Globally, the law tech market is valued at $15.9bn and growing, while global investments in law tech currently stand at $926m. By comparison, investment in UK law tech has increased threefold to £61m in the past year, according to information published by Thomson Reuters, and Law Society research launched at the Legal Geek Conference 2019 in London last week indicates this trend is likely to continue.
The Law Society research found that, while the UK law tech market is at an embryonic stage, venture capital firms and angel investors are backing fledgling companies. Law tech is at a less mature stage than other digital disruption markets, such as fintech, so there is ample scope for expansion. Growth areas of law tech include: legal analytics; legal project management; governance and compliance; and contract management. More established areas include: collaboration tools; document management; IP management; and e-billing. However, the most established areas in the UK are target eDiscovery and legal research.
London is attracting tech investors, the research found, with the closest competitors being Singapore, Hong Kong and the Netherlands. However, the UK leads in some aspects and lags behind in others, and the gap between the UK and competitor nations is not large.
Law Society president Simon Davis said: ‘London is becoming a hub for legal technology, with the capital topping the European investment charts for funding into fast growing sectors such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and fintech. Further investment and strategic support will be needed if we are to maintain our competitive edge in the global market.’
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