There is much talk of #AI in law right now – and with good reason. Just like their #Outsourcing #Offshoring #BPO #HRO #RPO industry prequels, early days in #Law of #eDiscovery #CLM and #CRM (and other disciplines) all had their learning curve – and we know well that not all who start the journey, finish it.

But the direction is clear for an industry in which so many practitioners still perpetuate the myth about the value of essentially rote work, the infallibility and irreplaceability of lawyers, and the way in which tech will happily and largely bypass the practice of law.

As international geographical/professional boundaries fall and competitive forces increase, as clients get smarter than their lawyers about how they can get stuff done, as tech eats into the pie of “what lawyers do” – the world changes. And there is no going back.

Even with its known limitations, the promise and potential of tech versus timesheets is an time/cost arbitrage opportunity too great to miss. Tech in law is the modern day equivalent of labor arbitrage in early outsourcing days – fast meaningful (bookable) gains in time, cost and productivity.

We may be at the “VHS tape point” in the #AI tech continuum specifically – but recall how quickly we got to full-on, always-on media streaming. And no one is going back.

I’m asked for my advice for youngsters contemplating law as a career and my advice is get the best grades you can and don’t be afraid of being an independent thinker. If you don’t like tech or you’re threatened by it, think twice. Then consider a different career. Tech isn’t done with law – not by a long shot.

David T. Kinnear
aka: @hipcounsel | Barrister | Mediator | Adjudicator
Publisher: HPC.law | Follow #hipcounsel
London, New York & Dublin