A conversation with Yelena Shkolnik, a partner at Jump Capital, a venture capital firm with growing interest in legal tech companies. Yelena shares her journey from investment banking and entertainment finance to the world of venture capital, highlighting her focus on identifying transformative technologies.

The conversation delves into Jump Capital's investment philosophy, particularly their thematic approach and focus on Series A and B funding rounds. Yelena articulates what makes a legal tech company attractive to Jump, emphasizing the importance of demonstrated traction, a strong team dynamic, and a deep understanding of the specific challenges and opportunities within the legal industry. 

Yelena provides a nuanced perspective on the billable hour model and the potential for technology, including AI, to reshape legal workflows and access to justice. She also shares her thoughts on the necessity of legal background for founders and whether legal tech will eventually just become "tech".

Key Takeaways:

• A deep understanding of the legal industry's nuances and specific problems is crucial for attracting legal tech investment.

• While AI presents significant opportunities, the entrenched nature of law firms and the complexities of legal workflows require thoughtful and targeted solutions.

• The rise of legal operations within enterprises is driving demand for technologies that enhance efficiency and manage risk.

• The consumer side of legal tech holds significant potential for expanding access to justice.

Amanda Tuminelli, Chief Legal Officer for the DeFI Education Fund, visited the podcast in September to discuss her crypto journey, her role with the organization and its objectives.

Since then, she was promoted and is now the Executive Director of DEF which is a nonpartisan research and advocacy group working to explain the benefits of DeFi, achieve regulatory clarity for the future of the global digital economy, and help realize the transformative potential of DeFi for everyone.

Amanda goes in depth into the DEF’s areas of focus:

• Research and Advocacy

• Policymaker Education

• Messaging for Crypto Companies

• Research about Blockchain Issues and Regulations

• Providing “Legal Firepower” to Crypto Causes; and

• DeFi Project Best Practices

Amanda also discusses how lawyers can pursue a career in crypto and why that wasn’t the case a few years ago. It’s not only an option now because the industry is more mature, but also because of the openness of those in the crypto world and their desire for passionate individuals to join them. To get a job in crypto law, Amanda emphasizes the importance of understanding the technology and finding projects of interest. 

So how did Amanda get to the DEF? She started out as a securities and white collar crime lawyer, but a case came along that would change her career trajectory. She was working for Kobre and Kim, a law firm focused on disputes and investigations, when the firm was hired by a client accused of running an illegal crypto mining scheme. To get up to speed on the case and get her client out of jail, she had to dive deep into learning about blockchain technology and that is when she caught the bug. A few years later, a friend and former college friend contacted her about joining the legal team at the DeFI Education Fund and she took them up on it.

Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI

In this episode, author of "Systemology" and business systems expert, David Jenyns, discusses the importance of systemizing business processes, even in the nuanced field of law. Jenyns debunks the myth that legal work is too bespoke to be systemized, explaining how just like any other business, documenting legal workflows unlocks scalability and creativity. He shares his journey from digital SEO agency owner to becoming a systems expert and outlines the seven steps of his Systemology framework.

• Key Topics:

• The importance of documenting processes in any business, including legal services.

• How systemization can create space for creativity in legal work.

• The Systemology framework and its seven steps: Define, Assign, Extract, Organize, Integrate, Scale, and Optimize.  

• The role of a "systems champion" in implementing a systems culture.

• Addressing common misconceptions about systemizing legal work.

• Practical tips for getting started with systemizing processes.

• Timestamps:

• [00:00:00] Introduction and guest introduction: David Jenyns

• [00:02:00] David Jenyns's background and journey to systemology

• [00:08:00] The importance of a systems culture

• [00:12:00] Addressing the question: Why systemize?

• [00:15:00] Systemizing bespoke work, specifically in the legal field

• [00:20:00] The seven steps of Systemology

• [00:21:00] Step 1: Define

• [00:28:00] Step 2: Assign

• [00:30:00] Step 3: Extract

• [00:33:00] Step 4: Organize

• [00:37:00] Step 5: Integrate

• [00:46:00] Step 6: Scale

• [00:50:00] Step 7: Optimize

• [00:54:00] Where to start with systemizing processes

• [00:56:00] Conclusion

• Resources Mentioned:

• Systemology by David Jenyns

• System Hub software (systemhub.com)

• The E-Myth by Michael Gerber

• Technically Legal Podcast

• Systemology Podcast (Mentioned interview with Crow Estate Planning firm)

• Systemology Website: systemology.com

Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI

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A conversation with Sean Fitzpatrick, CEO of LexisNexis, North America, UK, and Ireland. Fitzpatrick discusses how LexisNexis is integrating AI into its products to enhance legal practice. The discussion covers the company's approach to innovation, the role of AI in improving attorney efficiency and client outcomes, and the future of legal technology. Key topics include LexisNexis's AI assistant "Protégé," the company’s philosophy on AI, and the impact of AI on the legal profession.

