Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell

Explore the realm of legal tech collaboration as resistance to cloud-based solutions fades away, enabling law firms to overcome obstacles and adopt collaborative tools. Join our discussion with Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell, hosts of the Kennedy-Mighell Report podcast, as we delve into the intriguing dynamics of collaboration, convergence in panel discussions, and the pursuit of standardization. Discover strategies that can revolutionize your client interactions and seamlessly integrate technology into your workflow.

In this episode, Dennis and Tom provide insights on:

  • Keeping abreast of industry advancements
  • Identifying psychological barriers hindering legal collaboration
  • Developing a comprehensive understanding of data governance within legal teams
  • Enhancing collaboration with clients in the legal sector

Key insights from the conversation:

  • The legal profession’s reliance on traditional methods and compartmentalized operations, combined with initial reluctance towards advanced collaboration tools, underscores the urgent need for embracing technology-driven approaches and knowledge management systems. These are essential for boosting efficiency and effectiveness across law firms and corporate legal departments.
  • Successful law firms recognize collaboration as a pivotal element for business success, emphasizing the benefits of interdependence and offering diverse services to clients. Smaller firms, in particular, must master effective collaboration to thrive in the competitive legal landscape.
  • Despite resistance, there’s a growing interest in effective governance and retention practices within the legal sector. This is evident from the high attendance and engagement at events focused on optimizing team collaboration, signaling a shift towards acknowledging the significance of structured collaboration strategies.
  • Different law firms adopt varying governance approaches, including chat retention policies and channel organization. While many utilize platforms like Microsoft Teams for communication and meetings, few leverage it fully for collaboration and document management.

About our guests:

Dennis Kennedy is an award-winning leader in applying technology to law practice. Praised for his ability to simplify complex legal and tech issues, Dennis is the Director of the Center for Law, Technology & Innovation at Michigan State University College of Law. As a published author and sought-after speaker, he focuses on promoting innovation in law practice and has co-authored several books, including “The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools and Technologies.” Tom Mighell, a seasoned legal technologist and published author, has pioneered technology development since joining Cowles & Thompson, P.C. in 1990. As the senior consultant for Contoural, Inc., he specializes in enhancing corporations’ records management and e-discovery practices. Tom collaborates with organizations to establish robust information governance programs, mitigate privacy risks, and ensure efficient, defensible e-discovery processes, fortifying companies’ readiness for legal obligations.

“What you really want to do is to make it easy to work with you. And if that sort of guides what you’re doing, that’s going to advance you a long way toward getting into the happy zone.” – Dennis Kennedy

“Collaboration is not a foreign concept. It’s just not adopted well, with the different technical ways that people can use to be really successful about it.” – Tom Mighell

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