Be a smarter legal leader

Turkeys aren’t the only ones being pardoned this Thanksgiving. California and Oregon law students are escaping the clutches of the bar exam, thanks to the introduction of new alternative programs. These aren’t the first, and likely not the last, instances of states revamping the attorney licensing process. However, California and Oregon’s new alternative pathways are unique from what states like Wisconsin and Utah have already implemented.

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California’s New Idea: Prove that You Can Write a Memo. For 6 Months.

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California law school graduates might be able to practice law without taking the bar exam. You might be asking yourself how the legal profession can go on without this painful right of passage, but the California State Bar has a proposal for how this could work.

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Last week, the State Bar of California’s board of trustees passed a test run of the Portfolio Bar Exam, which is the state’s proposed alternative to the bar. Unlike the multiple-choice questions and essay-writing exercises that attorneys have admitted attorneys to the bar since the 1940s, the Portfolio Bar Exam requires law school graduates to spend four to six months of apprenticeship under a seasoned attorney. Over the course of these 700-1000 hours of “supervised legal practice,” a candidate would accumulate a portfolio showcasing the legal work and experience she gained. The State Bar of California would grade this portfolio, and passing grades would be granted admission to the bar — no bar exam necessary.

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While this alternative has not yet been signed off on by the California Supreme Court, the California State Bar’s support is indicative of California’s movement away from the bar exam and toward a more hands-on procedure. Reactions to this proposed new alternative are mixed. 59 California bar organizations wrote the State Bar a letter expressing concerns that the Portfolio Bar Exam would “allow licensure based on a varying and subjective standard that can be easily manipulated.” However, others still contend that conducting actual legal work for a few months is a far more accurate indicator of a law school graduate’s aptitude for the industry than a grueling two-day exam. Further, it’s hard to argue that being paid for months of hands-on legal experience is a worse deal than taking months off of work to study for the bar.

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Looking ahead, the Portfolio Bar Exam will be tested through a pilot program of about one hundred law school graduates. Though the most recent state to ditch the bar, there seems to be a growing trend across the country which favors a more experience-based, rather than test-based, approach to attorney certification.

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Oregon Thought of it First:

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California’s most recent step towards an experience-based, rather than examination-based, attorney licensure program comes just two weeks after the Oregon Supreme court implemented the same thing. Similarly to California’s proposed program, Oregon’s Supervised Practice Portfolio Examination requires law school graduates to spend 675 hours under the tutelage of a seasoned attorney, yielding a portfolio of legal work that bar officials will grade in lieu of a bar exam. Oregon’s new bar alternative will go into effect May 2024, enabling Oregon law students to look forward to months of paid work rather than months of studying without pay.

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Wisconsin and Utah: Your $200k Piece of Paper is Enough for Us.

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The COVID-19 pandemic inspired Utah to be the first state to enable law school graduates to bypass the bar, but still practice. In April 2020, the Utah Supreme Court approved an “emergency program” wherein recent law graduates who meet a lengthy list of criteria, including conducting 360 hours of legal work under the tutelage of an experienced and licensed attorney, could become full members of the Utah bar without taking the bar exam.

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Similarly, Wisconsin also implements diploma privilege: graduation from the University of Wisconsin Law School automatically translates to being licensed to practice law in that state. Diploma privilege, which dates back to 1870 in this state, enables Wisconsin graduates to practice in federal agencies like the IRS, FTC, and SEC. Law students interested in taking this route, rather than the lose-months-of-your-life-to-bar-studying route, must satisfy academic requirements and pass a character and fitness certification.

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Having your final tuition payment be your final investment into your legal certification—rather than forking out another chunk of your savings for a two-day exam—is an attractive alternative to many law students.

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The Verdict

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Going to law school in Utah, Wisconsin, or Oregon could exempt you from the long process of preparing for and taking the bar exam; plus, the certification process in California seems to be not far behind. Though a longtime shared-trauma experience for attorneys across the country, the bar may soon not be a common experience in the legal field.

X/Twitter has some explaining to do regarding some of it’s allegedly unmarked ads. Earlier this week, Check My Ads, a non-profit advertisements watchdog filed a formal complaint against X/Twitter with the FTC. Check My Ads alleges the following:

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1. X/Twitter misrepresents the methods employed to target users or facilitate third-party ad targeting;
2. X/Twitter misrepresents the disclosure and labeling methods to advertisers;
3. X/Twitter explains its user targeting practices via hyperlinks that are frequently broken.

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Check My Ads is asking for the following relief:

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• Get X to create a public database detailing all advertising on the platform.
• Get X to clearly label all ads.
• Fine the company for violating a 2022 order that prohibits X from misrepresenting its ad practices.
• Require X to give up its ill-gotten advertising gains.
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This complaint follows similar allegations in September by Check My Ads founder Co-Founder Nandini Jammi:

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Check My Ads isn’t the only group that has noted seeing these unmarked ads. TechCrunch, for example, recently explained that it saw this in their timeline:

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So what do they want?

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Check My Ads is seeking the following from the FTC:

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• Get X to create a public database detailing all advertising on the platform.
• Get X to clearly label all ads.
• Fine the company for violating a 2022 order that prohibits X from misrepresenting its ad practices.
• Require X to give up its ill-gotten advertising gains.
• Provide any other relief the Commission thinks is appropriate.

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The Verdict:

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The FTC has really been cracking down on advertisement disclosures as of recent. We fully expect them to take this one seriously.

Have you seen advertisements for the “miracle drink” capable of curing neurological disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's? Well, those ads cost Bang Energy $336 million.

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The suit began in 2018, when Monster Energy sued its ex-rival Bang Energy for false advertising and other misconduct. Monster alleged that Bang misled consumers about the ingredients in, and the benefits of, its product.

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A “Miracle Drink”

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So apparently Bang’s advertised that it’s products contained containing "Super Creatine,” were a "miracle drink" capable of curing neurological disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, and beat it’s competition as the “healthiest energy drink.”

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Unfortunately, Bang is not the cure to Alzheimer’s—nor does it even contain “Super Creatine.” And as you would expect, Monster won the suit and a cool $293 million. The court also banned Bang from continuing to advertise with these strange and outlandish claims. However, Monster is unlikely to ever see this $293 million: after the verdict for Monster, Bang promptly declared bankruptcy.

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But this bankruptcy did not mark the end of Monster’s bone to pick with Bang—Monster was just getting started. Last year, Monster won $175 million in a trademark infringement claim against Bang. Then, this past month, the court awarded Monster all the fees it asked for in the false advertising case:  Monster won $20.9 million in attorneys' fees and $22 million in additional damages. The judge noted the strength of Monster’s case, as well as the "disrespect for the judicial process” exuded by Bang's then-CEO Jack Owoc during the 2022 trial. Thus, Monster’s total damages in the false advertising case amounted to $336 million — one of the largest awards in the history of federal trademark law.

