As the legal field evolves and changes with technological advances, so do its business models. In fact, tech-focused businesses have created opportunities that didn’t exist before, while others have improved existing practices.
When it comes to the law, there are more opportunities than ever before. Whether starting your own legal technology business or joining a startup in its early stages, legal experts can leverage their skills in this quickly growing industry. Discover some of these emerging legal technology companies as well as their potential impact on the future of law.
Legal Software
What do legal professionals and software engineers have in common? When their strengths are combined they can create something truly innovative and useful.
Legal software can be used to automate legal tasks, manage legal processes, manage legal documents and transactions, and manage legal workflows and information management. It can also mitigate risk by providing transparency and visibility into every aspect of your business.
By working alongside a software development team, lawyers can speak into software that can revolutionize the legal industry and simplify much of the work they do. In addition to legal software, investing in or developing an attorney answering service can be a lucrative venture.
Online Legal Advice
Online legal advice is a growing industry, and it’s no surprise. With the rise in online shopping and the presence of video games such as Pokémon Go, the internet has become ingrained in our daily lives.
This means that there are millions upon millions of people who are comfortable using modern technology to make their lives easier. Online legal advice provides an opportunity for individuals who want to save money on finding lawyers or resolving legal problems.
It also helps people who have experienced trauma due to an injury or accident recover faster by providing information about how to move forward with financial compensation through legal action. Finally, it allows those who may feel uncomfortable visiting lawyers’ offices due to embarrassment over statements made during interviews due to past experiences with attorneys.
Forensic Technology
Forensic technology is a growing business that uses artificial intelligence and data analysis to assist lawyers in the courtroom. One of the most common ways forensic technology is used is video surveillance, which can be used to monitor people’s movements and behaviors. Another example of forensic technology would be DNA testing, which can identify suspects if their DNA matches evidence found at the crime scene.
Smart Contracts
Smart contracts are a type of programmable contract. This means that the terms of a contract are stored on a blockchain, and then executed automatically by a computer when certain conditions are met.
For example, if payment is due at the end of each month, then when the clock strikes midnight on that day, it triggers an automatic transfer from the payer to the recipient’s account.
This process can be made even more efficient through smart contracts because there’s no need for intermediaries to verify payments. Instead, you simply rely on cryptographic proof that cannot be tampered with or altered.
Blockchain-Based Legal Services
While blockchain is still new, it has the potential to be one of the most disruptive technologies in decades. Blockchain is a distributed ledger technology (DLT) that allows individuals to conduct transactions without having to go through a third party. The DLT was first introduced in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto, who published a white paper on how to use Bitcoin’s underlying technology for more than just creating digital currency.
In its simplest form, blockchain can be described as a type of database shared across multiple computers, like Wikipedia or Facebook, except that it’s secured using cryptography techniques and allows for electronic transactions. In this way, blockchain eliminates intermediaries like banks or governments because no single person controls it. No one individual has full control over all records either. Instead, they are stored in “blocks” that can only be added by consensus from network participants.
Final Thoughts
As a result of these technological advances, the legal field will have more opportunities and demand for lawyers in the future. As noted above, many law firms are implementing technology to streamline their operations and make processes more efficient.
Additionally, there is a growing need for lawyers who know how to use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technology in order to aid their clients. These new technologies allow lawyers to focus on higher-level tasks such as strategy and case management while the AI handles mundane tasks like document review or contract negotiation. This allows lawyers to take on more cases than ever before.