Please enjoy this blog post authored by Jessica Kerner, Senior Practice Innovation Attorney, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP.
In recent years, law firms have increasingly established innovation attorney positions, with responsibilities varying widely across firms. This still somewhat emerging role lacks a standardized definition, often encompassing diverse areas including legal technology, artificial intelligence, knowledge management and process improvement initiatives. This article examines the innovation attorney’s potential responsibilities in each of these areas to demystify the innovation attorney’s function.
Technology Lifecycle Management
Innovation attorneys generally focus on external legal technology, potentially managing or taking part in the complete technology lifecycle from evaluation to adoption. Their involvement in each phase varies based on the size and structure of the firm’s knowledge and innovation department, or departments if knowledge and innovation are sperate. In larger departments, innovation attorneys may concentrate on specific aspects of the technology lifecycle such as tool evaluation, training new users and building adoption throughout the firm, while other members or teams handle areas such as contracting, security reviews and implementation. In smaller departments, innovation attorneys may serve as liaisons between the firm’s technology department and external vendors, maintaining relationships throughout the technology lifecycle, where in larger departments this may fall to other team members.
While innovation attorneys may contribute to developing bespoke internal tools, this aspect typically receives less emphasis. Many firms lack the resources needed to build, test, support and maintain proprietary applications, leading to a need for external solutions.
Artificial Intelligence Specialization
Although AI-based tools represent a subset of legal technology, their transformative potential has prompted some firms to create specialized innovation attorney roles and even dedicated AI departments. These specialists may perform functions similar to general innovation attorneys – monitoring technological developments, evaluating vendors and facilitating adoption- but with a focus on artificial intelligence applications. Giving the rapid evolution of generative AI, client interest in this area and its potential impacts on legal practice, some firms have found that having innovation attorneys focused on AI will help them and their clients integrate AI most efficiently.
Knowledge Management Integration
Innovation attorney roles sometimes overlap or are combined with law firm knowledge management. Traditionally, knowledge management in law firms focused on improving efficiency, preventing knowledge loss, and enhancing decision making. Knowledge managers traditionally found efficiencies by engaging in tasks such as creating templates, building precedent libraries, training attorneys on how to support knowledge preservation and assisting attorneys in locating needed information.
As legal technology has evolved and new tools were introduced that could support knowledge managers in their work, many knowledge managers became innovation attorneys with their titles updated to reflect this dual role. While knowledge lawyers typically support specific practice groups, innovation attorneys without knowledge management designations generally are not dedicated to a specific practice area. Innovation attorneys tend to have a broader role with respect to new tools and responsibility for rollout and adoption of the tools across many practice areas rather than specializing in one or a small number of practice areas.
Innovation attorneys will often collaborate with knowledge management attorneys when introducing tools to the practice area the knowledge attorney supports, and this collaboration can result in a synergy between the two professionals. Knowledge managers, with their practice experience and established relationships within practice groups, can serve as critical bridges-identifying potential early adopters, suggesting potential champions, developing practical use cases and recommending effective integration strategies tailored to their practice group’s unique needs. Through this partnership, innovation attorneys gain contextual understanding and practitioner insights necessary for successful technology implementation, while knowledge managers expand their toolkit for supporting attorney efficiency and effectiveness.
Process Improvement
At some firms, innovation attorneys may support practice group process improvements, though this responsibility varies significantly based on organization structure and the composition of the firm’s knowledge and innovation team or teams. Knowledge managers are typically well positioned to implement process enhancements due to their familiarity with specific practice areas, often drawing from their own practice experience.
When process improvements require a new technology implementation, innovation attorneys may provide assistance, particularly for technologies with firm wide application. Some firms have practice management attorneys assigned to certain practice areas who may collaborate with knowledge and innovation attorneys on these initiatives or work directly with innovation attorneys if their practice groups don’t have dedicated knowledge mangers. Additionally, for litigation, innovation attorneys may partner with E-Discovery.
Conclusion
The innovation attorney represents an evolving position in today’s legal landscape, operating where law, technology and organizational processes intersect. While responsibilities may vary across firms, these professionals generally aim to help evaluate and implement technologies and improve processes to enhance legal service delivery. As technological advancements accelerate and client expectations continue to evolve, innovation attorneys can provide valuable support to law firms navigating these shifts.
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