More than the IT guy: Law firms begin to embrace CTOs As technology continues to revolutionise the legal landscape, law firms are beginning to realise that they need to better harness technology in order to remain competitive. To this end, chief technology officers (CTOs) are becoming increasingly in vogue, finds Raj Gunashekar. Long regarded as one of the last stodgy holdouts against innovation in general and technology in particular, the legal industry is waking up to the fact that if it does not embrace technology now, it is likely to be left behind.
To achieve this, law firms are increasingly bringing in dedicated technology specialists to oversee their transformation as well as gain a competitive edge. Although internal organisational structures vary from firm to firm, most sizeable firms have someone in charge of setting information technology strategies and overseeing day-to-day operations.
The reasons for this are manifold, explains Patrick O'Reilly, IT client services director for APAC at Clifford Chance. “Collaborating with clients needs to be easy. To achieve this, someone needs to be worried about the future roadmap for technology and how it can be used to achieve the firm's strategy as it evolves.”
Additionally, clients are demanding more from law firms with regard to data security, which has become one of the biggest priorities in the sector. A firm is at risk if it doesn't have someone focused on this key area and delivering security solutions that meet clients’ requirements.
Clients also expect law firms to drive efficiencies through adoption of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, which cause lower value tasks to be automated, thus driving down costs.
While specific roles vary, firms are beginning to trust internal advisors to help navigate the range of technologies at their disposal – along with the challenges they bring.
“You need an owner for your technology roadmap,” says O’Reilly. “This could be a CTO, a CIO, global head of architect or a global head of infrastructure. Everything depends on the size of the firm, its global reach and its level of IT sophistication. A small local firm wouldn't typically have a CTO role, so this might fall to the IT manager. It really depends on your client base and what they are demanding.”
AN EVOLVING ROLE The role of a CTO revolves around gathering feedback from the business around pain points to ensure that any future technological changes can be used to address those issues.
In addition, CTOs are expected to communicate the IT roadmap to the business in terms of short-, medium- and long-term strategies to gain buy-in. They also invest in technology, strive to understand the impact of technology change on the business, and align training materials and resources to support these.
As O’Reilly points out, “They are also involved in understanding the impact of technology change on business processes and on the day-to-day support teams and what is needed to increase the skills and knowledge of various teams. They evaluate newer technologies and how they might benefit the firm in the long run.”
Moreover, every law firm is now being challenged by the rapid emergence of different forms of cyber risks, and this only bolsters the need for a technology officer. “Protecting the data of our clients and our firm is a top priority, and we have a strong information risk management system in place for this purpose,” says Andrew Stoutley, administrative director at Thailand-headquartered Tilleke & Gibbins.
That said, CTOs at law firms cannot work in isolation. It wouldn’t be effective to have an IT team implementing technology solutions that don’t meet the needs of lawyers and – even more importantly – the needs of clients.
“It’s our lawyers who work closely with our clients, listening to their requirements and learning about their businesses. Therefore, it's essential for our IT group to work closely with the firm’s lawyers on tech activities,” adds Stoutley.
To contact the writer, please email raj.gunashekar@tr.com. 
