Guest Notes

Emily Bartkowicz is a 20-year veteran of the legal industry and currently serves as the Litigation Support Manager with Akerman eDiscovery Services. Emily specializes in assisting firm clients and attorneys with a variety of e-discovery and litigation support-related projects, including case management, forensic collection coordination, document collections and document productions. Emily also works with the Director of eDiscovery Services to manage marketing and business development initiatives, technology innovations and financial reporting for the department.

Prior to joining Akerman eDiscovery Services, Emily was a products liability paralegal working primarily in medical device and mass torts defense work, including multi-district litigation. Emily also has vast experience in general commercial litigation, medical malpractice, construction, and real estate litigation.

Emily is a Certified eDiscovery Specialist, a Registered Paralegal with the Florida Bar, and holds advanced certifications in eDiscovery, Trial Practice, and Discovery from NALA. She also sits on the executive board for the Miami Chapter of Women in eDiscovery.

Guest LinkedIn

Emily Bartkowicz - Linkedin

Key Takeaways

• Ephemeral data is becoming increasingly significant in the legal industry, requiring new approaches to data management.
• Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing e-discovery by enhancing data collection and analysis processes.
• Law firms face several challenges when managing transient data, but practical solutions and strategies are available.
• Integrating AI tools and following best practices can significantly improve data management in legal practices.
• Staying informed about future trends in legal technology is crucial for law firms to remain competitive and efficient.

Guest Notes

Vanessa Barsanti emphasizes the significance of active listening and effective communication in resolving disputes and reaching agreements during legal proceedings. She also explores the cautious yet optimistic approach to integrating Gen AI into legal workflow.

Guest LinkedIn

Vanessa Barsanti | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Active Listening: Vanessa highlights the importance of truly understanding what the other party is trying to achieve. This involves not just hearing their words but comprehending their goals and concerns.
• Meet and Confer: Vanessa explains that meet and confer sessions are essential for discussing issues with opposing counsel. These sessions must be live (via telephone, Zoom, or in-person) to be effective, as written communication alone does not suffice.
• Effective Communication: Vanessa shares an example where she clarified the opposing counsel's request during a meet and confer. By actively listening and rephrasing their request, she was able to avoid disclosing irrelevant information and reach a reasonable agreement.
• Collaboration Over Adversity: Vanessa believes that legal disputes do not always have to be adversarial. Active listening and collaboration can lead to more efficient and satisfactory outcomes for both parties.
• Ethical Considerations: Vanessa underscores the importance of ethical behavior in legal practices. Accusations of bad faith or ethical violations should be handled seriously and transparently, as demonstrated by her experience with a recorded meet and confer session.
• Gen AI's Potential: Vanessa believes that Gen AI will be highly beneficial and useful to lawyers, even more so than other layers of AI technology.
• Current Applications: Vanessa has seen Gen AI being used to provide summaries of deposition transcripts, which saves significant time and effort.
• Internal Use: Vanessa is exploring the use of Gen AI for internal tasks such as document summaries and identifying key documents. However, she is cautious about using it for external-facing tasks like document review and production due to the lack of case law and validation standards.
• Client Involvement: Some clients are interested in using Gen AI for tasks like creating privilege logs and building chronologies. Vanessa emphasizes that they only use Gen AI on client data with explicit permission.
• Validation and Case Law: Vanessa is not yet ready to use Gen AI for high-risk, external-facing tasks until there is clear guidance from courts on its appropriateness and the kind of validation required.

Conclusion

Vanessa Barsanti's insights emphasize the value of active listening and collaboration in the legal industry, promoting a more effective and ethical approach to resolving disputes. Additionally, her cautious yet optimistic stance on Gen AI highlights its potential benefits while acknowledging the need for further validation and ethical considerations.

Guest Notes

Lynn is the Director of Litigation Support in the Chicago office of Dykema and has expertise in litigation support, Westlaw, trials, litigation, and document review, making her a valuable source of insights and knowledge for the industry.

