Aftab Bose

Legal tech is a prolific industry – new tools, solutions and versions of varying abilities arrive on the scene at a faster pace than many law firms are capable of monitoring. Choosing the right systems while also managing internal operations, client work and wider economic developments is already a significant challenge. And once the choice is made for better or worse, implementation is a whole new journey riddled with its own challenges such as integration, adoption, utilisation and more.

Among the complex blend of factors that has contributed to an exodus of talent from the legal sector in recent times is a growing workload – particularly a rising pile of administrative tasks – for lawyers, as they look to satisfy ever-intensifying client demands. SME law firms looking to balance a good employee experience with a better client journey have tended to throw technology at the problem, though not always with the best results. “We’ve ended up in a world of point solutions in SME legal.

The rapid pace of disruption that we witnessed during the pandemic has slowed to an extent. SME law firms have settled into a new normal where the defining challenges have remained constant over the last 12 months – recruitment, compliance and security, optimising tech investments, settling into hybrid working patterns, and finding a sense of purpose to match evolving social and economic values.