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‘Vibrant and kaleidoscopic’: Legal tech in Australia is thriving
New research gives hope for the future prospects of legal technology Down Under, however there remain issues for those in this space to be aware of.
Jerome Doraisamy
The “Global Legal Tech Report for Australia” – a collaborative research project by the Australian Legal Technology Association (ALTA) and Alpha Creates, with the backing of sponsors Macquarie, KPMG, the Law Society of England and Wales and Toro Digital – has found the Australian legal tech market to be well placed looking ahead to the future.
“It will be interesting to track the impact of COVID-19 on this market, given it represents both a threat and an opportunity for legal tech companies,” he said.
Looking more broadly, Alpha Creates researchers Eric Chin and Graeme Grovum said there were three “clear” themes emerging from the Australian market for those in the legal tech space to be aware of:
- Gender representation and differing focus
The report found that only 30 per cent of Australian legal tech companies have female founders or co-founders, it noted.
“Australian legal tech companies founded by women are more likely to focus on a broader target market than just law firms and are also more strongly focused on the domestic market, with 44 per cent interested in international expansion compared to 84 per cent of those without female founders or co-founders,” Mr Chin said.
- AI companies are thriving
“However, it is clear that AI-based companies are bullish on the future, with twice as many developers, almost universal plans to increase their developer teams and more ambitious international growth plans than non-AI based companies,” Mr Grovum observed.
- Integrated solutions attract external funding
“More integrated solutions providers (52 per cent) have been successful in attracting external funding than point solutions providers (32 per cent),” Alpha Creates noted.
Mirroring what was found with AI companies, integrated solution providers also have larger developer teams and stronger appetites for expansion into international markets, the researchers added.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
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