The age of coronavirus forced law firms of all stripes to adapt to more virtual forms of practice, and were aided by myriad tech platforms and services. In the ‘new normal’, even greater agility will be required in order to stay ahead of the game.

Continued competitiveness in the market

When COVID-19 hit, LEAP Australia and New Zealand CEO Donna Broadley muses, lawyers and law firms everywhere had to adapt quickly to changing circumstances in order to continue working and servicing their clients. 

This meant, she recalls, that many firms either adopted technology that supported them to work from home or used existing technology to adjust existing processes to accommodate remote working and a lack of face-to-face client meetings.

Now, however, a new push forward is required, she says.

““Many law firms have made great, innovative strides in the last 18 months, and it’s now become imperative for them to keep up this momentum, particularly as the expectations of their clients have also changed,” Ms Broadley believes.

— Donna Broadley

Making the most of platforms like LEAP and the Marketplace, he opines, comes down to being open to embracing innovation. 

“There’s a wide range of quality resources and tools out there to help practitioners improve their practices and improve their client service, if practitioners aren’t open to exploring where their firms can be doing better and pursuing that then they won’t reap the rewards,” Mr Burgess warns. 

“From a business perspective, firms need to be having regular discussions about how they can capitalise on their technology to effectively compete and grow their businesses. It’s the firms that are proactive and seek out opportunities to innovate that will succeed long term.”

When asked what lawyers and business owners have to look forward to should they move to take their tech proficiency to the next level via LEAP Marketplace, he said: “At LEAP, we understand that all law firms operate a little differently day to day so that’s why we’ve allowed developers like InfoTrack, RedView, BundlePro and Westlaw to create apps that capitalise on LEAP’s functionality to deliver a growing range of tools that save time, boost productivity and make the day-to-day practice of law more enjoyable.” 

“A lot of these apps are giving firms a real competitive difference too with many aiding client service or allowing the completion of matters to be streamlined,” he concluded.

‘We love the app, it’s phenomenal’

So far, feedback for the Marketplace is hugely promising for LEAP and, by virtue, for the broader legal profession. 

According to InfoTrack Head of Products Kristy Lee Bullock: “LEAP’s marketplace has allowed InfoTrack to enable workflow solutions that showcase products relevant to the matter type the client is transacting in. With the seamless pre-population of data from the LEAP matter, InfoTrack solutions are now accessible in just a couple of clicks.”

“While speaking with clients, we uncovered the biggest opportunity was in helping them understand which InfoTrack solutions were available to them in each matter type, and ensuring they were easily accessible within the LEAP platform,” InfoTrack CEO John Ahern adds. 

“With increased accessibility, LEAP clients are now finding it easier than ever to navigate to the workflow solutions they need within InfoTrack. We continue to add applications to the LEAP marketplace to provide LEAP clients with valuable workflows specific to each matter type. This will help them save time and move their matters forward faster,” he sys

Speaking about LEAP’s ‘Off The Plan Recurring Matters’ app, Marc Hardman & Associates solicitor Katharine Hardman proclaims: “We love the app, it’s phenomenal.” 

We use it every single day. We no longer need to worry about lot number duplications, we can see and manage all our development work in one place. It’s been a game changer for us,” she notes.

RedView CEO Stephen Butler is similarly gushing, espousing a “fantastic experience” working not just with the Marketplace but also with LEAP’s development team.

“The API is easily the most comprehensive in the market and the support provided has been excellent. This sort of tool and environment allows us to be innovative and supplement the LEAP product with extensions that clients need,” he says. 

“LEAP vision and confidence to be able to provide these types of facilities means that clients can tap into a rich ecosystem of integrated apps built by experts in their area.” 

Finally, Thomson Reuters Legal Australia vice president (legal solutions, Australia and Emerging Markets) James Jarvis submits: “...to conduct legal research more effectively, the integration enables customers to seamlessly access new Westlaw from LEAP and save relevant research documents to their LEAP's matters”.