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Let’s get digital

18 November 2016 / Roger Smith
Issue: 7723 / Categories: Opinion , Profession , Technology
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Roger Smith reports on the rise & rise of digital technology

Richard Susskind filled the lecture theatre at the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) in Lincoln’s Inn for the annual Society for Computers and Law (SCL) lecture. A text of this appears, as yet, to be unavailable, though a podcast of the lecture is accessible through the SCL website. The lecture is worth listening to partly for the breadth of the author’s vision of the impact of new technology but also for the nuances in his current position on government-driven initiatives.

Much of Professor Susskind’s analysis follows that set out in his books, most recently in The Future of the Professions, co-written with his son, Daniel. In particular, he points to the potentially transformative effects of the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) in large corporate firms. All the major firms, he points out, now have alliances of one kind or another with AI providers. This will, in time disrupt the legal profession as we know it. Changes are consequently needed in

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Birketts—trainee cohort

Birketts—trainee cohort

Firm welcomes new cohort of 29 trainee solicitors for 2025

Keoghs—four appointments

Keoghs—four appointments

Four partner hires expand legal expertise in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Real estate team in Yorkshire welcomes new partner

NEWS
Robert Taylor of 360 Law Services warns in this week's NLJ that adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms, unless tools are tailored to their needs
The Court of Protection has ruled in Macpherson v Sunderland City Council that capacity must be presumed unless clearly rebutted. In this week's NLJ, Sam Karim KC and Sophie Hurst of Kings Chambers dissect the judgment and set out practical guidance for advisers faced with issues relating to retrospective capacity and/or assessments without an examination
Delays and dysfunction continue to mount in the county court, as revealed in a scathing Justice Committee report and under discussion this week by NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School. Bulk claims—especially from private parking firms—are overwhelming the system, with 8,000 cases filed weekly
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve charts the turbulent progress of the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords, in this week's NLJ
From oligarchs to cosmetic clinics, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) target journalists, activists and ordinary citizens with intimidating legal tactics. Writing in NLJ this week, Sadie Whittam of Lancaster University explores the weaponisation of litigation to silence critics
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