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Despite its awareness of Bang’s advertising blunders, Monster still saw potential in the Bang Energy brand. Monster acquired Bang for $362 million in July 2023, and the acquired assets included Bang’s energy drink products and beverage production facility in Phoenix, Arizona. While Bang might not be able to cure diseases, Monster now plans for its products to use caffeine, rather than shocking ads, to make us feel more alert.

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The Verdict:

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Be very, very careful about what and how you advertise your products. Also, if you have a competitor like Monster, be 10x as careful. Check out the complaint:

The Tesla employee ‘fit varies depending on your role. If you’re assembling cars, you wear a black shirt; if you’re a supervisor, you wear a red shirt; and if you’re a line inspector, you wear a white shirt. Tesla’s “team wear” policy has been the center of recent labor law controversy: employees at Tesla’s Fremont, CA assembly plant alleged that Tesla was in violation of labor laws for prohibiting them from wearing union t-shirts. Tesla argued that these outfit regulations were necessary to protect vehicles throughout the assembly process.

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Tesla started cracking down on employees’ uniforms in 2017. In fact, the uniform policy developed simultaneously to the United Auto Workers’ organizing campaign, causing the union to allege that Tesla was stifling their organizing efforts. Last week, President Biden shared his support of the union's efforts to organize workers at Tesla and Toyota.

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Earlier this week, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals held that Tesla’s uniform policy requiring employees to wear company-issued shirts, and allowing them to wear union stickers, is lawful. This overturned the National Labor Relations Board’s 2022 statement that any employer bans on union insignias were unlawful without falling under special circumstances. Accordingly, the court specifically noted that the NLRB could not legally require Tesla to prove special circumstances to justify its uniform policy. Because Tesla employees could “affix any number or size of union stickers to their team wear," Tesla’s uniform policy poses no interference with union organizing efforts.

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Looking forward, the 5th Circuit continues to deliberate a separate but related matter: Tesla’s appeal of an NLRB decision which purported that CEO Elon Musk’s 2018 tweet—which stated that  that employees would lose stock options if they joined a union—is a violation federal labor law.

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The Verdict:

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More to come on whether Tesla goes 2-0 against the NLRB. Until then, we can rest assured that Tesla employees are allowed to express their union allegiance and spice up their style with pieces of flair.

The more the merrier! Today we’re announcing a new feature called Teams! Now you can easily invite your coworkers to your company dashboard to help each other hire, share favorite freelancers, and consolidate billing and payments.

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How to invite someone from your dashboard

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We made it super convenient and straightforward to invite teammates — simply log into your dashboard and locate the “Invite teammates” button on the bottom left-hand corner. From here, you can add your teammates’ email, role, and assigned positions/engagements (both optional).

Get a second opinion on candidates

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Found a great candidate but want to get the thumbs up from someone else on your team?

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After receiving applications, you can easily share prospective candidates with someone else by inviting them to your dashboard. Your invited teammate can then view profiles, send interview requests, and hire.

Or, simply add teammates when creating a position and the invitees will receive emails from candidates that apply!

Streamline invoice approvals

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Sometimes the AP team can be out of the loop when you need an invoice paid.  Now you can assign the Billing Manager role to your AP team so they get access to your company dashboard, including the Invoices tab. Then, when an invoice is issued, your billing manager will receive an e-mail with the invoice along with the admin users to streamline invoice approval and payment.

Weekly work summaries for everyone

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Weekly work summaries are a week-by-week email breakdown of your spend by freelancer. If you have multiple teammates working with a freelancer, you can invite them and assign them to specific engagements so they can receive the weekly summary emails, and view worklogs in the dashboard on a day-to-day basis.

Alternatively, anyone that you invite can easily join and leave any open position or engagement after getting invited to your dashboard.

Try out this feature now by creating a position or logging in to your dashboard.

Exciting news! We just launched a new way to request interviews with our talent network to make hiring on Lawtrades even faster.

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Here’s how it works:

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What’s new?

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We’ve simplified how you can request interviews without all the back and forth. When viewing candidates, click the “Request Interview” button on their profile.

In this screen, you’ll be able to send a brief introduction of yourself and suggested three times you’re available to chat.

When a candidate accepts a time, you’ll get an email confirmation with a Zoom link to join. You can also track all your upcoming interviews in your dashboard and reschedule if necessary.

After the call, you can let us know how the interview went and easily hire or decline the talent with a click of a button ✨

Try it out now!

Ever since Brandon Une started using Lawtrades at Recharge, his work life has been simplified. As director of legal for Recharge, he has used Lawtrades for important legal work while maintaining a level of flexibility ideal for a versatile startup.  

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“Invaluable,” he said, “is the word we’re using.”

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Lawtrades provided immediate help

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Recharge is the leading subscription payments solution, helping ecommerce merchants of all sizes launch and scale subscription offerings. In May 2021, Recharge closed their Series B round of funding, raising $277 million in growth capital from Summit Partners, ICONIQ Growth, and Bain Capital Ventures to bring the company to a $2.1 billion valuation.

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Brandon, a Harvard Law graduate who previously worked at law firms and other in-house roles and is a former CPA, started at the company in March as the first legal hire. (The legal team has since expanded.)  

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“Lawtrades really helped me to plug in, especially when I was by myself,” he said. “When I needed commercial contract review, both inbound and outbound, they were there for me in whatever capacity that I needed in that area.”

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Lawtrades stood out over other services for its flexibility

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Brandon has mostly used Lawtrades professionals to work on commercial contracts and contract management, but Recharge’s legal team’s workflow varies from week to week. So Brandon wanted a service that fit the varied pace.

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“One of the things I really appreciate about Lawtrades is its flexible model,” he said. “I had interviewed a couple of other providers...but it's a very different business model where you have to commit to a certain number of hours. For me, things just ebb and flow. And I didn't want to run the clock out or just run the meter on things I wasn’t using.”  

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Why Brandon recommends Lawtrades

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In addition to flexibility, Lawtrades has allowed Brandon and the Recharge legal team to focus on the big picture instead of running through every first draft of a commercial contract.

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“If you're a legal team of one, or even two, and you still need to plug holes in places,” Brandon said, “Lawtrades is a really fantastic solution.”  

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More about Lawtrades

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Often, in-house teams may not need the apparatus of a law firm to tackle a specific business need as the best legal talent no longer work exclusively for law firms. At Lawtrades, experienced commercial lawyers join our platform to work on engagements that match their experience and interests. If you’re ready to augment your legal department with a tech-enabled workforce and smart workspace, create a position to get started.

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Akaash Gupta leads the commercial contracting function within the Udemy legal team. He has used Lawtrades since last year, saving time and money, and helping Udemy expand.

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Scaling up with help from Lawtrades

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Udemy offers thousands of online courses for individuals and companies.

As Udemy scales, its contracts with business customers have grown and grown. The faster the legal department can get through the contracts, the more business Udemy can do.

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This is where Lawtrades stepped in, taking some of the load off Udemy’s legal department.

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“The deals on customer templates are complex and long. They will set an attorney back. If an attorney is working on one it will take them like a whole day if not multiple days. That is time we could be spending on other deals and keeping those moving forward. That's been the biggest value add.”

