So, what is LegalLean anyway?
In these #LegalLean segments, I discuss the trend of the appropriate fee earner being apportioned to do the right task and the movement toward utilization of resources other than lawyers. Does it really take a lawyer to conduct document review? Aron and I discussed the rise of Attenex out of Seattle as result of the Microsoft SEC case in this Techvibes piece. In today’s world, you would not use hundreds of lawyers charging hundreds of dollars per hour to conduct document review unless you are looking for a way to gouge your clients to the point of brushing up against malpractice. You would use technology. And even your document reviewers might not be lawyers.
Video Duration: 2:59
LegalLean can be defined many ways, but for Aron and I, it is the fusion of elements of Lean Startup and Lean Six Sigma and applied to the legal space. As Richard Suskind (everybody drink!) postulates, legal work is migrating from the “Bespoke–bet the farm” work, across a continuum whereby it is becoming less bespoke and increasingly standardized, systematized, packaged and commoditized.
Professor William D. Henderson of Indiana University has written an excellent paper outlining the challenges facing Big Law and the movement toward Lean Law.
“The traditional legal services market is now confronted with a productivity imperative.
There are two key factors at play: 1. Big Law has way too many lawyers and there are more firms competing for less of the prized “bespoke” work; and 2. There are new entrants providing legal services which are more nimble, process savvy and technologically enabled.
We look forward to diving deeper and highlighting specific #LegalLean examples, tools, methods and case studies.
You can also learn more about the evolution of lean models in the video below and the push.
Video Duration: 2:19
So who are the key providers in #LegalLean? Increasingly, the players are non-lawyer entrepreneurs like Elevate Services, Axiom and Pangea3 who use global operations to take advantage of labour and wage arbitrage, but also best mix of people, process and technology.
REFERENCES
Companies
www.elevateservices, www.axiomlaw.com, http://www.pangea3.com/
From BigLaw to Lean Law – Professor William D. Henderson, Indiana University Maurer School of Law
As We Embrace Future of Legaltech, Let Us Not Forget Lessons from the Past originally posted in Techvibes By Jason & Aron
Jason Moyse’s Full Talk on the Mashup of Echo Chambers #LegalLean, February 2015, Toronto Video Duration 33:07