Law Firms are Inefficiency Factories, Automation is the Cure

Richard Tromans writes “There may be a more indirect way of saying this, but perhaps it is better to simply say it like it is: law firms are inefficiency factories and automation is the cure“. Styling himself as a legal industrialist, Richard is an agent provocateur in the best sense of the term – legal services need more Richards who are willing to speak out. Bravo!

Who’s In Dialogue: 07

Who’s In Dialogue: 07 is in its 7th week; thanks for playing.

For those joining recently: Once-a-week, I provide a clue about one of our contributors to Dialogue ask you join the fun by telling us in a comment to whom you think the clue refers. Proofs from public sources are published the following week. 

This week the question is who in June this year penned The end of the club, a ripper opinion piece in the business press?

Launch of ConRad, new US law company

Earlier this week I was delighted to learn that two members of Dialogue community have teamed to launch ConRad, a new US law company. Congratulations Peter Carayiannis (the Con) and Alex Hamilton (the Rad)!

Remaking News of the Week: SmartLaw

Around 500 BC, Confucius wrote ‘He that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools’. I borrowed the aphorism to address lawyers and BigLaw firms in my contribution to HighQ’s 2018 collection of short essays “What do lawyers and law firms need to do to prepare for the future?”.

Why lawyers must escape the gravitational pull of specialisation

Ken Grady argues why lawyers must escape the gravitational pull of specialisation. And he does so convincingly in this post.  

In his argument, Ken cites evidence of why ‘expert-generalist’ or ‘T-shaped’ people innovate more successfully than those with a narrow focus. In the case of legal services, Ken suggests this is because lawyers have become super-specialized over the last four or five decades.

Who’s in Dialogue: 06

Who’s In Dialogue: 06 is in its 6th week; thanks for playing.

This week turn your mind to South Dearborn Street where he plays rhythm guitar in the firm’s band, saying it’s the best place from which to lead a BigLaw firm.

Remaking news of the week: Shruti Ajitsaria

In today’s Remaking news of the week, Ed Andrews talks with the remarkable Shruti Ajitsaria, head of Fuse, the Allen & Overy incubator I featured on Dialogue in May.