On the 18th of March, E-Discovery Consulting and EY welcomed over 120 participants from the New Zealand legal fraternity to the New Zealand Law and Technology Conference.
The conference has developed into New Zealand’s premier legal technology event, providing a platform for anyone involved in the intersection of technology and the law to develop their knowledge in this fast changing area.
The focus of the event for 2015 was expanded from eDiscovery to appeal to a wider audience of legal professionals with an interest in various aspects of legal technology. The delegates included not only lawyers but also CIOs, practice managers, knowledge managers, IT and legal support professionals – from within law firms and also government organisations.
This year’s expanded and exciting agenda packed interactive workshops, presentations and demonstrations from leading New Zealand and international practitioners. The event included two keynote presentations, followed by 3 new topic streams – Legal & eDiscovery, Legal Technology and Technology Demonstrations & Case Studies.
It is simply not possible to do the event justice by summarising in just the one post, so over the next few posts I will provide a summary of each of the streams.
How Technology Challenges the law
Since the inception of the event, we have been very fortunate to have had Judge Harvey provide the Judicial Keynote. Keeping with the theme of expanding the event this year, Judge Harvey took his presentation to another level by looking at Collisions in the Digital Paradigm.
As always, Judge Harvey was provocative and thought provoking as he dared us to identify how disruptive communications technologies are not only challenging every facet of our professional and social lives but also challenging the law. Judge Harvey examined some key legal principles that have come under attack in this digital world and offered some insights into the future of law.
The session explored some of the considerations that lawyers need to be aware of in this new digital paradigm. As with previous presentations, Judge Harvey stressed the importance for lawyers to be aware of and competent with these new technologies, as they are going to continue to be part of practicing law.
Judge Harvey provided one of his best presentations yet. Many attendees commented about the quality and insight provided and how he compares to very few other judges. Those from overseas were in awe of Judge Harvey. Leading eDiscovery professional Allison Stanfield, commented at the conclusion of Judge Harvey’s presentation that Judge Harvey is “the first person from the judiciary that truly understands this field”
An International Perspective of Legal Technology Trends
Concluding the day our International keynote speaker Nigel Murray provided an international perspective of how lawyers and law firms are meeting the challenges of today’s Digital Paradigm.
One of the key themes was how important technology had become in driving the efficiency and productivity of law firms in an increasingly competitive market. These technologies will only continue to evolve and it is essential that law firms become intimately aware of the technologies and practices to drive the efficiencies of the law firms.
The session explored the challenges faced by law firms and how some firms have adapted their practices through the use of technology. Technology is at the forefront of adapting practices as technology will transform legal services over the next decade. He stressed that law firms will need to adapt to survive.
Nigel explored similar journeys that firms in other jurisdictions had made. He looked at some of processes that had worked, whilst others that may not have. At the same time he looked at the evolution of client demands and how law firms are responding.
Final thoughts
As has been customary, the conference concluded with a drinks reception. Attendees, speakers and sponsors alike networked discussing the events of the day and potential further opportunities.
An event of this nature is not possible without the support of our sponsors. We appreciated the support of Konica Minolta, P&L, Next Page, FTI Consulting, EDT, DocsCorp, Nikec Solutions and Nuix, as well as many more organisations that exhibited on the day. We have plans to enhance the exhibition side of the event even further in 2016, for both sponsors and delegates.
The event had a great following on social media during the day as delegates, sponsors and speakers interacted via twitter.
It is still early days in New Zealand for law firms to fully appreciate the intersection of law and technology and how it continues to evolve as such a rapid pace, whilst realising the role that technology can play to assist both lawyers and their law firms. We had an excellent attendance this year, but many more firms could gain real value by attending the event in the future.
The New Zealand Law and Technology Conference will continue to provide a platform to educate and prepare the profession in this fast changing area. Using technology effectively is now essential for anyone working within the legal profession.
Largely due to the considerable interest in the event, we are already planning how we can grow and improve the event for 2016. Watch this space as we will have some exciting news over the coming months about the New Zealand Law and Technology Conference for 2016, including the date and the venue.
Read more about the highlights of the 3 streams here –
Technology Demonstrations & Case Studies
