Surveys Show Technology Is The Key To Law Firm Success During COVID-19 And Beyond
Predictability is a thing of the past, and the lack thereof is our new normal.
It’s been more than six months now, and the United States is still in the midst of a global pandemic with no end in sight. Different states are in different stages, and surges are difficult, if not impossible, to predict. In other words, predictability is a thing of the past, and the lack thereof is our new normal.
This newfound reality that we all find ourselves in makes it challenging to run a successful business, as many lawyers are unfortunately discovering. The uncertainty of not knowing when a full-time return to a bricks-and-mortar office will be possible is unsettling, to say the least, and makes it difficult to manage a law firm as if it were business as usual. Fortunately, viable remote working technology alternatives are available, and most law firms are taking advantage of them.
The Rise Of Remote Working Powered By Technology
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
Because of the pandemic, lawyers and their employees have transitioned to remote working. As a result, law firms are increasingly relying on the cloud-based technology that makes remote work possible, since this technology is the only way to ensure that law firms continue to be both functional and profitable.
But don’t take my word for it. Instead, let’s take a look at what law firm leaders have to say about it.
According to the results of a recent survey of legal professionals, “The 2020 Wolters Kluwer Future Ready Lawyer,” technology is the trend that 76% of respondents believe will be the most likely to impact their legal organization over the next three years. Of particular interest is that the perceived impact of technology rose significantly due to the effects of the pandemic, as shown by the survey results. Specifically, in the 2019 survey, technology impact ranked third, but it rose to the top in 2020.
Other notable trends of import to respondents included an emphasis on improved efficiency and productivity (74%) and the challenge of coping with the increased volume and complexity of information (72%).
Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
Generative AI In Legal Work — What’s Fact And What’s Fiction?
The respondents also indicated that they expected technology to affect their organizations in a number of ways, with 82% predicting that their increased use of technology will change how they deliver service. Accordingly, it’s not surprising to learn that 56% of overall respondents expected to increase their spending on legal technology software over the next three years. That percentage was even higher for the law firm segment of respondents, with 60% of law firms indicating that they planned to increase their technology investment over the next three years. As explained in the survey findings, that expected growth “is fueled by increasing interest from law firms and corporate legal departments in leveraging these platforms to streamline and automate processes, more effectively manage their organizations, increase productivity and better serve clients and customers.”
Cloud-based Legal Software Use On The Rise
The technology that law firms are relying on the most to facilitate remote work and the continued operation of their firms is cloud computing. While cloud computing software use has increased in recent years, the pandemic has accelerated the rate of adoption.
As a recent survey conducted by MyCase in June shows (note that I am the legal technology evangelist for MyCase), the use of cloud computing legal software by lawyers has steadily increased since the start of the pandemic. The survey results showed that 90% of the law firms surveyed shared that cloud-based technology enabled their firm to work remotely at this time, an increase from 79% in April.
Also of import is that for many law firms, cloud-based software is the key to their continued profitability despite the pandemic. According to the survey results, 70% of the lawyers surveyed reported that cloud technology is paramount to their firm’s financial stability.
Sponsored
Generative AI In Legal Work — What’s Fact And What’s Fiction?
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
Notably, the law firm leaders surveyed for the Walters Kluwer surveyed likewise agreed that technology adoption was the key to their success. Specifically, 62% of the law firms identified as technology leaders (those firms leading in technology adoption) reported that their firm’s profitability increased over the prior year, compared to 39% of transitioning firms (those in the midst of transitioning to new technology) and just 17% of trailing firms (Those firms trailing in their technology adoption).
Of course, for many firms, the technology adoption driven by the pandemic was not one of choice, but rather, of necessity. This begs the question: Do firms perceive their increased, albeit arguably involuntary, technology adoption as a benefit or a drawback? According to the MyCase survey results, the majority of lawyers indicated that the change was a positive one, with 52% strongly agreeing that technology adoption in law firms is a good thing, and 54% strongly agreeing that the same was true of courts.
What Does The Future Hold?
And last, but not least, what about the future? Do law firms expect additional uncertainty through 2020, or are they hopeful that things will return to normal sometime soon? Overwhelmingly, the lawyers responding to the MyCase survey believed that the end of the pandemic and its repercussions are not near, with 87% of respondents indicating that they believed that additional pandemic-related disruptions will occur throughout the remainder of the year.
What does this mean for technology adoption? Although it’s impossible to predict the future, I would argue that technology adoption will no doubt continue to rise as a result of the unpredictability caused by COVID-19.
And as far as I’m concerned, that’s a good thing. The increased use of technology by lawyers is a long time coming and is a positive trend. Investments in legal technology are investments in the future, and will ultimately reduce inefficiencies and save law firms time and money. So when it comes to riding out this pandemic with the end goal being to emerge on stable footing, there’s no better time to invest in technology than the present.
Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York attorney and Director of Business and Community Relations at MyCase, web-based law practice management software. She’s been blogging since 2005, has written a weekly column for the Daily Record since 2007, is the author of Cloud Computing for Lawyers, co-authors Social Media for Lawyers: the Next Frontier, and co-authors Criminal Law in New York. She’s easily distracted by the potential of bright and shiny tech gadgets, along with good food and wine. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikiblack and she can be reached at niki.black@mycase.com.
