rapidly accelerated by the pandemic and continue as economic uncertainty, changes in work culture, and the legal landscape evolves. Once notoriously averse to innovation, law firms are now rapidly adopting new technology to manage caseloads better, improve collaboration, increase data security, and cut costs, time, and labor. Technology budgets are expanding even further as these new tools are critical to keeping ahead of the competition.
As Legal Tech marketers, we must understand how our products and services fit into law firms' rapidly evolving business models. Many firms seek end-to-end, integrated solutions over standalone tools, so integrations and cloud compatibility are essential. Additionally, legal tech buyers are embracing new technologies like artificial intelligence and blockchain to reduce workloads and manage administrative tasks. As you plan for 2024, ask yourself what steps you need to take to meet the trending needs of your market.
Cloud Migration and SaaS Platforms
Cloud computing has advanced significantly to provide numerous benefits over traditional on-premises infrastructure. Cloud platforms have greater scalability, allowing firms to conveniently upgrade their memory, processing power, and storage space as needed. They can also handle more diverse file types requiring complex data architectures; for example, firms may need to review Zoom calls or Slack chat outputs in eDiscovery. These platforms can provide secure access - even to remote users - with VPNs, two-factor authentication, encryption, and monitoring tools.
Perhaps most importantly, systems hosted in the cloud allow for seamless integration with various tools, allowing for an end-to-end tech stack so employees can collaborate and execute their workloads more efficiently.
Document, Workload, and Process Automation
Gartner estimates that 55% of legal work will be fully automated by 2024, replacing tedious manual processes that consume labor capacity and create bottlenecks. These tools, from simple notifications to work queues to team collaboration suites, will allow users to prioritize high-value work.
At a high level, automation technology allows legal teams to carefully plan workflow templates, making clear who is responsible for what components in their processes. This speeds up case turnaround and collaboration by notifying team members of task timelines, organizing documents, and streamlining communication.
At the individual level, automation allows users to focus on specific tasks with everything they need at their fingertips. With contract management, for example, smart contract software uses templates, redlining and editing features, signature requests, and more, all from a single interface. These tools become even more essential when incorporating artificial intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence
Once considered a sci-fi fantasy, AI has rapidly advanced in the past few years. AI platforms are used to review and manage contracts, correct errors and omissions, for project management, and so much more. It streamlines eDiscovery by rapidly processing data and recommending documents for review, much like Netflix and social media platforms do. Its capacity for natural language processing allows AI to take on tasks traditionally done by paralegals and legal assistants.
AI is becoming ubiquitous as firms face pressure to reduce costs, headcount, and time to complete tasks. Organizations can use AI not only to improve how lawyers complete high-skill tasks but also to minimize the need for humans to handle lower-level tasks. This type of low-complexity, routine work can be done almost entirely by AI.
Cybersecurity and Information Governance
Data security is seeing an increased focus as more technology is incorporated and data is moved to the cloud. Lawyers often handle confidential and personal information they are responsible for protecting. An ABA survey reported that 29% of lawyers had experienced a security breach at their firms, which can impact a firm's reputation and relationships with clients.
Legal tech buyers are looking for software with leading security features, such as:
- Secure access - VPNs, two-factor authentication, biometrics, and IP restrictions
- Whole-system, email, and document-level encryption
- Blockchain for decentralized data and records
- Intrusion prevention and detection
Legal technology is driving change among legal teams
The legal tech landscape is evolving fast to keep up with rapid changes in the legal segment. Law firms increasingly see the necessity of these technologies, which are already impacting how legal teams work. Which trends are you ahead of, and where do you need to focus for 2024? How can you emphasize the ways your solution addresses the needs of your audience?
