Top 3 Tech Trends in the Legal Industry in 2016
In recent years, Singapore’s legal industry has been facing a talent drain. Various news outlets have reported12 that the oversupply of fresh law graduates, coupled with the shortage of mid-tier lawyers, is threatening the city-state’s vision of becoming a legal hub. It does not help that legal firms are also increasingly under cost and time pressure from their clients who are far more demanding than ever before. With cost and manpower issues to contend with, adopting legal technology, then, may be an effective way to weather at least part of the storm.
The issue, however, is that the legal industry tends to remain fairly resistant when it comes to new technologies — and it is not just Singapore, too. The American Bar Association’s (ABA) annual TECHREPORT echoes mixed uptake rate for new technologies.
To stay ahead of the curve, maybe it is a good idea to observe upcoming legal tech trends and hopefully adapt to the times. Allow us, then, to make a few bold predictions and provide recommendations as to what you can do about them.
1. Security
Data security will remain a concern in 2016. TECHREPORT 2015 states that 15% of respondents overall reported that their firms had experienced a security breach at some point — and data breach can come from anywhere. From the lack of data encryption and lax printer security measures to allowing employees to bring personal devices to work, these are all areas that legal firms are overlooking in terms of security.
Recommendations: Security measures, such as encrypting stored and transmitted data, should be the No. 1 priority in any company. In a legal firm, this is even more important to maintain high professional standards even as the sector as a whole continues to grow.
Canon’s multifunction devices address security issues when users authenticate themselves at the machine before releasing confidential case documents or contracts. Backend settings can be made where security features like Hard Disk Drive (HDD) Data Erase automatically overwrites and erases data as soon as the job is complete, thus reducing the risk of compromising sensitive information. By adopting secured technologies that require authentication and access control, the firm ensures that only the right people have access to networks, computers and mobile devices.
2. Process Automation
With the advent of Software as a Service (SaaS) models, process automation will likely be an even bigger trend in 2016 among legal firms. SaaS will prove indispensible when it comes to building more robust automated document systems, and firms, both large and small, are expected to begin delivering entire suites of automation and advisory tools built around specific legislation or industry-specific clients.
Recommendations: A good idea is to invest in advanced automation software that streamlines the company’s core processes. Intellectual property (IP) asset management tools, for one, that automates the manual, time-consuming process of managing IP portfolios. Compared to using Microsoft Office applications, process automation tools will allow practitioners to focus on what they do best and improve productivity and, in turn, client experience.
3. Practice Management Software
Practice management software, such as, revenue and document management software, is simple yet effective for firms to raise the quality of service, control expenses and deliver the best possible product to its clients. Also, caseloads are growing at a much faster rate rather than the size of firms these days. As such, many are looking towards software solutions to handle the caseload growth. With too many cases and too few lawyers, managing it all with basic applications, such as Word and Outlook, becomes unfeasible.
Recommendations: Currently, firms are investing in many of the constituent parts of practice management and clearly finding value in those components. When integrated into the overall workflow, the practice management tools available in the market allow office workers and lawyers to access content on the go, at home or the courtroom, thus making daily work more productive. This means more financial savings and, in turn, improved efficiency and client satisfaction.
Think Big Leadership Seminar
If you are in the legal industry and would like to learn more about the upcoming tech trends and how they may impact your business, Canon has a series of high-level discussions lined up just for you. With the listless economy we are facing, join us as we try to decipher what the future holds for the legal industry.
In collaboration with Singapore Press Holdings, Canon is organising the Think Big Leadership Series for those in the legal and accounting industries. Guest speakers will be on hand to share ideas on disruptive technologies as the new normal, how to adapt to new tech trends and give your firm the competitive edge it needs.
Date: 26 May 2016
Time: 2–5pm
Location: Canon Singapore 1 Fusionopolis Place #14-10, Galaxis
1http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/3-out-of-4-local-lawyers-leave-practice-in-the-first-10-years-of-practising-lawsoc
2http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/as-a-legal-career-loses/2574860.html