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How Lawtrades has made a difference

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With Lawtrades’ attorneys pitching in, Udemy lawyers have been able to spend more time focusing on the most important contracts and moving forward to the next deal.

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Akaash notes that the sales department has been plenty happy with the legal team’s efficiency.

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“We’ve been able to keep focus and keep moving,” he said.

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Why Akaash recommends Lawtrades

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Akaash has continually been impressed with the experience levels and commercial acumen of Lawtrades’ lawyers.

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“They are very commercially minded, can work independently, and have been in the same positions,” he said. “The people working on our account are people who have worked at similar tech companies at similar stages.”

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More about Lawtrades

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Often, in-house teams may not need the apparatus of a law firm to tackle a specific business need as the best legal talent no longer work exclusively for law firms. At Lawtrades, experienced commercial lawyers join our platform to work on engagements that match their experience and interests. If you’re ready to augment your legal department with a tech-enabled workforce and smart workspace, create a position to get started.

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There’s a buzzword in the techspace called ruthless prioritization. It’s the only way to make a dent in what is usually a never ending pile of work. Michael Marchand, Headspaces’s Director, Legal Affairs, says his legal team often needs extra help so he can ruthlessly prioritize the most relevant projects every day. That’s why he’s hired Lawtrades attorneys to supplement his work.

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Meet Headspace and Michael Marchand

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Headspace is an app that helps people focus, meditate, sleep and manage stress. It’s basically a one-stop shop for anyone who wants to attain a healthier, more mindful lifestyle.

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Michael started working there in 2015, overseeing the Headspace legal department as Director, Legal Affairs. Before that, he worked in IP litigation for a boutique law firm in Southern California. He graduated from Pepperdine Law School and the Pepperdine George L. Graziadio School of Business and Management.  

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How Lawtrades helps Headspace

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• Enterprise offerings: Headspace features a large stable of enterprise customers, and these sales lead to a lot of legal paperwork during the procurement process. Headspace has just one other full-time in-house attorney besides Michael. It used Lawtrades to takeover some of these legal tasks. “That commercial review was taking a ton of time,” Michael said. We needed some additional support.”  He added, “There’s a lot of different areas of domain expertise Lawtrades can help with.”
• More time for issue spotting: “Attorneys are trained that the most important work of the analysis is issue spotting,” Michael says. “You have to pull yourself out of the weeds to do that issue spotting and that's really what Lawtrades has allowed me to do. Rather than spend my time in the nitty gritty and knee deep in indemnification clauses all day, I’m taking a more comprehensive view of the legal program at Headspace. Particularly for a relatively small organization, a small legal department, that's super important.”

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The benefits of Lawtrades over Traditional Outside Counsel

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• No long-term contracts: Michael likes that he can sign up for “pay as you go” services from Lawtrades.
• Single point of contact: Michael communicates directly with his Lawtrades lawyer. “You're not getting routed through a partner for, like, business development...and having the associate doing it and the partner reviewing it and getting double or triple billed.”  
• Friendliness and customer service: “Lawtrades has been a 100 percent success rate of really great people. It's been a great partnership,” Michael says. “As I go into budget planning, I'm always looking for areas to pull more work away from traditional law firms and place it toward Lawtrades.”

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More about Lawtrades

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Often, in-house teams may not need the apparatus of a law firm to tackle a specific business need as the best legal talent no longer work exclusively for law firms. At Lawtrades, experienced commercial lawyers join our platform to work on engagements that match to their experience and interests. If you’re ready to augment your legal department with a tech-enabled workforce and smart workspace, create a position to get started.

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Welcome To Our Invoices Tab

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We're excited to announce our new invoices tab that makes it easier to track your account's finances. Now, you can quickly see the balance due, helping you with budgeting and ensuring timely payments.

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New Features

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1. Search by Date: Now, you can easily search for invoices within a specific timeframe by specifying the start and end dates. This allows for more efficient tracking of past invoices and simplifies the process of finding the information you need.
2. Invoice Number Search: In addition to date-based searches, you can quickly locate a specific invoice by directly entering its number into the search bar. This feature saves you time and enables a faster retrieval of specific invoice details.
3. Filter for Quick Navigation: To streamline your invoice browsing, we have added a handy black filter toggle button on the right-hand side. This enables you to filter through your invoices based on various criteria, ensuring a more focused and customized view of your invoice history.
4. Easy CSV File Download: To help you maintain organized records, you can now effortlessly download your invoices as CSV files. This feature simplifies archiving and allows for easy integration with your existing record-keeping systems.

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These new features are designed to optimize your invoicing experience, providing enhanced search capabilities, efficient filtering, and convenient file downloads.

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With features like date-based and invoice number search, convenient filtering, and easy CSV file downloads, staying on top of your invoices has never been easier.

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Sign up or log in to try our updated invoices tab now!

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Introducing Our New Home Dashboard

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We are excited to introduce our redesigned Client Home Dashboard, emphasizing faster navigation and key widgets at a glance. This update streamlines your hiring experience on Lawtrades, allowing effortless access to new candidates and critical spend analytics.

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At a Glance

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With a single glance, you can quickly view key account information. The new dashboard provides a comprehensive overview of:

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• Your outstanding balance
• New candidates you should interview
• Your Lawtraders recent work logs
• Billings
• Open positions
• Active engagements

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6 Benefits Of The New Redesign

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1. Time Efficiency: Quickly and conveniently access all of your account details without wasting time navigating through multiple screens or menus.
2. Easy Monitoring: Easily keep track of your account's financial status by viewing the balance due. This allows for effective budgeting and timely payment management.
3. Streamlined Recruitment: The visibility of new candidates enables you to promptly review potential hires, ensuring you stay informed about the latest available talent.
4. Stay Updated: Stay in the loop on the status of all your open positions
5. Engagement Management: Monitor both your active and completed engagements with a comprehensive understanding of ongoing projects, facilitating effective decision-making.
6. Work Log Visibility: The availability of recent work logs allows you to monitor your talent’s progress and give feedback.

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The Lawtrades Experience

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Through Lawtrades, you can find your perfect freelance legal talent, manage their workflow, and gain insights to control your spend.

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• Hire with Confidence: We meticulously vet all of our talent so you don't have to.
• Get Full Transparency: Manage work logs and spend analytics directly from the Lawtrades platform.
• Eliminate the Middleman: Skip the law firm mark ups and make your budget go 4x further.
• Work Smarter, Not Longer: Lawtrades data analysis goes beyond the resume to surface the ideal candidate in 24 hours or less.

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If you're looking to hire world-class flexible legal talent and scale your outside counsel work join our client network today and check out why you should use us.