Guest LinkedIn

Lynn Tubalinal | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Adoption of AI in Legal Industry: The legal industry is increasingly adopting AI technologies, including generative AI. There’s a buzz around AI that extends beyond the legal industry, making it more exciting and accessible.
• Technology Adoption Pace: The pace of technology adoption in the legal industry is accelerating, partly due to newer attorneys who are more open to using technology.
• Cost Considerations: Cost is a primary consideration when adopting new technologies. Lynn prefers to wait for technology to mature and become more affordable rather than being an early adopter.
• Feedback Loop: Lynn values feedback from attorneys after court cases or technology use to improve services and tools.
• Staying Informed: Lynn stays up to date with the latest technologies by being open to demos and discussions with vendors, even if the technology may not be immediately applicable.
• Practical Business Use Cases: Lynn is focused on finding practical business use cases for new technologies before advocating for their adoption within her firm.

Guest Notes

Stacey is the Counsel and E-Discovery Lead in the Corporate Litigation Department of IBM in the Armonk, New York office. She handles IBM third-party subpoenas and manages all aspects of E-Discovery for Corporate Litigation.

Guest LinkedIn

Stacey Blaustein | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Human element in AI: Stacey emphasized the importance of the human element in AI, particularly in ensuring trustworthiness, transparency, and ethical use.
• Ethical considerations and guardrails: The discussion highlighted the need for ethical considerations and guardrails in AI usage, especially with the rise of generative AI.
• Education and training: IBM places a strong emphasis on educating its employees about AI, requiring extensive training to ensure they understand how to use and implement AI ethically.
• Practical use of AI in legal practice: The conversation touched on the practical use of AI in legal practice, including the potential pitfalls of relying too heavily on AI tools like ChatGPT for drafting legal documents.
• Future of AI in legal tech: The episode concluded with a discussion on the future of AI in legal tech, with a cautious optimism about its potential to improve efficiency and productivity.

Guest Notes

Sarah Alt is an accomplished professional in ethical artificial intelligence with extensive information technology experience working for and consulting with Fortune 1000 companies, professional services firms, institutions of higher education, startups, and nonprofits. As the Chief Process & AI Officer for Michael Best, Sarah spearheads the integration of AI technologies and strategies to drive innovation, excellence, and client value.

Guest LinkedIn

Sarah Alt | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Sarah Alt, as the Chief Process and AI Officer at Michael Best, emphasizes the transformative impact of AI on legal operations. AI is being used to streamline processes, reduce administrative burdens, and enhance the efficiency of legal work.
• The importance of ethical AI is highlighted through Sarah Alt's work with the Ethical AI Consortium. Ensuring AI is used responsibly and transparently is crucial, especially in sensitive areas like hiring and legal services.
• Educating lawyers about AI and its implications is essential. The AI Center of Excellence at Michael Best serves as a platform to demystify AI, create awareness, and prepare legal professionals for the changes AI brings to the industry.
• This episode discusses the evolving landscape of AI regulation, including data privacy laws and executive orders. Understanding and navigating these regulations are critical for law firms to help ensure compliance and protect client confidentiality.

Guest Notes

Maureen Holland brings several years of consulting and hands-on legal technology and E-Discovery experience to her position as Global Assurance Services Manager for AstraZeneca. Having had many roles within the E-Discovery industry throughout her career—vendor, consultant, and E-Discovery advisor for both plaintiffs and defense—she has advised senior executive stakeholders, attorneys, paralegals, and clients on different methods of preserving and managing electronic data throughout the entire E-Discovery lifecycle.

Guest LinkedIn

Maureen Holland | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Maureen draws parallels between her personal achievement of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and her professional journey, underscoring the significance of resilience, determination, and continuous effort in overcoming challenges.
• The episode explores the need for proactive data management, including data governance, data disposition, and reducing data footprints to mitigate risks and costs.
• Building trust and fostering collaboration across different stakeholders and departments are highlighted as essential for successful project implementation and organizational change.
• The theme of simplifying complex workflows and processes to enhance stakeholder engagement and adoption is recurrent throughout the conversation.

Connie Brenton is a seasoned legal operations professional with a career spanning Sun Microsystems, Oracle, and NetApp. She co-founded CLOC and is currently the CEO and Co-Founder of LegalOps.com. Together with Jeffrey Franke, she is bringing the "Running Legal as a Business" conference as part of their latest venture, LegalOps.com.

