All posts by Legal Geek

2I’m still coming down to earth after the Legal Geek conference! As always, it was a fantastic way of meeting up with the “Who’s Who” of the legal tech world and hearing about how tools are developing in response to customer needs.   One new addition to the Legal Geek conference scene this year (aside from the impromptu PE lesson from Joe Wicks!) was the showcase of Ukrainian businesses who featured in the ever-popular Startup Alley. The Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, Mr Vadym Prystaiko, kicked off this year’s conference with his rousing entreaty to continue to support his people as they fight against the Russian invasion. Having brought along his tablet in order to fit in with the geeks, he referenced the totally digital Ukrainian state machinery which has seen his people able to access all state and court documents and systems on their smart phones. He gently mocked us Brits as he highlighted how Ukrainian refugees who have fled to the UK wondered “Who are these people?” as they have found themselves surprised at how comparatively behind we are in the UK without their digitisation of ID cards, medical documents, governmental institutions, etc. all on their smartphones!   These were my top takeaways from meeting the Ukrainian Startup Alley teams.

The Covid pandemic threw into sharp focus how firms communicate with their employees and we started to embrace informal communication platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Slack and Yammer in earnest in our quest to remain connected through the enforced separations of the lockdowns. With this development in communication channels, businesses have been given the opportunity to reflect on whether they really need their more formal, stuffier intranets. Keeping your intranet fresh and well-maintained takes resource so it might be tempting to wonder whether you could leave the intranet throne empty (as the crown was loathe to do in 1422!) and live without it. Especially where there is a time-consuming and potentially expensive move to a cloud-based system on the horizon for many firms. This piece sets out some questions to ponder if you are grappling with this conundrum.

It is hard to fully comprehend what is happening in Ukraine, and our hearts go out to everyone who is being impacted.

Within the legal tech world, it has been incredible to see how many companies in Ukraine have continued to not only keep the lights on, delivering business as usual, but also go above and beyond when looking after their team on the ground.

At Legal Geek, a small UK business, it has been difficult to know how best to show our support. Upon reflection, we felt the most useful and practical way was to use our stage and event to raise awareness for businesses in Ukraine.

Last month Legal Geek headed over the Atlantic for our North American Tour with the ambition to extend our ever-increasing community of individuals wanting to help each other within the legal innovation industry, as well as have lots of fun networking.

Although our hosting countries were not used to our style of events, we were extremely pleased with the positive feedback we got across the board.

The legal tech and law firm world has got its quest to open up the sector to more diverse people well underway. There is a growing realisation (some might even call it part of The Great Realisation), however, that simply changing your logo to a rainbow for Pride Month and saying on your website that you strive for diversity may not be enough to actually move the dial in practice on who joins the profession and how firms feel to diverse people within them. In the wake of the Covid pandemic, we know that employees across the world are voting with their feet if they don’t feel their values are truly reflected in their organisation so now more than ever employers are focused on creating tangible and lasting cultural change.

This summer, Legal Geek is heading over the pond to North America, looking to bring people together, creating a sense of community and a positive change on the legal industry. 

As a symbol of peace, love, art and community, our friend and Partner of Legal Geek, Jason Moyse, is heading off on an adventure to kick start our North American tour, travelling with his recently discovered passion, otherwise known as a Honda CV500 cc. Having been on both sides of the legal world for over 20 years, for the past ten years, Jason has been involved in the innovation space around legal, hence his world colliding with ours back in 2016. 

We thought it was about time we peeled back the curtain at Legal Geek and let you know what we have been busy doing behind the scenes, what makes us tick and how we’re making our events the best they can be for you. We’ve been busy bees, from celebrating our birthday to setting up our own events consultancy. But first, and some might argue the most importantly, coffee.

On 28-31 March 2022, Legal Geek hosted a Virtual Trade Mission to Singapore led by the Department of International Trade (DIT) in collaboration with Barclay’s Eagle Labs. The mission’s purpose was to bring together organisations from the UK and Singapore, creating a space for a free exchange of ideas and innovations following the signing of the UK-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement (UKSDEA).

An online event packed with short, sharp talks on the latest in legal technology – all powered by Thomson Reuters and Legal Geek.