Adoption

(3 minute read)

Mental Health is a silent but complex issue and there is still a lot of stigma surrounding it, especially in competitive industries like the legal industry. In the face of the pandemic, these problems have become more evident, with a sharp rise in people feeling anxious or depressed. This is exacerbated by a bottleneck in mental health services, where long waiting lists make it harder for people to access the help they need.

October was “Mental Health” month and this week is “National Stress Awareness Day” in the UK, so we thought that now would be a good time to reflect on this very real and very important issue.

As such, this week’s blogpost will focus on:

• What is stress and how to identify it?
• Why might lawyers be suffering from stress? 
• Why is stress an issue? 
• Top tips to help combat stress 
• Importance of raising awareness about mental health
• How can technology help?

What is stress and how to identify it?

Stress is the body’s response to pressure. When we experience a pressurising event our bodies produce stress hormones which trigger a fight or flight response. In its healthiest form, stress can be helpful and can aid in our motivation to accomplish things. Once that stressful event has passed, our body’s stress hormone level returns to normal. However, this is not always the case. Periods of prolonged stress might leave you feeling overwhelmed and unable to cope, giving rise to mental or physical health issues. If you would like a helpful breakdown on the concept of stress, have a look at this page.

Everyone reacts to stress differently, but here are some common symptoms to look out for to identify if you are unhealthily stressed: difficulty concentrating, mood swings, difficulty relaxing, feelings of being overwhelmed and low self-esteem. The mental health foundation has a particularly useful resource to help you further identify signs of stress and manage it successfully.

Why Lawyers?

Protectivity conducted a survey into stress in the UK. It was reported that 63% of legal professionals suffer from stress on a daily basis, making the legal profession the second most stressed profession in Britain after HR. A report from the Junior Lawyers Division of the Law Society of England and Wales highlighted that this was particularly prominent in young lawyers with over 93% reporting that they are stressed at work and almost 25% saying they felt extreme stress.

There are many potential reasons why lawyers are quite high up on this list. It has been suggested by the CEO of Avoteca, Ana-Maria Drăgănuță Briard, in her LegalTech podcast Legal Tales that this culture of overworking finds its roots in legal education. Law students are pressured to perform well and are expected to pull all-nighters just to get their work done. This then translates to the legal industry where working excessive hours is seen as a badge of honour. Furthermore, due to the circumstances of this culture, many legal professionals are trained to be high achieving perfectionists. This intense ambition can lead to great stress amongst lawyers as they attempt to maintain their high standard of work and also massive disappointment when their concerted efforts fail to achieve the results they want.

Why is stress an issue?

The Path to Lawyer Well Being Report from the American Bar Association states that: “well-being is an indispensable part of a lawyer’s duty of competence”.

On an individual level, managing your stress is extremely important for your own well-being. Physically, prolonged stress can lead to a weakened immune system and a higher chance of you falling sick. Mentally, long-term stress increases the risk of mental health problems like anxiety and depression.

On an organisational level, managing your employee’s stress is imperative to ensure that your employees are motivated and putting out their best work. If a legal professional is extremely stressed, they are unlikely to be performing at their peak.

This means that they are more likely to make mistakes that can ultimately put their clients at risk. The poor mental health of your employees can also lead to an increase in widespread sick leave and decreased productivity which will ultimately affect long-term profits.

Tips to decrease stress

When it comes to mental health and stress control there is no one-size-fits-all cure. What may work for other people may not work for you. However, there are some common activities that may aid you in relieving stress like exercise and spending time with those important to you. In a Protectivity study, 53% of people reported that watching TV/Films helped them to reduce stress, with 20% citing exercise and 32% suggesting that taking a bath or a shower helped them to relieve stress. 

The Mental Health Foundation has many free publications designed to help people manage their mental health. This includes a guide on how to manage and reduce stress. The guide helps you to identify the causes of your stress so that you are able to review and modify your lifestyle to include activities that reduce stress. Activities that they recommend include: eating healthy, exercising, sleeping well, mindfulness, taking time out for yourself, and not being too hard on yourself. The Stress Management Society also has some great resources to help people deal with stress.

It has been found that Mindfulness is one of the best stress mitigation tools, helping you lower your blood pressure and strengthening your immune system. In fact, a 20-minute Mindful break can boost your brain cognition by 70 per cent! What’s great about mindfulness is that you can start right now! All you need is just a few spare moments. For example, simply taking a series of deep breaths while you’re at your desk can help you recharge. You can also take it a step further with guided meditations. If you are new to meditation, you can try the app Waking Up or check out the Mindful.org website. Mindfulness is a mental skill that can be developed through training – consistency is key.

