Technology

'Tech' To The Future

Some parts of the legal profession really take it out of you.

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Some tasks just drain us as lawyers. These are usually the mundane things like combing through a contract you have read a thousand times or researching legal obscurities.

There are some parts of the legal profession that really take it out of you, whether you are in BigLaw or a GC, tasks that are stored in the same mental box as chores or homework — Sisyphean exercises that you know you have to do again and again and again.

Those activities are thieves of joy, hijackers of enthusiasm. If we aren’t careful, they may even steal our passion for the industry!

Thankfully, we have two top-rate “intelligence agencies” who are slowly bringing these criminals to justice.

IT and AI.

The technology industry is rapidly developing, honing its abilities, and lawyers will find themselves ever more protected from the vicious tediousness of sifting through hundreds of cases and thousands of lines of fine print. Long, sometimes painful tasks like document review and legal research will soon be automated. Already, progress has been made in these areas, with preliminary work already being done by computers.

It is at this point that you may be thinking, Sure, technology will protect me from the shackles of boredom and frustration, but won’t it surely take over my whole job? You would rather have a legal position with challenges than ridding yourself of hassles (along with your job). Fair enough.

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AI is not, however, going to take your job for quite some time — if ever! The fact is that AI is incredibly efficient at pattern recognition as well as finding and storing information, but it will never be able to compete with a human’s soft skills. The abilities to listen, empathize, and persuade are irreplaceable.

Computers cannot be creative. They cannot generate ideas. They can only draw on what has happened, using it to suggest what could or should happen.

This is superb! On top of helping you, it gives you a greater capacity to maximize your soft skills. You are no longer tied down by menial tasks. Instead, you have the freedom to fully explore your creativity and to focus on building relationships and collaborating with others.

Technology is kind of like an expert intern — there to take on small tasks so you can focus on the big ideas, amplifying your soft skills by increasing your available time and brainpower. This will, in turn, improve your ability and enable you to have an even greater impact in the industry.

Don’t limit yourself. Take “Tech” control!

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Olga V. Mack is the CEO of Parley Pro, a next-generation contract management company that has pioneered online negotiation technology. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology. Olga is also an award-winning general counsel, operations professional, startup advisor, public speaker, adjunct professor, and entrepreneur. She founded the Women Serve on Boards movement that advocates for women to participate on corporate boards of Fortune 500 companies. She authored Get on Board: Earning Your Ticket to a Corporate Board Seat and Fundamentals of Smart Contract Security. You can follow Olga on Twitter @olgavmack.

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