Jeffrey Franke has been in the legal operations field since 2005, with significant roles at Sun Microsystems and Yahoo. He co-founded CLOC and is now the CEO and Co-Founder of LegalOps.com. Together with Connie Brenton, he is bringing the "Running Legal as a Business" conference as part of their latest venture, LegalOps.com.

Guest LinkedIn

Connie Brenton | LinkedIn

Jeffrey Franke | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

• Evolution of Legal Operations: Connie and Jeffrey discuss the journey from the early days of legal operations to the establishment of CLOC and the ongoing evolution of the field.
• Impact of AI: They explore the current and future impact of generative AI on legal operations, emphasizing the need for early adopters and the potential for AI to drive competitive advantage.
• Role Definition and Training: The importance of defining the role of legal operations professionals and providing proper training and certification is highlighted.
• Community and Mentorship: Connie and Jeffrey stress the significance of building a community and mentoring the next generation of legal operations professionals.
• Future Vision: Their new venture, LegalOps.com, aims to provide comprehensive resources and frameworks to further professionalize and advance the field of legal operations.

Guest Notes

Judge Paul Grimm has made significant contributions to the legal profession, particularly in the areas of e-discovery and legal technology. His work on the Advisory Committee for the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and his scholarly contributions have been instrumental in shaping modern legal practices. Judge Grimm's dedication to improving the legal system's efficiency and fairness through technology is evident in his teaching and writing, making him a respected authority in the field.

Guest Website

Paul W. Grimm | Generic Website

Key Takeaways

• The integration of generative AI in legal practices presents both significant opportunities and ethical challenges. Judge Grimm emphasizes the importance of understanding the capabilities and limitations of GenAI to effectively leverage its benefits while adhering to legal and ethical standards.
• The 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which Judge Grimm helped craft, are more relevant than ever in the context of GenAI, highlighting the need for competence in technology as part of legal practice.
• Access to justice can be significantly enhanced through the judicious use of GenAI, offering promising solutions to longstanding barriers faced by the public in legal systems. However, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of AI-generated legal assistance is paramount.
• The legal profession must engage in continuous education and dialogue about the evolving landscape of technology in law. Judge Grimm's work exemplifies the critical role of legal educators and practitioners in navigating these changes responsibly and innovatively.

Guest Notes

Judge Paul Grimm has made significant contributions to the legal profession, particularly in the areas of e-discovery and legal technology. His work on the Advisory Committee for the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and his scholarly contributions have been instrumental in shaping modern legal practices. Judge Grimm's dedication to improving the legal system's efficiency and fairness through technology is evident in his teaching and writing, making him a respected authority in the field.

Guest LinkedIn

Paul W. Grimm | Generic Website

Key Takeaways

• The evolution of e-discovery and its impact on the legal profession, highlighting the importance of understanding and leveraging technology for effective legal practice.
• Judge Grimm's perspective on the role of judges and lawyers in ensuring the ethical use of technology, emphasizing the need for continuous education and adaptation.
• Insights into the challenges of maintaining justice in the age of generative AI and the potential for technology to improve access to legal services and enhance the rule of law.
• The significance of collaboration and professionalism in the legal community, as demonstrated through Judge Grimm's experiences and rulings, underscoring the value of civility and cooperation in achieving just outcomes.
• Judge Grimm's vision for the future of legal technology and its implications for the practice of law, including the potential for AI to transform legal research, evidence, and the overall efficiency of the legal system.

Andrea is a partner in the New York office of Norton Rose Fulbright and spearheads the firm's outreach to technology sector clients. She focuses her practice on data privacy, e-discovery, cross border discovery, and cybersecurity.

LinkedIn

Andrea D'Ambra | LinkedIn

Key Takeaways

Norton Rose Fulbright has been using predictive AI for more than 10 years, and Andrea is interested in learning how generative AI can be used to make e-discovery easier or faster.

Andrea enjoys using GenAI to create images and is developing her skill level in prompt engineering. She says it is an artform to do it well.

Andrea sees great value in leveraging GenAI in legal technology, but the industry has to develop ways to validate the results.

Norton Rose Fulbright has a monthly e-discovery information governance group where partners discuss the latest technology and receive training to stay up to date on recent developments.