Virtual therapeutic experiences have also been developed to help ease the stress associated with the ongoing Covid-19 epidemic. They are free to use and only take up 20 minutes of your day to help you relieve anxiety and stress.

Organisations can also help employee mental well-being by adopting the Mental Health First Aider initiative. Many law firms have implemented this initiative, aiding in removing the stigma surrounding mental health in the legal industry and empowering professionals to confront issues which might be affecting their well-being.

It is also of paramount importance that professional help is sought when needed. You are not alone, the Mental Health Foundation reported that around 12 million people consult their GP due work stress and related mental illnesses. Talk to your doctor about how you are feeling, the sooner the better. They will be able to give you proper advice and refer you to a treatment that is right for you as well as to further help. If your stress is work related then the Mental Health Foundation has a really helpful page that may be of interest to you. If you feel comfortable enough to do so, you can also speak to your supervisor/manager to see if they can help you in managing your workload. A survey by Willis Towers Watson showed that 75% of the U.S. employers ranked stress as one of their biggest health and productivity concerns.

Importance of raising awareness about mental Health – How to get involved

Raising awareness about mental health is extremely important for a number of reasons. First, it helps to combat the stigma surrounding mental illness so that fewer people will feel pressured to suffer in silence. Second, awareness can also aid in early detection and intervention of issues concerning mental health. With an increase in awareness of these symptoms, people are more likely to seek help and take action to ensure their own mental well-being. 

There are many organisations that provide assistance and raise awareness about mental health issues, like Rethink Mental Illness, Mental Health Foundation, Anxiety UK, Mind, Stress Management Society, and Samaritans. They organise different campaigns and events that you can get involved with, they also provide a multitude of support and resources that you can use. If you want to help them with their mission, you can always support them with a donation.

If you are interested in the subject, a great podcast to listen to in your spare time is Legal Wolf, which is dedicated to talking about mental health. It includes interviews with professionals who discuss their jobs, complexities and mental health-related stories. The podcast also discusses the stigma of mental health around the world, and what’s being done to challenge it. In one of these episodes, our Head of Growth, Giles Thompson, converses with Inez Brown and host Steve Lawlor about Mental Health within the legal profession.

How can Technology help?

At Avvoka, we believe that technology can have a positive impact on stress, especially in the legal industry. For example, automating repetitive aspects of work can help to alleviate lawyers’ workload, giving them more time to work on other important tasks so that they can leave the ‘office’ at a sociable hour. As such, technology can help transform the way that lawyers manage their ever-growing work-load. Collaboration technologies can also help with the growing calls for an increase in flexibility in work.

There are also technologies specially designed to help with mental health. Liminal VR is one of such progressive initiatives. It is a fun, engaging and affordable tool that aids in reducing anxiety, elevating your mood and even reducing pain. It is currently used in many schools, workplaces, hospitals and residential aged care facilities. It uses virtual reality technology to deliver immediate positive changes.

There are many other technology-based solutions and apps that can help with mental health. Sanvello, for example, has been nominated by Verywellmind as the best app of 2021 for reducing stress. The app provides users with cognitive behavioural therapy tools and encourages mindfulness and meditation.

Calm is another app that is great for meditation. Other apps like TalkSpace are online therapy platforms that connect users with licensed therapists at budget prices through an easy-to-use app. One of the biggest benefits of mental health-related apps is that they are easily available, affordable and accessible to people. This is especially relevant due to the long waiting lists for mental health services due to the pandemic. In this way, technology solutions can provide timely and affordable support.

Read more from Avvoka:

• How can a document automation API turbocharge your legal practice?
• Legal technology: how any lawyer can supercharge their practice
• Next generation of lawyers and the call for legal tech
• A Student’s Guide to LegalTech
• The power of no-code automation with Avvoka

By: Caitlin McCabe

(3 minute read)

There is no doubt that LegalTech is disrupting the legal scene. Are you interested in LegalTech but don’t know where to start? This week’s blog post will be focused on aspiring legal techies that want to get started in their legaltech journey. If you are looking to get involved in legaltech then the following guide should help you. Good luck!

In this blog post we will give you our top tips on how to get into legaltech, including:

• Work Experience 
• Campus Ambassador Schemes 
• Networking 
• Expanding your Knowledge 
• Understanding the roles available 
• Learning the Language

Disclaimer: If you haven’t already, make sure that you apply for our Campus Ambassador Scheme here!