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In this blog post, we will delve into the world of billable hours and explore the essential do's and don'ts that can help lawyers navigate this intricate aspect of their practice. Whether you're a seasoned attorney looking to optimize your billing processes or a fresh-faced lawyer just starting out, mastering these principles can significantly impact your effectiveness, client satisfaction, and ultimately, your success.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid: What Not to Do

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1. Bill Vague Entries: These vague entries can be incomplete, lacking the necessary details, making it difficult to discern the actual tasks performed during that time.
2. ‍Block Billing: This can lead to several issues including lack of transparency and Inaccurate client invoicing. While some clients are OK with block billing, we wouldn’t recommend it.
3. ‍Administrative Tasks: Administrative tasks are not directly tied to the legal services or deliverables you are providing your clients, therefore they are generally not eligible for billing.
4. ‍Paralegal v. Legal Tasks: Have a clear line of communication with your clients about your role and what you will be billing for.
5. ‍Don’t wait until last minute to bill: Being diligent about timely billing is essential for client satisfaction, this ensures that you remain in budget.

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Effective Strategies to Follow: What To Do

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1. Detail, detail, detail: This is essential in order to maintain transparency and effective communication. Being as detailed as possible leaves less room for interpretation and gives your client a clear view of the work being done.
2. Bill each entry separately: Break your tasks down individually instead of clustering them together. General rule of thumb: If its more than 3-4 hours being billed at once, then those tasks must broken down in detail further to avoid confusion.
3. Words are important: We are legal professionals, you must be crystal clear about what you are billing for.
4. Understand what your client wants: If you do not understand the task at hand or your scope of work you may be billing for something your client has no intention of using or doesn’t want done. There needs to be a line of communication between yourself and the client.
5. Bill for everything you do: Meaning everything in the scope of the legal work you are getting done for your client that has been discussed.

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In addition to implementing these strategies, leveraging Lawtrades can optimize your client acquisition or talent recruitment process. Lawtrades simplifies the journey by connecting legal professionals with clients or job opportunities, streamlining billing and operations, and fostering a thriving legal freelance career.

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‍The Lawtrades Experience

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Through Lawtrades, you can find your perfect freelance legal talent, manage their workflow, and gain insights on how to improve their experience.

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• Hire with Confidence: We meticulously vet all of our talent so you don't have to.
• Get Full Transparency: Manage work logs and spend analytics directly from the Lawtrades platform.
• Eliminate the Middleman: Skip the law firm mark ups and make your budget go 4x further.
• Work Smarter, Not Longer: Lawtrades data analysis goes beyond the resume to surface the ideal candidate in 24 hours or less.

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Create your profile today and Check out why you should use us.

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Ashley Pantuliano, an AGC at OpenAI, offers valuable insights into the legal and regulatory implications of AI.

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Concerns Regarding Legal Use Cases

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Privacy and security are major concerns when it comes to utilizing AI tools for legal purposes. It is crucial to exercise caution and ensure the protection of attorney-client privilege when handling client data within these tools.

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ChatGPT

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• Theres an element on Chatgpt where they have the right to train on user data, both the input and output of the conversations but you can opt out of that.
• If you’re a lawyer and you’re using it for your legal work for clients, it might be a consideration to fill out this form and Opt out of training.

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Opt Out: User Content Opt Out Request

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On The API side

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• When someone wants to build a tool on top of this technology through Chatgpt’s API they make that available. So people are currently building legal tech on top of it.
• Chat GPT does not train on data on the API side and it is deleted after 30 days.
• Always keep in mind any data that you input and make sure its compliant with any existing privacy laws such as protected health information or HIPPA.

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Copyright & Liability

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• Copyright and liability are important considerations in the realm of AI. Lawmakers are tasked with addressing how existing intellectual property laws apply to this technology.
• It is crucial to be cautious about potential biases in AI models, and OpenAI is actively working to ensure that these models do not produce or perpetuate biased information.

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Unauthorized Practice of Law

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• The development of tools that can perform legal work autonomously raises concerns about the unauthorized practice of law.
• It is important to ensure that such tools are used in a manner that complies with legal regulations and that they are properly supervised by licensed professionals to maintain the integrity of the legal practice.

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Background

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Memes, Law, and AI? Yes, Alex Su, Head of Community Development at IronClad, is that versatile. We were fortunate to sit down with him to discuss his content, his thoughts on the industry, and where AI will take the practice of law.

Alex: “If you're on Instagram you probably know me for my memes and Tik Toks. What you might not know is that I began my career as a pretty typical Biglaw associate. I ended up making a pivot to legal tech startups six years out of law school, to sell software to lawyers.

Somewhere along the way I discovered the power of social media marketing, and now I've got a unicorn job at Ironclad, a legal Al company that's focused on contracts.”

Matt: “Wild ride, man. How did you end up going from BigLaw to Legal Tech?”

Alex: “It definitely didn't happen overnight. After leaving Biglaw, I went to a plaintiffs' firm where I saw them use legal tech to level the playing field against huge litigation teams on the other side. After some introspection and setbacks (including starting a solo practice that ended up failing) I decided to jump into the tech space. I was living in the San Francisco Bay Area at the time and saw how tech was revolutionizing other industries and figured it wouldn't be long before it happened to the legal industry.

Matt: “That's awesome. You were one of the first people (actually maybe the first person) who I knew who made a move like that. Did people trip up when you did it, Friends/family in particular?”

Alex: “They definitely did. Especially since there's this perception that if you go into legal sales (like tech, recruiting, and others) you're a failed lawyer. You also lose the feeling that you're Headed In The Right Direction. So explaining yourself to your friends and family can be hard. But I had the support of my family and loved ones, and was in a good financial place after paying off loans and saving up money. I figured I'd be making a bet on the next few decades of my career.”

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Pivoting from Big Law to Social Media

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Matt: “ So you’re all over the internet. Memes, Tiktoks, Reels, Tweets etc. How’d you get into it and how did you go from memes/videos to writing on Substack?”

Alex:  “It all started on Linkedin of all places. I was a sales guy who struggled to get in touch with the lawyers I was trying to sell to. So I decided to try my hand at ‘social selling’ by writing about my career journey on Linkedln. I built a small following over the years, and saw firsthand how it could help drive business development.

When the pandemic hit I was in the right place at the right time. In March 2020, I was actually scared I was gonna get fired because all of my buyers stopped responding to me. All my work dried up. So I decided to experiment with all kinds of new things, including putting out controversial hot takes, hosting Zoom meetups, and making video skits poking fun at the legal industry. Those videos took off, I got on TikTok, and ended up riding the wave.

About two years ago, l started writing long form commentary on Substack about what I've seen and heard in legal tech. Given my social media platform and unique position in the legal ecosystem, I meet lots of people and hear about all these changes that are taking place in real time. My goal is to share those insights with my subscribers. That’s why I write the newsletter.”

Matt: “Yeah that's how I found your stuff - TikToks via Linkedin. Funny the comments you used to get vs. now get.”

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Will AI Replace Lawyers?

Matt:  Do you think AI will replace lawyers and if it replaces you, what are you going to do with your life?

Alex: “Definitely not. This latest wave of generative Al is really good at summarizing information, which at first glance might seem like it would replace lawyers. But lawyers do so much more. Complex stuff like counseling, advising, managing risk in dynamic environments. In fact Al might create even more demand for legal work given how people seem to be using it carelessly these days.

