Reinventing Professionals

I spoke with Catherine Krow, the founder of Digitory Legal, a legal budgeting and resource management system for lawyers and corporate law departments. Before starting Digitory Legal, Catherine practiced for 17 years and was a litigation partner in the San Francisco office of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. We discussed the genesis of Digitory Legal, why legal budgeting and resource management are important issues for law firms and their clients, how the Digitory Legal system works, key trends, and advice for lawyers practicing in today’s legal market.

I spoke with Max Rosenthal, an in-house labor and employment attorney with a large media company, who is also the author of The Bridge: How to Launch Your Career Through a Legal Internship. We discussed his interest in writing the book, what law students and newer lawyers should be focusing on in the current market, strategies for finding an internship or a mentor, the greatest challenges ahead for law students and new practitioners, and what employers are looking for when hiring a legal intern or a junior attorney.

I spoke with Steve Couling, the vice president of international at kCura, the developers of Relativity. His team works with corporations, law firms, government agencies, and its channel of Relativity authorized partners in EMEA, Asia Pacific and South America, and produces Relativity Fest in London. We disclosed how the e-disclosure industry has evolved in the UK, the impact of Brexit and GDBR, among others, on that shift, kCura’s decision to bring Relativity Fest to London (registration link), and what attendees can expect at this year’s conference.

I spoke with Lauryn Haake, a managing director for HBR Consulting, a company focused on law firm and law department operations. We discussed the rise of contract lifecycle management (CLM), the most pressing issues in this area, how legal teams can apply CLM, the one thing that teams should focus on if they want to successfully manage their contracts, and where the CLM sector headed. Lauryn will also be speaking at the upcoming Apttus Accelerate conference in San Francisco.

I spoke with Kiwi Camara and Neil Etheridge, CEO and vice president of marketing, respectively, for DISCO, a cloud-based e-discovery software provider. We discussed the genesis of DISCO, how its technology is influencing the modern practice of law, its business model, and where the e-discovery software sector is headed, among other topics.

I spoke with Peter Rouse, an intellectual property lawyer and a serial entrepreneur, who is the founder of the Rouse Firm, an international intellectual property consulting business. Peter is also the author of Every Relationship Matters: Using the Power of Relationships to Transform Your Business, Your Firm, and Yourself, the second edition of which the ABA released last summer. We discussed the genesis and new edition of Every Relationship Matters: Using the Power of Relationships to Transform Your Business, Your Firm, and Yourself, how technology is impacting the way lawyers practice, Where professionals should focus their efforts and develop skills to remain relevant, and whether one can create an instruction manual for a successful professional career. Peter also shared two of his key career themes: (1) Do what you say you are going to do to build trust; and (2) Managing expectations is what client service is about.

I spoke with Adam Cohen, an attorney and a managing director with the Berkeley Research Group, a global strategic advisory and expert consulting firm. He is a Certified Ethical Hacker and provides guidance on data governance, compliance, and security, including cybersecurity, digital forensics and electronic discovery. We discussed his role at the Berkeley Research Group, the work he performs as an ethical hacker, his evolution from a law firm partner to a consultant with technical data security certifications, the distinctions between the challenges that in-house lawyers face versus those of their outside counsel, and where data governance is headed.

I spoke with Brett Owens, the founder and CEO of Chrometa, a time keeping software platform for lawyers and other professionals who bill hourly. We discussed the genesis of Chrometa, the difference between timekeeping software and time entry technology, key time capture trends, and where the market is headed, among other topics.

I spoke with Ben Whetsell, a co-founder of Paper Software, the developer of Contract Tools for Windows and Turner for Mac, which are contract review and analysis tools. We discussed the genesis of Paper Software, why legal professionals need contract review and analysis technology, and how the evolution of the way lawyers practice impacts the need for tools of this type.

I spoke with Phil Homburger, president of LawBase, a leading case and matter management system, and David Rueff, a shareholder and the legal project management officer at Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC, who oversees the development of the firm’s legal project management solution, BakerManage, and is on the board of directors of the firm’s subsidiary, LegalShift, which is collaborating with LawBase to bring its technology to the broader market. We discussed BakerManage and the genesis of its development, the collaboration between Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC and LawBase, why project management has become so important for legal professionals, and what an initiative like this one symbolizes about the evolution of the legal industry, among other topics.