Work experience

If you are looking to get some work experience first, rest assured that there are work experience placements and internship opportunities available in LegalTech. The industry it’s on its rise, which means that these experiences often come with real responsibility and exposure to many different areas of the LegalTech business. You can find many of these opportunities directly with the companies, so make sure you check their websites and social media regularly. If you don’t know where to start, we advise that you first understand the space and different vendors out there, Legal Geek has a very comprehensive Startup Map that can help you to get situated.

Generally, the type of work you will be doing will be very diverse and fast paced. Not only will you learn a lot about LegalTech itself but also you will gain an invaluable insight into the legal service industry. A great way of finding companies with open roles is through LinkedIn. Many organisations will post about their business and recent developments, keep an eye out for updates around expansion of the company. Work in Startups and Legaltech Jobs are also good platforms to get started with your search. If you are looking for a fast-paced environment, start-ups are a good place to start. They are especially busy and the likelihood is if they are in a period of growth any extra assistance will be greatly appreciated. Don’t be afraid to send a message to the people that work in your chosen company asking about open opportunities.

Campus Ambassador Scheme

If you are at university or doing a postgraduate qualification, an exciting way to get involved with LegalTech is taking part in a Campus Ambassador Scheme. You will gain a deep understanding of LegalTech,  industry experience, mentoring sessions, as well as an invaluable chance to expand your professional network. At Avvoka, we have just opened our applications for this year’s Campus Ambassador Scheme. Here is what some of our previous ambassadors had to say about the programme:

“Working with Avvoka showed the varying opportunities in the legal field. Perhaps the standout highlight was receiving feedback from peers about how much they had learned from the Avvoka Academy and the subsequent interest in legal tech they had developed” – Jacob, University of Nottingham.

“ ‘Shouldn’t be missed,” my journey was quite fun. I have been interested in legal tech for 2 years and this scheme helped me to share my passion with my colleagues. I experienced a legal tech solution for the first time and helped my friends embrace that technology. Today I’m more confident and I know what I want to do after graduating. Thanks to Avvoka.” – Rebecca, University of Sussex.

Interested to know more? What are you waiting for? – sign up here.

Networking

If you haven’t networked much it can seem like a scary and awkward process. However unnatural it may seem, it is very important. If you are genuinely interested in LegalTech then striking up a conversation with someone in the industry that shares the interest will feel more natural. The LegalTech network is very encouraging to anyone who takes a keen interest in the space. You can join groups such as the Legal Tech Talent Network or O Shaped Lawyer Group, if you show that you are enthusiastic and eager to learn someone will be willing to help! The more you do it, the easier it will get. Getting started is the hardest part.

Expand your Knowledge

An obvious way of getting involved in LegalTech is to expand your knowledge and skills in the industry. At Avvoka, we felt that there was too much ‘tell’ rather than ‘show’ when it came to legal tech companies and so we developed the Academy. We give attendees free access and hands-on training on the platform, helping anyone from law students to GCs automate a document. We have also created an Avvoka lab, which gives you the opportunity to access new features and functions before anyone else and give feedback to our developers. So not only do you get to witness the future of LegalTech before anyone else, you also get to help shape it!

The future of LegalTech is no-code, as we explain in a previous blog post, there is no need to learn how to code to get involved in LegalTech. Almost half of the team at Avvoka cannot code! However, if it is something that you are interested in learning to code won’t hinder your chances of success. Platforms such as Coursera and edX give you the opportunity to learn how to code for free. We do believe that lawyers or anyone with a background in law would be incredibly good at learning to code.

You could even participate in a hackathon! They are events in which multidisciplinary teams collaborate with the help of technology to develop prototype solutions. It can help you to see how LegalTech can make a difference in areas such as access to justice. Additionally, attending the LegalTech Vacation Scheme hosted by Law School 2.0 is a great way to prepare yourself for the integration of technology into the legal profession and engage with practical opportunities to expand your knowledge and skills.

There are also many informative blogs that will help you generate an understanding of LegalTech such as our Avvoka Angle, Artificial Lawyer, LegalITInsider and LegalTechHub. Or if you prefer podcasts a few include, The Wired Wig, Technically Legal and LawNext.

Understand the types of roles available

The roles available in the industry are diverse and varied. It is important to gain an insight into what roles are typically available in LegalTech so that you have an idea into what area you can and want to specialise in. On one hand, to build the products engineers, designers and project managers are hired. On the other hand, marketers, salespeople and business developers are hired to sell the product. There are also some other legal tech and innovation related roles available in law firms and in-house legal teams. You should be ready to understand what each of these roles entails.  We recommend that you check out the excellent Legal Tech Careers Guide by Lawtomated.

