Reinventing Professionals

I spoke with Dean Sappey, the President and co-founder of DocsCorp, a software company that develops a range of document productivity and security tools for law firms, including pdfDocs, compareDocs, contentCrawler, and cleanDocs. We discussed the genesis of DocsCorp, how the use of digital files is impacting the legal profession, GDPR compliance and how that treatment of digital information is affecting data security and privacy, and upcoming software developments in the legal industry.

I spoke with Mark Noel, the Managing Director of Professional Services for Catalyst, a provider of litigation support software and services. We discussed the webinar Catalyst hosted with Rees Morrison of Altman Weil, Inc. – Centralize, Simplify, Save – How to Leverage Technology to Decrease Outside Legal Spending – focused on the results of the consulting firm’s 2016 Chief Legal Officer Survey, how the report addresses the approach to metrics and cost reduction by corporate counsel, why outside counsel should provide that information to their clients, and ways that artificial intelligence and machine learning are helping to respond to the concerns of chief legal officers, among other topics.

I spoke with Jared Coseglia, the founder and CEO of TRU Staffing Partners, a leading e-discovery and cybersecurity staffing agency. We discussed the genesis of TRU Staffing Partners, current trends in e-discovery and cybersecurity talent acquisition, the impact of consolidation on the industry, the emerging legal technology gig economy, the e-discovery and cybersecurity roles that are in greatest demand, and tips for gaining a competitive advantage in your career or the job market.

I spoke with Chris Chalstrom, Brandon Ward, and Ben Legatt, the founders of Sadie Blue Software, the maker of Agility Blue, a project management tool for the legal profession.

We discussed the genesis of Sadie Blue Software, the problems that Agility Blue solves, why project management has become so important in efficiently managing legal projects, and how the development of tools like Agility Blue reflect where the legal market is headed in 2017, among other topics.

I spoke with Jim Vint, a Managing Director and the Practice Lead for the Global Legal Technology Solutions group at Navigant, an international consulting firm.

We discussed the e-discovery issues with which clients are struggling, key best practices for navigating the current market for discovery, the power of analytics, and where the legal industry is headed in 2017, among other topics.

I spoke with Jessica Block, a Senior Managing Director and leader of the data governance practice at Ankura Consulting Group, a business advisory and expert services firm.

We discussed the rise of cyber incidents and how data governance can influence prevention strategies in law firms and legal departments, advice for companies struggling to manage information risk, and key areas on which to focus, among other topics.

I spoke with Adam McDonell, the founder and president of Salladore, a software platform that streamlines assignment workflow and facilitates communication for attorneys at law firms and corporate legal departments. We discussed the genesis of Salladore, its primary function, the roadblocks to work allocation in law firms and corporations, ways that Salladore’s software streamlines workflow communication, and how tools like Salladore are helping organizations adapt to a changing legal environment.

I spoke with Krishna Srinivasan, a founding general partner at LiveOak Venture Partners in Austin, Texas, an early stage venture capital firm, with investments in a variety of companies, including e-discovery review software provider, DISCO. We discussed the genesis of LiveOak Venture Partners. how the firm makes investment decisions, why legal technology is currently attracting so much attention, the advantages and disadvantages of investing in legal, and investment trends in this sector for 2017.

I spoke with a panel of industry leaders in a virtual roundtable about where the legal field is headed and asked for their advice on navigating prospective 2017 challenges. The participants include: Laura Broomell, COO of Greene Espel, and president of the Association of Legal Administrators; Ray English, Assistant Dean for the Office of Career and Employment Services at Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University; Jordan Furlong, principal, Law21; Tony Gomes, SVP and General Counsel, Citrix Systems; Bill Henderson, Professor of Law, Indiana University Maurer School of Law; Kate Holmes, managing director, FTI Technology; and, Joshua Rothman, partner, Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto. From cybersecurity and global policy uncertainty to changes in the selection of outside counsel and career services aligning with admissions, descriptions of a destabilizing market were tempered with a recognition of the opportunities ahead.

I spoke with David Ahrens, the chief marketing officer of FRONTEO USA, Inc., a publicly-traded global technology and services company that specializes in big data, artificial intelligence, information governance, managed review and litigation consulting for the e-discovery market. We discussed the company’s acquisition of managed review provider Essential Discovery, Inc., how the addition of EDI supports the company’s continued reinvention, why M&A so active in the legal technology community, and where the industry is headed in 2017.