However, I do think if your practice involves *only* summarizing and providing information, or copying and pasting text into legal docs, you might be in trouble. I'm optimistic about the impact of Al though, I believe we'll see lawyers do more high value work in the long run.

As for me, I'll just thank my lucky stars that I pivoted out of law. Until Al can make memes reliably I think l'll be ok, haha.”

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Adoption of AI

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Matt: “What do you think lawyer adoption of Al looks like? Are firms & legal departments going to jump in and start using these tools right away?”

Alex: “I believe we'll see pockets of early adopters for Al. Generally I believe small firms and corporate legal departments will be the first ones to lean into it. My belief comes from my experience selling e-discovery tech. Biglaw has a harder time adopting because there are so many partners who have to approve the tech. Like a lone partner who objects to Al can kill off an entire initiative! There’s also this underlying incentive challenge, where efficiency might reduce billable hours.

Also I believe there are certain use cases that are ripe for Al. Contracts for sure, given what l've seen with our customer base at Ironclad. Any time you have a large amount of structured text, you're going to see opportunities to process that information more quickly with Al. Other use cases include startups that are focusing on use cases like generating discovery responses and summarizing documents into chronologies or timelines.”

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The Effect of AI on Legal Professionals

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Matt: “Now what about legal professionals? Paralegals and legal assistants in particular. Do you anticipate Al having a big effect on their roles?”

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Alex: “We definitely will see impact across the board. But historically people said the same thing about paralegals when discovery technology became a thing 15-20 years ago. They said the technology would remove the need for paralegals. And yet history has shown it actually increased the demand. That's the story of technology in a nutshell. We can easily see what tasks it replaces but it's so hard for us to imagine what new work it creates.”

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ChatGPT

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Matt: Now what about the big elephant in the room - ChatGPT. We have that recent story of an attorney using ChatGPT and receiving fake court cases/fake holdings. What's your take on that situation and how do you think courts will react to Al use going forward?

Alex: “Everyone's worried about ChatGPT. It can make up cases and laws that don't exist, which can be dangerous for clients who try to use it on their own. But another challenge, we've seen recently, is that it can enable careless attorneys to use it as a legal research tool, without actually reviewing the underlying cases.

ChatGPT is a free chatbot. It's not the same as an Al-powered legal tech tool that's trained on legal data and documents. It's good for some things and less good for others. Over time it will improve, and people will learn to use it safely. And in doing so, the courts will relax and start to accept it. There’s historical precedent for this: Many years ago the courts were worried about online legal research tools because before then, everyone used physical books. But these days it's not even an issue.

In the meantime though, I highly recommend manually verifying the output of any kind of AI you use. If checking over its work makes you lose efficiency gains, then maybe Al isn't the right tool for that task. At least not yet.”

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Final Thoughts

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Alex: “The world is changing and while the legal industry has historically been insulated from these changes, it won't be for long. The combination of Al, social media, and changing market dynamics means that the career formulas that worked in the past won't necessarily work in the future. But lots of things will get better. And as the world changes, and traditionalist lawyers push against them, you can always rely on me and Matt to make fun of them.”

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Alex Su is a former lawyer who now works at the intersection of law, technology, and new media. Currently, he’s the Head of Community Development at Ironclad, a technology company that helps accelerate the contracting process for corporate legal departments. Earlier in his career, he was an associate at Sullivan & Cromwell and clerked for a federal judge. Alex graduated from Northwestern Law in 2010, where he was an editor of the law review and the student commencement speaker. Alex also publishes a weekly newsletter called Off The Record that includes his commentary on the changes coming to the legal industry.

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Unveiling the Journey: Join us for an insightful conversation with Julian and CeCe, legal professionals turned social media influencers, as they open up about their personal struggles and triumphs in dealing with mental health challenges in the legal field.

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In this event we cover:

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• Setting boundaries for work-life balance
• Dealing with burnout
• Establishing clear time management guidelines
• Shifting your mindset

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Set boundaries and unplug

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In a profession known for its demanding schedules and high-stakes cases, it can be easy to fall into a constant state of being on-call. However, it is crucial to recognize the importance of personal time and establishing clear boundaries between work and personal life.

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• 03:01 By setting boundaries, such as defining specific working hours or designating dedicated time for self-care and relaxation, legal professionals can mitigate the risk of burnout, reduce stress levels, and enhance overall job satisfaction.
• Unplugging from work allows individuals to recharge, nurture their relationships, pursue hobbies, and engage in activities that promote a healthy work-life balance.

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Time is not the metric

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In the legal industry, the prevalent focus on speed and efficiency, epitomized by the billable hour system, has overshadowed the importance of quality. Lawyers are often evaluated based on the number of hours they bill, rather than the excellence of their work. Consequently, this mindset can foster a race to prioritize speed and efficiency, neglecting the essential aspects of innovation and creativity that drive true success.

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• 09:17 Success should be measured by the quality of work, not speed. Taking time to prioritize mental and physical health is crucial. By doing so, we can produce our best work and nurture our well-being.
• Employers should support employees by creating a boundary-friendly environment, offering resources and support for mental and physical well-being. This boosts productivity, efficiency, creativity, and innovation.

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Set time management guidelines

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Setting time management guidelines is vital for preserving a healthy work-life balance. This involves establishing clear boundaries between work and personal time, ensuring that we do not overburden ourselves with excessive work. It also means recognizing the importance of prioritizing our own well-being and self-care.

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• 14:36 By implementing effective time management guidelines, we can optimize our productivity while also safeguarding our mental and physical health. Striking this balance enables us to deliver our best work and maintain our overall well-being.

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Shift individual partner mindset

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The prevailing issue of long working hours and an imbalanced work-life dynamic in the legal industry is a growing concern impacting both employees and firms alike.

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• 30:03 The hierarchical nature of the field places immense pressure on junior associates to meet the demanding expectations set by partners, often resulting in burnout, stress, and a lack of fulfillment. To foster a healthier and more productive working environment, it is crucial to initiate a mindset shift among individual partners.

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Introduce a prorated bonus system

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Shifting from the "all or nothing" bonus model, implementing a proportional bonus system linked to hours worked can offer associates a sense of security while motivating them to excel. This change not only alleviates the pressure on associates to constantly meet partners' demands but also incentivizes their dedication and hard work.

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Create a culture of respect and understanding

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Creating a positive work environment entails actively listening to associates' concerns, valuing their opinions, setting clear boundaries and expectations for task completion, and providing adequate time to fulfill assignments. This approach reduces stress and cultivates a supportive atmosphere.

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Create a network of people who can help to navigate the system

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Forming a support system with mentors, colleagues, and professionals provides associates with advice, guidance, and a sense of community. This network reduces feelings of isolation commonly experienced in the legal profession.

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Join industry titans WeWork, Twitch, and Google as they share insights and experiences, unraveling the mysteries of global product scaling.

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In this event we cover:

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• The Role of a Product counsel
• Expanding Products Internationally
• Utilizing GenAI

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What is a Product Counsel?