Learn the Language

Learning to speak the LegalTech language is a great way to strengthen your ability to get involved in the industry. It can be understandably confusing to get started if you don’t understand the jargon used in the field. You can check out one of our previous blog posts for a glossary that can help you understand document automation jargon better!

We hope all these tips will motivate you to get started in your legaltech journey, and remember that you can apply to Avvoka’s Campus Ambassador Scheme to get first hand knowledge about how a legaltech company works in our insight day, applications are now open!

If you want to find out how you can get started with document automation, check out The Ultimate Guide: Document Automation 2022 – Our very own e-book where we provide expert legal tech advice about everything you will need to know and learn.

Read more from Avvoka:

• How can a document automation API turbocharge your legal practice?
• Legal technology: how any lawyer can supercharge their practice
• Next generation of lawyers and the call for legal tech
• A Student’s Guide to LegalTech
• The power of no-code automation with Avvoka

By: Caitlin McCabe

(4 minute read)

It is not uncommon to find many legal service companies exploiting the full potential of technology. Legal Tech has fundamentally changed the way law firms and in house counsels do business. These advancements have certainly been promising and COVID-19 has acted as a catalyst for the adoption of LegalTech. However, there are still significant barriers that the industry faces. 

In this week’s blog post we will discuss:

• Main Legaltech Barriers to adoption
• Tips to overcome these barriers
• Why it is important to overcome these barriers

Main Legaltech Barriers to adoption 

Mismatched expectation from reality

Many times a product’s true potential will only be revealed during the trial phase and the LegalTech industry is no stranger to this. Take Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an example. It has become quite a hot buzzword in recent times and many tech solution providers have used AI in order to upsell the potential of their wares. A survey conducted by the American Bar Association in 2020 found that nearly 35% of respondents cited accuracy of AI as a barrier to adoption. Whereas only 7% of respondents implemented AI tech tools in their business. Many experience fear of investing time and money in the wrong technology. One of the biggest challenges to the adoption of advanced decision-making technology is the black box challenge, not knowing how a piece of software such as AI arrives at the outcome. 

If you are unsure about technology, many firms offer demos, free trials or pilot options. This enables you to assess how the technology works, if it fits your existing working culture and how impactful it can be for you and your colleagues. At Avvoka, we also offer free document automation academies which give you the chance to freely try the technology and even offer feedback on it with the Avvoka lab.

Cost

Cost is a very real hindrance that limits any new venture. A survey conducted by the SRA reported that for those adopting legal tech 50% cited the most significant barrier was a lack of capital to invest. The cost can be divided into two sections, namely frontend and backend. For the former, this consists of expenditure paid upfront before a project begins. This is the process of procuring, evaluating, and implementing new technology that comes with a significant investment of money, time, and even opportunity cost. For the latter, this points towards the sustenance of new interests. Where cost is accounted for by new teams and resources that will manage and support these infrastructures.

If you are looking into a document automation project but are concerned about the costs we recommend that you estimate your ROI. You can do this by comparing your current process data to your expected data post automation to show the potential ROI. Then compare the cost of doing nothing against the possible cost of any solution. If you can demonstrate your implementation will cost £2,000, but you will save £200,000 – then it’s a ‘no brainer’! As well as ROI consider the fact that some LegalTech investments produce benefits such as: reducing inefficiencies, minimising errors, reducing risks and improving efficacy.

Unsuccessful onboarding process

When investing in technology most expect to reap the benefits immediately without a proper onboarding process. However, training is inevitable and many projects fall at this hurdle if adoption is not achieved within the organisation. Sometimes this is due to lack of engagement and communication in the onboarding process and not the tech itself.

A strong onboarding plan is vital for your software adoption strategy. We recommend that when considering adopting a Legal Tech solution you ask about the onboarding process and support on offer. For example, training is vital when adopting new technology. An onboarding strategy is most likely to succeed if the training is offered in stages. In our experience, having helpful guidance materials using various forms of media helps to engage a broad variety of learners. We have a wide range of training materials catered for clients on hand to help with the onboarding process. You can find more of our top tips for successful adoption in one of our previous blog posts.

Lack of time and incentives

Lawyers are very busy people and sometimes they do not have time in the day to dedicate to learning how to use a new tool. A recent study indicated that there is a real fear, especially among trainee lawyers and associates that it will take too much time to train to use a new tool. It is, therefore, easier for them to continue working the traditional way even if it is inefficient. According to the American Bar Association study in 2020 only 22% of those surveyed strongly agreed that they had received adequate training on their firm’s technology. Lawyers have also reported a lack of incentives to train on new technology. Training is not always encouraged by those higher up nor made compulsory. As a result of this, it tends to slip through the cracks which then drives disengagement in the technology.

