Tech Skills Every Lawyer Should Master
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Recent tech advances have significantly changed the legal profession, and legal leaders are looking to hire and promote lawyers with technological competence
It’s usually not necessary to be a tech expert to have a successful legal career. But it is essential to have a solid understanding of how to use the most popular applications and legal-specific technologies.
Familiarity with technology is now a professional requirement: In 2021, the American Bar Association (ABA) added an eighth comment to its "Rule 1.1: Competence" that states, “A lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.”
Lawyers should consider keeping current with technology as part of their continuing legal education. Here are the broad categories of tech skills every lawyer should cultivate.
Standard software tools for communicating and collaborating
This is the baseline or bare minimum for practicing attorneys. If the move to remote work exposed some deficiencies in your tech skills, start with learning the basics of using communication and collaboration tools effectively. By now, all legal professionals should be able to manage Zoom calls, Microsoft Teams, the Google suite of products, and similar workplace platforms. It almost goes without saying, but every lawyer needs to be adept with word processing, file and document management programs, spreadsheets, and presentation software.
Communication means much more than email now. Many law firms and legal departments also use customer relationship management (CRM) software to enhance their clients’ experiences. Lawyers should grasp the basics of the most popular CRMs, like Salesforce or Hubspot, or the CRMs explicitly designed for the legal industry, like LawMatics or Law Ruler.
Some organizations also encourage their attorneys to maintain an active professional social media presence, particularly to help with recruiting talent. LinkedIn is the most common networking app for lawyers and is relatively easy to learn and use well.
Programs that drive efficiency and automate routine tasks
Many law firms and legal departments have moved toward cloud-based systems for managing billing and time tracking. Associates and partners who interact with these systems must be familiar with how they work and able to perform essential functions. Any legal professional with partnership or C-level ambitions should understand how their organization operates and which systems control daily functions.
In addition, modern organizations generate and save vast quantities of data, and lawyers should know how this data is obtained and maintained. They should also learn to leverage analytics applications to make sense of data sets and generate useful reports.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are enabling applications that can streamline operations such as document management and review, along with more advanced functions, such as predictive modeling of cases. Applying these technologies can minimize human errors, enable better work products in less time, and even contribute to legal strategies.
It’s also important for legal professionals to keep updated on tech advances in contract management. For example, blockchain-enabled smart contracts are said to be the next big thing in legal documentation, especially in the areas of health care, financial services, and real estate.
Research and eDiscovery applications
Legal research has advanced quickly, with AI and machine learning empowering sophisticated research applications capable of handling immense quantities of data. Lawyers now conduct research using a wide variety of websites, search engines, and research platforms. Some tools can scan text, video, and audio files for keywords and assemble results based on preset templates.
Electronic discovery (eDiscovery) has quickly become the norm, overtaking traditional paper discovery in many areas. This trend will continue as the types and amount of electronically stored information (ESI) grow. Software that enables more efficient processing and management of ESI is making inroads into law firms and legal departments and is a useful (and sometimes vital) tool for lawyers to master.
Don’t forget: Cybersecurity awareness
Throughout most industries, cyberattacks are increasing, and the threat of data breaches is high. To protect themselves, their organizations, and their clients, lawyers must be well-versed in security measures.
Following simple best practices, like being aware of network vulnerabilities, using encryption options, avoiding unsecured networks, and choosing strong passwords are cybersecurity essentials. Security measures should cover all devices involved in the firm's business, including personal devices used to conduct client matters.
According to the ABA, technological competence accompanies the duty of confidentiality. Legal professionals need to be aware of the potential risks of accessing sensitive data remotely, and they must only use reputable IT service providers and network hosts.
Legal leaders are looking to technology to cut costs and drive productivity, and they aim to hire attorneys who can leverage these tools and meet the ABA’s competence requirements. Accordingly, they'll prioritize candidates who have the right skills and are ready to lead their organizations in adopting emerging technologies.
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