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• 3:11 As a Product Counsel, you will play a crucial role at the intersection of law and innovation. Your expertise will be essential in guiding and supporting the development, launch, and ongoing management of cutting-edge products and services.
• You will collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including product managers, engineers, designers, and executives, to ensure legal compliance, minimize risk, and drive business success.

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Their main responsibilities typically include:

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1. Ensure product compliance with laws and regulations.
2. Assess and mitigate risks associated with products.
3. Protect the company's intellectual property.
4. Provide legal advice and collaborate with cross-functional teams.

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Expanding Products Internationally

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• 17:27 As a lawyer, venturing into the realm of expanding products internationally brings a multitude of legal considerations. From compliance with foreign laws and regulations to intellectual property protection, you will ensure seamless legal transitions, mitigate risks, and safeguard the interests of our organization.
• With a keen eye on international trade, contracts, and cross-border negotiations, You will strive to provide strategic counsel that paves the way for successful global product expansion while maintaining legal compliance at every step.

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Utilizing Artificial Intelligence

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• 31:42 As a lawyer working with ML for content moderation, dedicate significant time to exploring how GenAI, like OpenAI's GPT-3.5, is poised to revolutionize the content landscape. The integration of ML models allows for more efficient and accurate identification of potential legal violations in content, ensuring compliance with relevant laws and regulations.
• By leveraging GenAI's capabilities, lawyers can streamline the content review process, reduce manual work, and focus on addressing complex legal issues associated with content moderation, ultimately enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of their legal practice.

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Like this event? Check out our other event replays here.

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We had a chat with Douglas Boneparth (President, Bonafide Wealth) and Tiffany Lee (former Gc, Thrive Market) about two words that can be scary to many....personal finance. With their help, we managed to demystify equity, stock options and financial planning. Get your pen and paper ready to take notes!

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In this event we cover:

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• Managing Your Money
• Understanding Risk Vs. Reward
• Choosing Investments

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Managing Your Money

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To manage your money effectively, focus on both cash flow (money coming in and going out) and net worth (assets minus liabilities).

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• Prioritize paying off high-interest debt before investing or saving.
• Consider automating savings contributions to make it easier to save consistently.

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Understanding Risk vs Reward

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• 6:11 Investing involves balancing risk and reward. Generally speaking, higher-risk investments offer higher potential rewards but also come with higher potential losses.
• Diversification is key to managing risk in your investment portfolio. Spread your investments across different asset classes and industries.

Choosing Investments

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• When choosing investments, consider factors such as fees, historical performance, and the overall market environment. Index funds are a popular choice for many investors because they offer broad exposure to the market at a low cost.

Importance of Tracking Expenses

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Why Track Expenses

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• Tracking expenses is important to understand spending behavior.
• Getting 12 months of data is necessary to account for seasonality and smooth out spending habits.
• Use tools like Tiller Money, Mint, or Rocket Money to plug in accounts and get real data.

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Compensation Structure

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• 18:16 Partners in law firms receive a base salary for three years before their total compensation is increased to seven or eight figures. Partners are responsible for making estimated tax payments directly to the government instead of having withholding come out of their paycheck. This can lead to cash flow issues and confusion about promised compensation.

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Challenges of Partnership

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• The transition to partnership can be challenging due to the sudden increase in responsibility and financial obligations. It may take several years before things normalize, leading to frustration among new partners. Many professionals, including lawyers, lack financial education and rely on working hard and throwing money at problems rather than managing finances effectively.

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You leave a firm, an in-house position, the government, or another employer to finally hang your shingle and go solo. What do you need to know to ensure success? Well, we asked the lawyers of Twitter their thoughts and advice on the topic. Here are the top 10 responses:

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1. Income goes up and down but pay yourself the lower amount until 3 month saved in reserves. Then increase your salary a little until 6 month reserves.
2. Keep your overhead low. Identify low cost resources that fit the way you want to work (billing software, admin support (if needed), calendar, scheduling meetings, email).
3. Be a person. Clients hire people.
4. Learn accounting. You are responsible for the money/the IOLTA.
5. Get clear on your positioning. Be able to articulate: I provide X service for Y market.
6. Develop and nurture relationships with lawyers at big firms (for referrals).
7. Not all clients are worth having.
8. When you are short in cash there is a tendency to ignore client red flags. If you wouldn’t take the case if you were flush… don’t take it!
9. Rome wasn't built in a day... give yourself grace. Work from home as much as possible until you're comfortable enough to afford a store front/office rent. Make life very easy for your clients; emailing, calling, zooming to eliminate office visit.
10. If you’re not drawing a W2 salary from your firm, put 1/3 of every receivable into a separate savings account from your operating account. It makes paying quarterlies a breeze.

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And Lawtrades?

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Looking for clients? Want to build your book of business? We can help. Lawtrades makes it easy for you to operate as a freelance legal professional - helping you find opportunities, get paid, grow your reputation and everything else you need to be a successful legal freelancer.

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Our experts will match you to jobs based in your skill sets and interests and our tech-enabled platform lets you have all your billing and operations managed from one place...easy! Create your profile today and get matched with great opportunities.

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Today, we're going to talk about something that's been getting a lot of attention lately - privacy. With companies collecting and using more data than ever before, the risks associated with privacy breaches are becoming greater. 

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But what should you do as a GC or Head of Legal if you don't have a privacy attorney to guide you? Well, having a baseline level of knowledge about privacy and data protection is essential - even if you don't have a privacy lawyer on staff. To be effective in your role, you need to understand your business and what it does with data. Even if you think your company doesn't have anything to worry about, it's important to make sure you know exactly what you're dealing with. 

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Some questions for you to start thinking about:

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- What does your company want to do with data?

- How do they collect it?

- How do they monetize it? 

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Think about an analytical framework for privacy. Privacy laws are largely mechanistic, meaning they allow you to use data provided you meet certain criteria. If you approach privacy law with this framework, you'll be much more successful in drafting a privacy strategy that meets your business needs. For smaller legal teams, having a baseline level of knowledge about privacy is even more important. If anything, it's even more critical that they understand the risks associated with privacy breaches and how to prevent them.

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One of the biggest challenges that we're facing today is data mapping and governance. With regulators across the globe pushing for more transparency and visibility into how data is used, it's only going to get harder from here. It's tough to put together a dynamic data map that isn't obsolete the moment you publish it. But despite the challenges, it's something that needs to be prioritized if you want to ensure compliance with privacy regulations like the CCPA and GDPR.

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Of course, we understand that not every company has a huge legal team or unlimited resources to throw at this issue. So, what should you prioritize if you're starting a new privacy program? Our advice: data mapping and governance. It may not be the easiest task, but it's one of the most important when it comes to protecting user data. 

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And as for cost-effective ways to do data mapping, we don't have a one-size-fits-all answer. It can take a lot of time, and there are some great tools out there that can help. But ultimately, it's going to depend on your specific company and needs. Talking always helps : sit down with your business units and take lots of notes - it’ll help you understand more about what is being collected and how it is being used.

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And Lawtrades?