However, there are many efficiencies and time-saving opportunities to be gained through adopting LegalTech. Document automation for example is all about efficiency, it helps users to create documents faster and ensures that they are created perfectly each time. No more square bracket tinkering! Some tools can even mass generate many different types of documents at once which is invaluable for big deals! The short term pain of having to set aside time to train on the technology leads to long term gain of efficiency.

Cybersecurity and privacy

It comes as no surprise that this concern is on the list given that lawyers are trained to consider the worst-case scenarios. Over the past few years as more companies digitalise there have been a number of high publicity data hacks. For law firms, the stakes are higher. The nature of litigation consistently deals with sensitive and confidential information. Any data breaches of such nature will be detrimental to the firm’s credentials as well as the clients they serve. Hence being risk-averse to adopt technology comes naturally for most law firms. 

For Legal Tech vendors ensuring the security of information is paramount. Security and privacy concerns are taken very seriously and worked on tirelessly to protect. Many vendors will adhere to the industry best practices for design and development. Avvoka has bank-level security and has received ISO 27001 certification. New features are thoroughly tested and the security policies are constantly improved as the threat landscape changes. You can read more about the steps we take every day to ensure information remains safe here. 

Fear

Fear of what the future holds can paralyse and create resistance to change in any industry. Pre Covid-19, law firms reported one of the best years for income. So many might be thinking why fix what isn’t broken? However, just because it may not appear to be broken doesn’t mean it can’t be elevated. 50% of participants reported in a 2020 SRA survey that a lack of staff expertise to assess and implement technology acted as a significant barrier to adoption.

Fear is in most cases is led by a lack of understanding over the consequences and benefits. People fear what they don’t know. To overcome that fear investigate and get comfortable with different legaltech solutions and the legaltech space in general. You can also attend a demo or ask for a free trial or pilot period to make sure you really understand how a certain technology works and whether it’s a good fit for your organisation.

How to overcome these barriers to legaltech adoption?

Business Strategy

Those adopting LegalTech need to have a strong business model and innovation strategy to go with their new tools. Just using or investing in a tool won’t automatically equal success. The investment needs to be carefully selected in light of the firm’s strategy so that it can improve its offering, efficiency and increase profit margins. When LegalTech is adopted in line with a clear strategy and understanding of what technology is on offer, time and money are not wasted on ill-fitting poorly adapted systems due to rushed decisions.

Communication

Communication to all of those involved is imperative throughout the whole process. Firms could use lawyers at all stages more actively in the entire process from procurement to onboarding. This will ensure that the tool being adopted is a good fit and benefits are clearly understood. Narrowing in on document automation, a previous blog sets out the questions to be asking yourself and fellow team members when selecting which tool is the right fit for your business.

Training

The training process can be made more digestible with achievable goals set alongside a training schedule. It may also be a good idea to make the training compulsory. This will ensure that all of those who should be using the technology have the time set out to train. Some firms are setting aside “innovation hours” which count towards billable hours as well as innovation awards and targets to hit. At Avvoka, we offer automation training to all of our clients. With our platform being intuitive and easy to learn most users are able to grasp the document automation essentials within an hour. You can experience this for yourself with the Avvoka Academy which is free and open for anyone who wants to learn how to automate.

Why is it important to overcome these barriers?

In a 2020 study conducted by the American Bar Association 67% of lawyers believe that they are “required to stay abreast of benefits and risks of technology as part of their basic competency requirements”. Clients are demanding more efficiency and starting to place caps on billable hours. Meaning that lawyers are having to find new ways to manage and process work. Investing in the correct LegalTech now can help firms to outpace their rivals in the long term.

Law firms of all sizes have been urgently trying to embrace LegalTech due to COVID19 having learnt valuable lessons amidst the troubles. Actively staying engaged in what LegalTech is available and appropriate won’t leave them scrambling the next time the world changes overnight. All businesses are adopting technology and keeping up to date with what the market has to offer to improve processes, become more effective and produce a superior service. What are you waiting for?

Interested to know more about document automation? Then check out our ultimate guide, which contains everything you need to know about document automation, planning and executing a document automation project, and how document automation can help your business work more efficiently and get to “yes” faster. 

Read more from Avvoka:

• How can a document automation API turbocharge your legal practice?
• Legal technology: how any lawyer can supercharge their practice
• Next generation of lawyers and the call for legal tech
• A Student’s Guide to LegalTech
• The power of no-code automation with Avvoka

By: Caitlin McCabe and Sean Woon