• [0:09-1:43] Introduction to Sean Fitzpatrick and LexisNexis's focus on AI in legal tech.
• [2:05-4:37] Fitzpatrick's career journey at LexisNexis and the evolution of the company's technology.
• [7:48-8:20] LexisNexis's philosophy on AI: to make attorneys more efficient and drive better outcomes.
• [8:20-10:24] Overview of LexisNexis's AI tools, including Protégé and its features (drafting, Vault, etc.).
• [11:46-12:45] LexisNexis's partnership with OpenAI and its benefits.
• [15:14-16:01] The importance of data in AI and LexisNexis's approach to ensuring reliability and combating hallucinations.
• [16:30-17:37] Explanation of agentic AI and its significance for the legal field.
• [19:05-19:31] The role of document management systems (DMS) and LexisNexis's integration with them, including the acquisition of Henchman.
• [24:17-25:39] Discussion on the impact of AI on legal jobs and the belief that AI will augment, not replace, lawyers.
• [27:30-28:27] Fitzpatrick's prediction on the rapid advancement and adoption of generative AI in the legal industry.

A conversation with Jaron Luttich, co-founder of Element Standard, a legal tech startup designed to bring transparency and organization to litigation. Jaron discusses how Element Standard's "CONTROLit" app and litigation cartography help litigators manage cases, improve client communication, and streamline internal processes. He highlights the disconnect between traditional legal practices and modern client expectations for transparency, drawing comparisons to consumer experiences like ride-sharing and package tracking. Jaron also addresses how the litigation management software can enhance associate training and provide valuable structured data for law firms. The company will be participating the ABA Techshow 2025 Startup Alley.

• elementstandard.com

• Jaron Luttich's LinkedIn profile

• CONTROLit™ by Element Standard - Legaltech Hub

• Element Standard's LinkedIn page.

Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI

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This episode involves two people with very distinguished careers. Bridget M. McCormack who now heads the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and Colin Rule, the founder of ODR.com just acquired by The AAA.

Bridget has served in just about every role you can in the legal industry. She started her legal career in legal aid and as a public defender handling trials and appeals. She then moved to teaching law school, first at Yale and then Michigan.

After her stint as an educator, she decided she wanted to help foster even more change and won a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court where she ultimately ascended to the position of Chief Justice. Fast forward to 2023 and she took the helm of the AAA.

One of Bridget’s biggest initiatives at AAA is bringing tech into the arbitration process and that is where Colin Rule comes in. He founded an online dispute resolution (ODR) company, about 15 years ago that ultimately became ODR.com which the AAA just announced it was acquiring.

To say that Colin is an ODR OG is an understatement. He literally wrote the book on ODR way back in the early days of the internet. Ebay brought him on board in the early 2000s where he headed up the company’s ODR function.

In this episode Bridget and Colin discuss: 

• AAA's acquisition of ODR.com: The strategic partnership between AAA and odr.com to revolutionize dispute resolution.

• AI's transformative role in dispute resolution: How AAA is using AI internally and through external tools to improve efficiency and accessibility.

• The future of dispute resolution: A vision for a more accessible, efficient, and user-friendly system that leverages technology and data.

Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI

This episode features Daniel Rollingher, co-founder of Fabrica, a company leveraging blockchain technology to revolutionize real estate ownership. Rollingher discusses Fabrica's innovative approach to putting real estate titles on chain, creating a more transparent and efficient system for property transactions. He explains how Fabrica's platform uses NFTs to represent property ownership, simplifying the process of buying, selling, and managing real estate assets.

The conversation also explores the legal framework behind Fabrica's blockchain real estate platform, including the use of trusts and smart contracts to ensure secure and verifiable ownership. Additionally, Rollingher touches on the use of blockchain in real estate to address challenges in the traditional real estate market, such as title insurance and liquidity issues.

