Why legal practitioners and Law Firms need to embrace the application of technology in the profession.
Over the decades, major changes leading to the 21st century have revolutionized our way of life, but the centre of it all is technology. The impact of technology is notable that if lawyers in Nigeria refuses to incorporate technology in its practice of law, they will likely to lose their relevance in the fast unfolding future. For greater productivity, it is necessary for lawyers to understand the language of technology, knowing and
adopting several number of technological tools and software that can be deployed to perform certain legal services.
The legal profession has undergone various transformations and evolved to the present state with the enormous impact of technology. Technology has changed the narrative of the legal profession as already being witnessed in some foreign countries, and it, in fact, informs the expectations of clients. The legal industry has also witnessed new entrants of other professions, as the legal processes in some jurisdictions are now being digitalized. In a world where information is now accessible by everyone through the internet, of greater concern is the use of such information.
Law firms in some jurisdictions are no longer wholly owned by lawyers as they have opened up for public investment to encourage transparency and openness. As such,the legal profession is not only a profession but also a business. Consequently, new professions with different job specifications have evolved in the legal industry. For instance, law firm now have teams of legal engineers, legal architects and legal designers. Similarly, the expectations of clients have gone beyond just requesting for legal services but for legal practitioners to also offer services such as business advice, risk management advice and financial advice.
These changes brought about by technology have become the realities of today. The current global legal market is increasingly driven by technology and any lawyer that fails to adopt technology as an essential tool will be left behind while the rest of the society will move on. And this is not good for the Nigerian legal profession and for the society. Different to what obtains in the legal industry of other jurisdictions, few Nigerian law firms and lawyers had embraced technology generally prior to COVID-19 outbreak and if we are to be truthful, Covid-19 caught large number of lawyers and law firms in Nigeria unprepared. To be frank, a sizeable number of lawyers did not have such basic information technology tools as work emails, let alone more sophisticated research and firm management software.
Technology has change the way lawyers work, how they deliver legal services, thebusiness models of legal services and provide better or more access to law and justice.Lawyers and law firms with tech knowledge are beneficiaries of biggest clients. Thebiggest clients are fond of going to responsive and reliable lawyers that can attend to their needs in an efficient and effective manner. Business and trade are now conducted on a global scale. Demand for legal services internally and externally are increasing. Multinational companies, whose interests’ cuts across national borders often refer the services of the elite law firms with transnational status to handle their diverse global projects. These transnational fields of professional services require a huge shift from traditional practice common in Nigeria. Examples of such services includes International arbitration, corporate restructuring, and project financing.
At a time like Covid-19 era where physical meetings are not fashionable, the imperativeness of technology becomes the norm. So, law tech, characterized by virtual meetings and hearings, remote working, virtual court proceedings, webinars have come to stay. Any lawyer that wants to compete, remain relevant, and survive in this global legal market must invest in technology.