Canadian Lawyer

November 2022

The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers

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An entirely digitized law firm ready to provide digital tools will likely top the list when a company is evaluating the need for external help www.canadianlawyermag.com 1 EDITOR'S DESK UPFRONT www.canadianlawyermag.com L aw firms have always been in the business of managing data. Whether it's boxes or bytes of documents, lawyers are information experts. However, the pandemic and technological developments have supercharged the rate of innovation. When the world seemingly became virtual overnight in March 2020, firms shed their antiquated paper documents so their teams could continue to provide legal advice, and tech companies jumped at the opportunity to support the move. With that change come new opportunities to improve internal and external operations. When a law firm consolidates its data into digitized form, it's much easier to use tools such as artificial intelligence to identify patterns and inefficiencies. Lisa Stam at Spring Law (p. 4) says her firm uses data to identify team members taking too long on a task. The firm can then help that person improve. And it is not just internal improvements that law firms can make. "Law firms have access to a tremendous amount of data related to their clients, their expertise, the legal landscape, and business intelligence that impacts their clients," says Sona Pancholy, president of Meritas (p. 4). Take, for example, the Hospital for Sick Children. General counsel Megan Evans (p. 26) helps support the use of technology for health professionals at her institution, but her legal department also has technological needs. "As our organization matures and grows in its adoption of AI in the clinical and research arenas, there will be opportunities for us in the legal department, the risk department, and the privacy department to think about how we can use AI in our portfolio to streamline activities and improve outcomes," she says. SickKids' legal department frequently relies on the support of external counsel partners, so Evans seeks firms that bring substantive knowledge and expertise to the table and are interested in developing a genuine partnership with the organization. That expertise undoubtedly involves providing data insights that Evans can use to run her legal department more efficiently and support her institution. While Evans may manage some of this technology internally, an entirely digitized law firm ready to provide digital tools will likely top the list when a company is evaluating the need for external help. Tim Wilbur, managing editor Firms join clients in data revolution ISSUE 46.04 | NOVEMBER 2022 Canadian Lawyer is published 10 times a year by KM Business Information Canada Ltd. KEY MEDIA and the KEY MEDIA logo are trademarks of Key Media IP Limited, and used under licence by KM Business Information Canada Ltd. CANADIAN LAWYER is a trademark of KM Business Information Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reprinted without written permission. The opinions expressed in articles are not necessarily those of the publisher. Information presented is compiled from sources believed to be accurate, however, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Canadian Lawyer disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. Publications Mail Agreement #41261516 ISSN 0703-2129 ©2021 GST/HST Registration #799898465RC-0001 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 317 Adelaide Street West, Suite 910, Toronto, ON M5V 1P9 RETOURNER TOUTE CORRESPONDANCE NE POUVANT ÉTRE LIVREÉ AU CANADA AU SERVICE DES PUBLICATIONS 317 Adelaide Street West, Suite 910, Toronto, ON M5V 1P9 KM Business Information Canada Ltd 317 Adelaide Street West, Suite 910 Toronto, ON M5V 1P9 tel: +1 416 644 8740 www.keymedia.com EDITORIAL Managing Editor Tim Wilbur Senior Editor Zena Olijnyk Editor Aidan Macnab Production Editors Christina Jelinek, Roslyn Meredith, Karen Atienza Writers Lucy Saddleton, Katrina Eñano, Jason Tan, Angelica Dino, Bernise Carolino, Kiezzsa Cruz ART & PRODUCTION Designers Loiza Razon, Khaye Cortez, Juan Ramos Vice President, Production Monica Lalisan Production Coordinator Kat Guzman Client Success Coordinators Sharmaine Guevara, Dyanne Dimatulac SALES & MARKETING Director, Business Development Lynda Fenton Sr. Business Development Manager Steffanie Munroe Business Development Manager Maurice Phillips CORPORATE President Tim Duce Director, People and Culture Julia Bookallil Vice President, Strategic Event Development Chris Davis Vice President, Strategic Alliances John Mackenzie Office/Traffic Manager Marni Parker Chief Revenue Officer Dane Taylor Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Global COO George Walmsley Global CEO Mike Shipley EDITORIAL INQUIRIES tim.wilbur@keymedia.com NAUK SUBSCRIPTIONS CO-ORDINATOR Donnabel Reyes tel: 647 374 4536 ext. 243 donnabel.reyes@keymedia.com ADVERTISING INQUIRIES legaladvertise@keymedia.com

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