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Looking to implement a privacy framework in your business? Need an expert to come in and help? We’ve got you covered. 

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Legal departments of all shapes and sizes use our tech-enabled platform to hire world-class flexible legal talent. We have a top quality bench of privacy attorneys who can ensure that you are staying up to date with the ever-changing state, national and global privacy policies. Check out why you should use us.

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Whatever industry you work in, you can't escape AI. Our co-founder Ashish Walia is obsessed with it and uses different tools every single day. That's why he was so excited to sit down with Ashley Pantuliano (AGC, OpenAI) to discuss how AI will transform the legal industry.

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In this event we cover:

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• What it’s like working at a company with over 20 million monthly users
• How the OpenAI legal team use AI
• Concerns around privacy and liability
• What’s next in AI?

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What is OpenAI?

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• 03:29 OpenAI was founded as an AI research organization in 2015 with a mission to create artificial general intelligence that benefits all of humanity.
• 04:10 It's still governed by a non-profit organization today with a capped profit structure which helps them stay true to their mission.

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How Does Chat GPT Work?

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• 04:49 ChatGPT uses AI to generate human-like text that prioritizes safe and beneficial AI development over returns. It is built on OpenAI's large language model called GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer). It’s basically fancy autocomplete that suggests words based on what it has learned from large amounts of text data from the public internet
• 07:40 It predicts the next most likely word in a sentence by adjusting its weighted numbers slightly. After processing texts over time, it will learn which words are more likely to come after certain phrases or sentences.

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Impact on Legal Industry

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• 08:17  AI models like GPT will not eliminate lawyers or paralegals but rather make them more efficient.
• 08:54 AI models will be useful for natural language tasks like document summarization, customer support, content generation,  reviewing contracts and flagging terms that are against internal policy. It can also help with e-discovery by taking out human error from the equation.

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Privacy and Security Concerns

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• 15:31 Users can ppt-out of training on user data if you're a lawyer using it for your legal work for clients. For legal tools built on APIs, there's a 30-day retention period for data. Ensure that whatever data you're putting in there is compliant with existing privacy laws.
• 17:14 Copyright is another consideration as some jurisdictions don't recognize AI as the author in terms of copyright.
• 17:34 Liability is also a concern, especially regarding malpractice liability. Who's responsible? Does your professional liability insurance cover that?

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The Future of OpenAI

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• 20:59 OpenAI's mission is to achieve artificial general intelligence. The models are improving in quality with each iteration, reducing inaccuracies and improving their ability to answer questions and provide information. There is a lot of work that needs to be done in terms of safety mechanisms, but achieving artificial general intelligence would be very exciting.

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Like this event? Check out our other event replays here.

In our recent commercial contracting event, we asked our expert panel of speakers from Vroom, Elastic, Twist Bioscience & Ironclad what they’re currently experiencing during negotiations.

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Changes in Force Majeur provisions

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The pandemic has changed the way that we contract. We’re seeing the need for more nuanced provisions, and an uptick in negotiations around continuity. It’s almost become an SLA, and providers need redundancies in place for situations like pandemics or natural disasters. If you can’t provide something for a certain amount of time, do you give a discount? What is the back-up plan? These are things that companies are aware of, and asking questions about. Thanks to the economy, businesses are more cost-conscious so we’re also discussing points around termination for convenience and early termination policies much more that we previously did.

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Rise in indemnity caps

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With GDPR and CPRA regulations, companies are experiencing an increased awareness of potential costs associated with data breaches and global privacy laws. What was once a nebulous idea now has actual numbers attached to it and the goal is to limit any risks. One thing to note though, is that privacy negotiations tend to be regionally based and depend hugely on who is involved, along with the type of information being exchanged between both parties.

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Privacy related indemnities, supercaps related to security, confidentiality and procedure in the event of a breach are now highly negotiated terms. In order to mitigate risk while still managing the goals of the business, in-house legal teams are getting much more creative and flexible with regard to privacy related negotiations whereas, 5 years ago, it wasn’t necessary. It’s a different world now when it comes to exclusions and carve outs.

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And Lawtrades?

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Looking to implement processes to ease your legal team's workload and improve the workflow with sales? We’ve got you covered. Not only can our flexible, highly qualified legal talent help improve efficiencies, but the hiring and onboarding process is easy too! 

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Legal departments of all sizes use our tech-enabled platform to hire world-class flexible legal talent. We can help you to stay up to date with commercial contracting market trends, and review your entire network of agreements with our commercial contracting specialists. We also have a top quality bench of privacy attorneys who can ensure that you are staying within the flux of ever-changing global, national and state privacy policies, and make sure are mitigating risk wherever possible. Check out why you should use us.

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Want to see more of our content? We've put together the top 5 things a first-time GC needs to know about privacy and for all you commercial contracting fans, check out our 5 ways in which commercial lawyers can do more with less. You're welcome!

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We welcomed Alex Su (Head of Community Development at Ironclad), Aprajita Tyagi (Commercial Counsel at Elastic), Taylor Dimler (Sr Commercial Counsel at Twist Bioscience) and Ariel Risinger (Commercial Counsel at Vroom) to discuss all things commercial contracting in 2023.

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In this event we cover:

• Tech adoption in contract management
• AI in the legal world
• Market trends in 2023
• What to expect in 2024

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Let’s dig in!

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Tech Adoption in Contract Management

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Increasing Reliance on Technology

• 04:00 Ironclad is seeing strong adoption of technology relating to contracts as that there's a lot of work to be done with very few resources. He mentions that many companies are still using paper for contracting but digital contracting is becoming increasingly popular.
• 05:20 There are many options available, making it difficult to find the right solution.
• 05:57 The contracting process can be complex due to factors such as organization size, process, and risk profile

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Importance of Buy-In

• 06:49 If team members aren't used to utilizing tech tools, implementation may fail.
• 07:48 Smart solutions like Ironclad can save time and improve communication between departments.
• 08:50 There is an increasing dependence on tech tools in day-to-day tasks such as using Monday for overall management or Slack for internal communication.

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New Tools in the Legal Tech Market

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The Limitations of AI in Legal Work

• 10:57 We explore skepticism about the impact of AI on legal work, stating that it cannot replace human critical thinking and troubleshooting. Even something as simple as an NDA required human intervention to resolve issues.

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The Role of Technology in Legal Work

• 13:43 CLMs make tasks easier by helping with organization and keeping track of deadlines.
• 14:16 They note that technology is great for organizing information and creating data about contracts but ultimately cannot replace human decision-making.

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Trends in Contracting

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Companies Moving Up Market

• 15:23 Companies are moving up market and selling more expensive products with complicated contracts meaning there is a lot of demand for commercial counsel across the board.

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Role of Technology in Contracting

• 16:10 Technology can help with routing to more approvers internally but cannot replace the negotiation or redlining process.
• 16:46 AI can create the bones of an agreement based on a database of agreements, but it does not take away from the need for lawyers to negotiate terms and evaluate risk.