Key Takeaways:

• Fabrica uses NFTs to represent real estate ownership, streamlining transactions and property management.

• The platform employs a unique trust model to connect on-chain ownership with real-world legal frameworks.

• Fabrica aims to improve transparency and efficiency in real estate transactions through blockchain technology.

• The company is exploring the potential of blockchain and real estate to disrupt traditional processes, such as title insurance and recording deeds.

• Fabrica's platform offers solutions for unlocking liquidity in land assets and other real estate holdings.

• The company is actively working on expanding its blockchain real estate platform to new jurisdictions and asset classes.

Resources/Links:

• Fabrica website: fabrica.land

• Daniel Rollingher on Twitter: @notdroll

Jack Weinberger, co-founder of Ajax, a legal tech app that handles timekeeping for lawyers, shares his unconventional journey from finance to legal tech. Jack discusses his experiences in investment banking and private equity, and how those roles, while not directly related to law, sparked his interest in entrepreneurship and ultimately led him to the world of legal tech. He details the challenges of building a legal tech company, emphasizing the importance of understanding the specific needs of lawyers and addressing the critical concerns of data security. Jack also provides insight into Ajax's innovative approach to timekeeping, which uses AI to automate the process of generating time entries by analyzing a lawyer's activity on their computer. He explains how Ajax integrates with popular practice management software and highlights the significant time savings and increased accuracy that Ajax offers to legal professionals. Finally, Jack shares some exciting upcoming features that Ajax is developing, including capturing impromptu conversations and further streamlining the user experience.

Key Takeaways

• Career transitions from finance to legal tech are possible, highlighting the transferable skills and entrepreneurial spirit.

• Building successful legal tech solutions requires a deep understanding of lawyer workflows and pain points, with timekeeping being a major one.

• Data security is paramount in legal tech, and companies must prioritize client confidentiality.

• AI is transforming legal practice by automating tasks like timekeeping, allowing lawyers to focus on higher-value work.

Additional Information

• Ajax website: https://www.joinajax.com/

• Learn more about Jack. 

This episode features Tom Dunlop, founder of Summize, a contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform. Tom discusses his unique path to founding Summize, from his background as a professional athlete and lawyer to his passion for solving real-world problems with technology.

Key takeaways:

• The genesis of Summize: Tom explains how his experience reviewing hundreds of contracts manually led to the idea for Summize.

• Early challenges and the evolution of AI: Tom describes the initial challenges of summarizing contracts using AI in 2018 and how the advent of generative AI has revolutionized Summize's capabilities.

• Summize's unique approach: Summize differentiates itself by embedding its functionality within popular workplace tools like Slack, Teams, and Microsoft Word, allowing users to manage contracts without leaving their familiar workflows.

• How Summize works: Tom explains how Summize uses AI to curate contract data and provide summaries that are relevant and tailored to specific business needs.

• The future of Summize: Tom shares his vision for the future of Summize, including plans to further leverage AI, enhance native integrations, and incorporate validated content from the legal community. 

Resources and Links:

• Summize Website: summize.com

• Connect with Tom on LinkedIn

Keywords: legal tech, contract lifecycle management (CLM), AI, generative AI, contract summarization, legal technology, Summize, Tom Dunlop, Microsoft Word, Slack, Teams, Outlook, DocuSign

A conversation with Lucas Moskowitz, General Counsel for financial services company Robinhood. Launched in 2013, Robinhood’s stated mission is to "democratize finance for all" by making it easy for investors to start investing with a few bucks rather than having to be a high roller. Key to this effort is the fact that Robinhood offers commission-free trading and also provides access to cryptocurrencies.

The discussion covers various topics, including:

• Robinhood’s Mission: Lucas explains Robinhood's mission to democratize finance by breaking down barriers to investing and making it accessible to everyone, regardless of their financial background.

• Lucas’s Career Path: Lucas shares his unique career journey, transitioning from big law to the SEC, Capitol Hill, and eventually Robinhood. He emphasizes the importance of diverse experiences in shaping his perspective.

• Regulation in the Financial Industry: Lucas advocates for a data-driven approach to regulation, striking a balance between investor protection and fostering innovation and access.

• Crypto & Blockchain: The potential of crypto and blockchain technology is explored, with Lucas highlighting their role in making financial markets more efficient.

• Education: The importance of educating investors about making sound investment decisions and also educating legal professionals about emerging technologies like blockchain and tokenization of assets.

Stay in the know:

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Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI