Investments in legal technology are increasing rapidly worldwide. The number of legal tech startups has also increased, bringing new products and innovation to the legal industry – and changing the way legal professionals do business.
Some early adopters have enthusiastically embraced new technologies. Others, including many in Ontario and other Canadian provinces, are taking a more reserved approach.
Law Tech: Boom or Bust?
While investment in legal technology startups has increased for the past several years, investment isn’t equally distributed throughout the globe. In particular, investment is slower in Canada, where companies are waiting to see which products and services endure before contributing their funds.
In addition, while overall investment has increased, most funding rounds remain small in comparison to other tech-based startups. Even investors who are excited about legal tech are proceeding more cautiously than investors in other industries.
The Future of Machine Learning in Law
One place legal tech is taking off is in machine learning and analytics. Here, the growth of startups, products, and services has been driven by an increase in the adoption of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) tools by law firms, legal departments, and courts.
Machine learning offers a number of benefits to law firms and legal departments, such as the ability to perform document review much more quickly. The right algorithms can process thousands of documents in a day, guided by just one member of the legal team – a process that could take dozens of professionals several weeks to do by hand.
Better Documentation, Better Drafting
Legal tech tools also make documentation and drafting more effective and efficient. In addition to better document review, AI-enabled tools make organizing documents easier as well.
Tools that allow for easier visualization of data are also helping attorneys. Visualizations help teams analyze and grasp large patterns quickly. They also make it easier to explain these patterns to judges and juries – and to use them to illustrate key points in legal arguments.
Contact us today!
The recruiters at Kent Legal keep up with trends in the legal industry, including the pace of change imposed by technology. We also stay connected with the best legal talent in the greater Toronto area. To learn more, contact us today.