Canadian Lawyer InHouse

JULY/AUGUST 2018 24 INHOUSE and reviewing documents. What I'm hop- ing is we get to a place where either in part- nership or as a department with external providers where they are leveraging some AI to do that big document review and the same on the transactional side with due diligence review. GEARING: Data analytics is a big topic for us. Development of loyalty programs is a big one. My oversight of that is making sure the data that is analyzed and collected is safe and protected. Those are two giant subjects for us right now. At McKesson, data analytics has been underutilized and they are invest - ing heavily in that going forward. INHOUSE: Are you seeing different skillsets being brought in to handle these types of projects? GEARING: I'm seeing at McKesson that a lot of that work is being done by the IT group at McKesson corporate. ACKROYD: We have a new lawyer and he read up on all of our patents when he was coming in. He gets blockchain and I asked him what he thinks we should be looking at from a new technology point of view, so I had two pages of suggested scenarios. He's under 30, so everything he has done as a young adult has been with technology. There is an awareness and a comfort level and a savviness. LAWAL: I have heard the term legal operations a lot and those people are often predisposed to technology and innovation. IT has lots of people thinking about how to move forward the operations and day-to- day processing of information and work. BABIN: I feel we could use someone like that — it's kind of my role — general counsel and legal operations. I think it would be of great benefit to have someone dedicated to that legal operations function. INHOUSE: What do you expect from your firms when it comes to technology? BABIN: I think the firms are trying to em- brace innovation and technology. Certainly, there is a lot happening in the CPD space — it seems every other invitation I get is about innovation or tech. I think they are trying to get their arms around what's out there to make it more understandable for their clients. LAWAL: I think there was a time when pro - viding data room ability was as far as law firms would have gone, but I am seeing more offering AI as a tool they would use for transactions. [There's] a lot more part- nering with incubator organizations to try and distinguish themselves. GEARING: It's pretty much the old unsexy Sharmila practised as general counsel for the Norstar and Concordian Group. © 2018 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited 00250QW-91912-CE OUR QUALITY STARTS WITH OUR PEOPLE Now her job is to make you better at yours. Practical Law Canada provides legal know-how that gives lawyers a better starting point. Our expert team of lawyer-editors creates and maintains thousands of up-to-date, practical resources across all major practice areas. We go beyond primary law and traditional legal research to give you the resources needed to practise more effi ciently, improve client services, and add more value. REQUEST A FREE TRIAL TODAY 1-844-717-4488 | thomsonreuters.ca/practicallawcanada

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