“Transforming the Inner Workings of the Legal Industry through Legal Design Ops.”

Chapter 2. Legal-Digital Chrysalis: The Natural Transformation Process in the Digital Era for Lawyers

Authors: Andrés Felipe Rivas y Karol Valencia
in collaboration with WOW Legal Experience and Copernico

In today’s dynamic world, the legal industry is not immune to the challenges posed by technological innovation. At WOW Legal Experience, we’ve noticed a growing trend among both private and public organizations towards the adoption of digital technologies. However, this path is filled with learnings that we’ve decided to share in this series, titled:

“Transforming the Inner Workings of the Legal Industry through Legal Design Ops.”

The rate at which technology and society evolve often surpasses our ability to adapt. According to the OECD, 1.1 billion jobs globally will be transformed over the next five years due to the implementation of digital technologies. The legal industry, traditional in many respects, is no exception. This phenomenon not only poses challenges but also significant opportunities.

In this second chapter, it is crucial that we try to speak a “common language” about the notion of “digital transformation” in the legal industry. We know that the scope of this notion is broad and its interpretation varies, especially in an industry that constantly interprets everything. However, our goal is for each of us, as lawyers, to start building our own path in the era of digital transformation.

It is a mistake to limit the notion of “digital transformation” solely to technological aspects. This concept encompasses much more: the transformation of people, processes, and technology around the collected information. Let’s consider this formula: "KIT"

1️⃣ Knowledge = Lawyer’s Value

2️⃣ Information = Knowledge

3️⃣ Technology = Enhancement of Information Power

With this in mind, the sum of (1) + (2) + (3 ) , shows that the knowledge of lawyers is powerful and infinitely valuable. Without this power, legal professionals are more limited in their practice in a digital world and, consequently, the industry itself. That’s why we believe that lawyers must become digital natives or, better yet, users of digital power. Without developing these skills, our profession will remain limited and digital transformation will never occur (yes, it’s that radical; our sustainability as legal professionals depends on this transformation).

It is not necessary to become IT experts to be users of digital power. Transformation is possible through Legal Design Ops, a topic we will develop throughout this series. For now, remember that we are trying to speak a “common language.” There are still some points to refine that we consider essential.

To conclude, we leave you with an interesting fact that illustrates the complexity of digital transformation beyond what is often shown on social media:

According to the 2022 Bloomberg Law survey, in which 190 legal professionals in the United States were interviewed (77 in-house lawyers and 113 from law firms), they were asked the following: "Do you have a formal process to evaluate technology? 41% said they did not have any process, while 33% indicated they did not know if one existed. 36% said they had one. Unfortunately, the survey does not specify which.

The relevance of this survey is that it reflects the situation in the USA, but we do not know what might be happening in our region. Together with the team of WOW Legal Experience we are working on a survey and global report to get a broader vision and data.

In the upcoming episodes of this series, we will delve deeper into each of these aspects, providing detailed guides and case studies that illustrate transformation in action. Get ready to unlock the potential of legal design and effectively and sustainably transform your legal practice.

💡 Learn about practical transformations through engaging case studies and insightful strategies that prepare you for the evolving legal landscape.

🔗 Stay tuned for more as we guide you through the essentials of integrating legal science with cutting-edge technology. Let’s innovate together!

Contact us us WOW Legal Experience send us a mail to hello@wowlegalx.biz

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