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Using AI to Empower Legal Teams

• 18:00 Each AI unit should be viewed as another staff member on your legal team. There is a lot of implementation, training, review, feedback, and refinement involved when using AI for tasks like patent analysis or contract management.
• 18:56 Using AI can empower paralegals and contract managers to handle simpler tasks so that lawyers can focus on larger collaboration agreements.

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AI-Based Tools in the Legal Industry

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AI as a Helper, Not a Replacement

• 19:51 The panelists agree that AI-based tools are here to aid attorneys in their tasks rather than replace them.
• 20:16 There is more adoption of tools that help pull out data from historical documents or highlight key risks, but based on analysis and discussions, these tools will not be replacing attorneys anytime soon.
• 21:10 Chat GPT clarifies that lawyers apply the law to unique facts and situations, while the tool can help find the law that needs to be applied.

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Doing More with Less in Legal Operations

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Revenue Thresholds

• 26:10 Suggestion to follow ACV thresholds but there have been more exceptions lately to those thresholds.

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Conditional Workflows

• 27:36 Some people use conditional workflows as well so that they can automate certain processes and allow sales to understand what will and what won’t be approved.

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Sales Collaboration

• 28:56 Keeping things simple and letting sales self serve goes a long way.

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Providing Sales Team with Playbook

• 30:15 Provide playbooks to sales teams that include paragraphs they can share with customers to explain why they prefer their template.
• Empowering sales teams to use these playbooks will free up legal’s time and inbox.

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Market Trends in Negotiations

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Indemnities and Damages Caps

• 40:29 Participants mention that indemnities and damages caps related to customer information breaches are being heavily debated.

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Changes in Force Major Provisions

• 41:26 The pandemic has brought changes to Force Major provisions and businesses are required to make active steps to mitigate risks.
• Force Major provisions have become more nuanced.

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Continuity as an SLA

• 42:28 Continuity is becoming more like an SLA (Service Level Agreement). Providers need redundancies in place to continue providing services during pandemics or natural disasters.
• Customers should not have to pay full price if providers cannot provide all services.

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Focus on Privacy

• 45:12 Privacy has become a huge issue with CPRA and GDPR constantly being updated.
• 45:50 Privacy negotiations are regionally based and depend on who is involved. The type of materials being exchanged between parties also affects privacy negotiations.

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Reasons for Rise in Indemnity Caps

• 46:26 The rise in indemnity caps is due to a combination of factors such as GDPR regulations, increased awareness of potential costs associated with data breaches, and global privacy laws.
• 47:06 People realized that what was once a nebulous risk now had actual numbers attached to it, leading to an increase in demand for limiting risks associated with data breaches.

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Predictions for 2024

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Commercial Contracting Trends

• 48:25 AI will be important but may die down after initial hype.
• 48:44 There will be an increase in demand for commercial work due to more contracts being exchanged with technology being integrated into conversations.
• 49:36 More tech tools will be used to support tasks and there will be more utilization of AI to help with analysis or research.
• 50:09 Companies will empower staff members from different departments to negotiate contracts rather than just relying on attorneys.

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Like this event? Check out our other event replays here.

During our recent commercial contracting event, our expert panel shared some insightful predictions for 2024. In the coming years, we can expect significant changes in the commercial contracting landscape. Here are some additional thoughts on the top 3 predictions for 2024.

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Increase in demand for commercial work

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It looks like there's going to be an increase in demand for commercial work, and this trend is here to stay for the next few years. As businesses grow and expand, so does the need for human resources. However, finding qualified professionals to manage contracts effectively can be a challenge. Many law schools do not teach contract management negotiation skills, and there are not too many attorneys out there who can bridge the gap between legal and tech. Therefore, companies need to place greater emphasis on training their legal teams and investing in technology to streamline contract management processes.

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Higher adoption of legal tech

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Exciting news! There is a growing interest in legal tech that incorporates AI, and this trend is expected to continue into 2023 and beyond. In-house legal teams are already using AI for analysis and basic research, and we can expect to see more companies adopting legal tech to ease the flow of communication between business units and legal. With the adoption and expansion of legal tech, businesses can expect to achieve more efficient, accurate, and cost-effective contract management processes.

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More conversations with non-attorneys

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Did you know that in-house legal teams are increasingly talking with sales and procurement teams, as opposed to speaking with other legal teams? This shift in communication patterns is a result of companies empowering their procurement or sales teams to participate and lead negotiation calls. In-house legal teams will need to be prepared to have different conversations and talking points with non-attorneys, which will require building relationships and understanding the needs of these teams.

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And Lawtrades?

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We help legal departments of all sizes hire world-class flexible legal talent via our tech-enabled platform. Whether you're looking to implement new legal tech, overhaul your contract process or simply want support for overflow work, our pool of highly qualified legal professionals can help...and the onboarding process is easy too! 

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Want to see more of our content? We've put together a guide to buying legal tech and for all you commercial contracting fans, check out our 5 ways in which commercial lawyers can do more with less. You're welcome!

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Implement Conditional Workflows

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In our recent commercial contracting event, we asked Alex Su (Head of Community Development at Ironclad) how legal can stop being seen as the department of ‘no”. With 5 years of experience working in SAAS sales, he discovered that simplifying the legal process for salespeople was key to improving efficiency and implementing conditional workflows played a huge role in that. They allowed salespeople to receive a response based on the information they entered in the system, bypassing the need for shooting emails or slacking the legal team.

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Self-Serve is Key

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By providing salespeople with tools and language that they can share with customers, organizations can empower their sales teams to better understand the language of the legal department. Taylor Dimler (Sr Commercial Counsel at Twist Bioscience) and his team created a playbook that provided paragraphs to share directly with customers on why their template was preferred. Empowering sales teams in this way can also help with the adoption and commitment to using any legal tech going forward - as the sales teams understand the work behind contracting and don’t just feel blocked by legal. By highlighting how a CLM or the use of AI can improve efficiency and allow for quicker negotiations, Taylor saw a significant uptick in adoption by his sales team.

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Education, education, education! 

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Aprajita Tyagi (Commercial Counsel at Elastic) gets that  the sales teams are under an insane amount of pressure right now. That’s why she and her team created robust Wikis and FAQs to support the sales team in answering common questions from customers. This not only reduces the amount of emails in her inbox, but also gives the sales team the empowerment that they need to get deals done. She also initiated internal prep calls before negotiation to ensure that everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goal.

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And Lawtrades?

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Looking to implement processes to ease your legal team's workload and improve the workflow with sales? We’ve got you covered. Not only can our flexible, highly qualified legal talent help improve efficiencies, but the hiring and onboarding process is easy too! 

Legal departments of all sizes use our tech-enabled platform to hire world-class flexible legal talent. With an agile pool of admins that can optimize your contracting process from creation to execution, you can successfully reduce spend and limit risk on a cost effective basis…they can even create playbooks, Wikis and FAQ’s.

We also have a top quality bench of legal ops professionals who can provide the tactical knowledge to implement the legal tech you need, from project management and CLMs to e-discovery. Take a look at our flexible legal talent today.