Legal Tech Glögit hosted by EY Law
The Finnish Legal Tech network was invited for the second time at EY Law, this time focusing on the role of legal tech in supporting business operations. We were delighted to see many first-time attendees at the event. This post includes some key points from the network event, including the discussions and atmosphere.
About legal tech network activities in Finland
Legal Tech Glögit is a Finnish network that promotes the digitalization of the legal industry. As of June 2024, it comprises approximately 240 legal professionals, primarily from Finland. We regularly meet to discuss current topics and strive to develop a common language for navigating the evolving business environment of the legal industry. One event has been held this year prior to this one, hosted by Fondia.
The annual “map event” provides visibility for domestic legal tech and legal design services. This year’s event will take place online on August 14th , 2024. You can read about last year’s event here.
The second event of autumn will be hosted by Jan Willamo at Roschier. Invitations will be sent out in August. Feel free to contact us if you are interested in facilitating an event later this year or next.
How does Legal Tech support business operations?
Teemu Oksanen began his presentation by exploring how the role of lawyers is shifting from a “reactive artisan” to a “proactive business partner” due to advancements in artificial intelligence. In the future, lawyers will be expected to possess skills such as empathy, process development, and a broad range of non-legal skills. AI will play a significant role in the future lawyer’s toolkit.
During the event held at Castrén & Snellman last year, we discussed the skills required from lawyers in the future, in relation to Teemu’s presentation. You can read more here.
Similarly, this shift changes the role of legal tech from merely easing lawyers’ tasks to actively supporting business operations. Legal tech services with integrated AI capabilities help lawyers identify business challenges before they arise. We discussed generative AI at Hannes Snellman a year ago. Read more here.
The impact of large language model developments on lawyers’ tasks is widely recognized. However, the forecast presented by Teemu from Goldman Sachs was still surprising—although it is based on a U.S. perspective. According to this forecast, AI would handle a significant portion of current legal work, and the remaining tasks would primarily be carried out with AI assistance in the future, too.
Practical examples are often the most valuable aspect of our meetings, and this time was no exception. Teemu used his previous employer, Futurice Oy, as a case study example, highlighting the need to accelerate their recruitment process to avoid losing talent to faster competitors. This was a very concrete business objective.
From Teemu’s presentation, I gathered the following key elements for success in legal tech projects:
- It is crucial not to get stuck on the inability to automate special use cases.
- The role of lawyers in automation projects is often broader than it appears at first glance.
- Effective use of data from start to finish in a process is key to eliminating bottlenecks.
- According to Teemu, it’s important to remember that a legal tech development project is not a one-time goal but a journey that should begin with low-hanging fruits. By measuring achieved results, you can learn how to proceed with the journey.
An excellent example of how to create real business value by skillfully leveraging technology!
Highlights from the discussion
After the presentation, the program continued with an active discussion that extended beyond the scheduled time. Here are some key takeaways from the follow-up discussions:
- We explored how lawyers can adopt the skills needed for the future. It was noted that in a team game not everyone needs to be a specialist in every field. The initial focus should be on changing mindsets and attitudes.
- Creating a technology-friendly culture was reiterated as a crucial foundation and enabler of success.
- The scarcity of resources sparked a conversation about where to find time, expertise, and funds for training legal departments. It was acknowledged that implementing changes often takes years, so leadership commitment and patience are essential for success. Additionally, the replacement of key personnel was identified as a significant factor that can slow down execution.
- Defining success metrics is important. They also make it easier to justify further investments.
- Most legal service firms are doing well and have funds for development. However, rapid changes can easily lead to development debt if the resulting requirements are not identified in time.
- Process-oriented thinking is not familiar to lawyers. We discussed how current legal education includes process-oriented thinking and identified the need for practice in process documentation. Henna Tolvanen from Fondia offered to lead a workshop on this topic in December!
- Internal development project models emerged as a significant theme in the previous Fondia event. Smaller organizations may not be familiar with these models, so a separate session on the topic could be useful.
- High-quality and well-planned internal communication is crucial for successful change management, including the implementation of AI tools. Lawyers are well-equipped for this due to their education.
Thank you, we will be continuing the discussion in the autumn!
A big thank you to the EY Law’s Reino Hyvärinen, Teemu Oksanen and everyone who participated in the discussion! We will continue the dialogue on August 14th from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, when Finnish technology and legal design service providers will showcase their services and products—with a focus on people and business needs, of course.
Have a nice summer!
Heikki
Translation Alicia Hölttä
