Linklaters to build practice innovation specialist team

Linklaters to build practice innovation specialist team

As part of its search for lawyers who can "pioneer new tools and ways of working, "a UK firm has created the position of global head of practice innovation."

As part of a drive to improve efficiency and the quality of client service, Linklaters has built a team of innovation specialists to advance the firm's practice.

Greg Baker, who has been promoted from his position as lead innovation lawyer for the corporate practice to global head of practice innovation, led the initiative.

Efficiencies can be increased on client work through the alignment of innovation lawyers with specific practices, working with their clients, and utilizing 'both their legal expertise and a deep understanding of how new technology and processes can benefit a business, claims the firm.

The firm's spokesperson said some innovation lawyers have already been deployed and that new lawyers are on the way in multiple offices around the world to cover additional practice areas. Firm officials did not provide details about the number of innovation lawyers they currently employ or the number of candidates they hope to recruit.

The firm is actively hiring lawyers who possess similar skills, as Baker describes himself as a 'lawyer, technocrat and legal engineer' on LinkedIn.

In practice innovation lawyers' job descriptions, they are expected to 'champion new approaches and workflows,' collaborating with a range of other professionals, like partners, associates, and law firm technology, marketing and operations teams.

"Law firm clients, including the legal function, are increasingly working in multi-disciplinary teams and utilizing agile practices," explained Isabel Parker, executive of The Digital Legal Exchange and former chief legal innovation officer at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. "This is likely to be the motivation for Linklaters' practice innovation team and the idea will resonate with clients."

In response to a recent report by Georgetown Law Center on Ethics and the Legal Profession and the Thomson Reuters Institute warning of a dramatic rise in associate turnover at Linklaters, she pointed to the firm's practice of deploying dedicated innovation lawyers rather than the more common practice of seconding associates under an "intrapreneurship model."

The State of the Legal Market report for 2022 states that associates are seeking to reduce the number of non-billable activities, including innovative work and exploring alternative delivery methods. The reason behind is that many large law firms are under pressure, likely to be less lawyer bandwidth and appetite for non-revenue-generating activities."

Originally from White & Case, Baker worked for the US firm's banking and capital markets practice for 10 years before joining Magic Circle's London office as an innovation lawyer in 2018.

The firm's innovation steering group, a group of business leaders and partners who are responsible for determining the firm's innovation priorities and investments, is among his new responsibilities.

"It will make a tangible difference in both the client experience and the lives of our lawyers to harness ideas from around the firm and from other industries," he explained.

The firm's contract automation platform, CreateiQ, is one of the new tools Linklaters is deploying to help clients and lawyers alike get the most out of this platform.

"I am excited about continuing to transform our practices around the world, including our expanding cohort of innovation lawyers to better serve our clients and organization," he further added.

The company has implemented Atticus, a web-based document verification platform, in both its London and Hong Kong offices, as well as MFNiQ, an automated fundraising tool.