Will Coronavirus Lead to Innovation in the Legal Industry?

4 pandemic improvisos that might just stick

The pandemic required the legal world to rapidly make changes. Here are four ways the legal ecosystem has evolved that might be permanent:

• Remote work and flexibility: Law firms and legal departments were thrown into the deep end like everyone else, forcing them to come to terms with their fear of remote work. There will most likely be a shift to more flexible work options as employees and managers realize that productivity often increases outside the office.

  Automatically following this shift will be greater adoption of technology that the industry needs. Cloud storage, video conferencing, and virtual private networks are just a few of the tools that can make firms and companies comfortable with allowing remote work.

• The increased use of the contract attorney: The legal industry is not immune to the gig economy. Attorneys forced to work remotely will inevitably realize the opportunities available to work for themselves on their own schedule. Contract attorneys have been increasing in number in recent years, and coronavirus is only adding fuel to the fire.

  A 2019 Thomson Reuters survey found that more than 30% of corporate legal departments reported using contract attorneys in the past two years. As companies look to cut costs, in-house counsel may find themselves on the chopping block, leaving contract work as a viable alternative.

• Courts going digital: There is very little done in a courtroom that requires physical appearances, yet that is where a great deal of time and money are spent every year. Now that depositions, discovery issues, and scheduling are being done via email and conference call, many will likely realize the new system is much more efficient than the one in place.

  Many industry analysts are also suggesting that in-person court conferences only be scheduled in the event of an unresolvable issue. This includes defendant appearances. Defendants can easily appear before a judge by teleconference or confer with their attorneys, who can communicate on their behalf.

• Law schools relax in-person requirements: Law schools are traditionally strict about the amount of in-classroom time required for a degree. ABA rules state that 64 of 83 credit hours (the minimum necessary for a JD degree) must be taught using "courses that require attendance in regularly scheduled classroom sessions or direct faculty instruction."

  Schools were forced to shut down these in-person sessions and move all curricula to an online model over the past few months. They are making it work, putting pressure on institutions in the coming school years to continue the trend. This may make education more flexible for students and possibly even drive down the soaring costs of a legal degree.

While it’s unfortunate that it took a pandemic for certain changes to happen, the innovation and progress that result from the crisis may represent a silver lining.

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