Miura & Partners’ Haruka Murata on widening the firm’s offering to European clients Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Interview with: Haruka Murata and Masayuki Atsumi”
New research has revealed that law firms are increasingly shifting to hybrid working and cloud technology is underpinning this move
This article will look at some of the key findings to emerge from a new benchmarking study, undertaken by Legal IT Insider in association with Philips, that interviewed a range of leading law firms on their hybrid working plans and cloud strategies. It will also outline how the Philips SpeechLive cloud-based dictation and transcription workflow solution can help to address specific issues associated with the hybrid work approach, not least the concerns associated with cyber security.
Following on from the global pandemic we have seen the rapid growth of the hybrid work model where employees have the flexibility to work a portion of their week from home, with the remainder of the time spent in their office.
Law firms have certainly embraced this model, recognising its growing popularity and the expectation of staff to have greater flexibility in where they work. In fact, the study indicates that 88% of respondents now have some form of policy in place to support it, while only 2% are making it mandatory for their staff to be back in the office full-time.
The result is that law firms are increasingly looking for new opportunities to support lawyers more effectively, by enhancing collaboration, streamlining processes and allowing for device and location-independent mobile working. All of which are major strengths of cloud technologies.
It’s no surprise, therefore, that the study results show 68% of respondents confirming that more than half of their core systems are now cloud-based. In contrast only 9% are still using predominantly on-premises solutions.
Another significant finding is that 79% of the respondents already have a cloud-first strategy. This is an approach to cloud computing that involves the adoption of cloud technologies for all new applications, platforms and infrastructure. In effect it prioritises cloud computing services over more traditional on-premises IT systems.
The growing shift to the cloud is also emphasised in terms of the overall strategy adopted, with 12% of respondents reporting that they are already entirely cloud-based. What’s more, a further 23% plan to be entirely cloud-based within 18 months, while 19% intend to follow suit in three years.
And cloud-based solutions have played an important part in helping legal firms to support hybrid and remote workers more effectively. For example, one of the most significant changes that law firms have seen in adapting to hybrid working has been the increasing reliance on Microsoft 365, with 56% of respondents having recently moved to this software as a service (SaaS) product.
Another commonly reported change has been the surge in adoption of eSignature usage (cited by 72% of respondents). This use of IT to authenticate the signatory and certify the integrity of the document is mobile-friendly and secure, and thus ideally suited for a hybrid work environment where colleagues and business partners will often be working remotely.
Streamlining document production processes and enhancing collaboration are major challenges for all law firms. Philips SpeechLive is a cloud-based solution that is suitable for businesses of all sizes and is ideally placed to meet these challenges. It allows legal professionals to use its advanced speech recognition and workflow capabilities to create and route documents through the production processes. Document creation can be carried out:
Front-end speech recognition can also be used to directly insert text into existing software applications, such as Microsoft Word, Outlook or CRM systems, along with case management systems.
SpeechLive’s AI-based engine offers up to 99% accuracy, while voice commands can be used to insert paragraphs, punctuation marks and special characters, all contributing to speedy and effective speech-to-text conversion.
Uptime reliability can be a concern with some cloud-based solutions due to issues such as power failures or network outages. With this in mind, Philips has partnered with Microsoft Azure as its hosting provider. Azure promises a 99.9% uptime guarantee, 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year.
Inevitably much of the information generated by legal firms will contain personal information that is sensitive in nature. Ensuring such information is safe from the prying eyes of online hackers is paramount. Security, therefore, is a crucial issue for both existing and potential users of cloud-based solutions.
In the past a range of concerns were often expressed by both law firms and their clients regarding the security of documents stored in the cloud, particularly public clouds.
However, results from the study demonstrate a growing confidence in the levels of security now provided by cloud service providers. It found that 73% of respondents believe none of their clients are unhappy or uncomfortable with their data being stored in the cloud, while a further 21% expressed only minor reservations.
Reinforcing the above point, 74% of respondents believe that cloud solutions are now more secure than their on-premises counterparts.
This appears to have resulted in a change of emphasis in terms of the security-related concerns expressed by the clients of law firms – they are less concerned about where the data is hosted, and more about how it is actually protected. One respondent commented ‘It is impossible for on-premises to be as secure as the cloud. Security technology requires a level of scale and investment that cannot be achieved on premises.’
There is a growing confidence that cloud service providers can offer extremely high levels of security, not least because their businesses and reputations depend on it.
This is certainly the case with SpeechLive. For example, the use of multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an extra level of security since it requires two or more distinct factors to validate a user’s identity, rather than relying on just a simple username and password combination.
In addition, encryption techniques are employed to create a layered defence that makes it more difficult for an unauthorised person to gain access to audio recordings and file attachments. All types of audio files are always created, sent and stored with industry standard AES 256-bit encryption.
Importantly, the Azure hosting service also adheres to international standards for security and compliance. For example, the service is ‘GDPR ready’, meaning it fully complies with the European Union (EU)’s General Data Protection Regulation which seeks to ensure that EU residents’ personal data is secure, accessible, used appropriately and documented with consent.
In addition, Azure is certified for the ISO/IEC 27000 family of information security standards, in particular the mainstay of the series (ISO 27001) which sets out the specifications for an information security management system.
Azure also continuously performs penetration testing and work on threat detection and prevention in areas such as unauthorised intrusion and denial of service.
Hybrid Working & Law Firms’ Long-Term Cloud Journey
Cloud Report 2023 by Belinda Hermans – Flipsnack
Ryan Braddock, VP and sales director UK and Ireland
Speech Processing Solutions UK Ltd
7 The Courtyards
Wyncolls Road
Severalls Park
Colchester CO4 9PE
T: 07825 751859
E: [email protected]
Grant McCaig, head of litigation at Phoenix Group, the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business, discusses the value analytics brings to high-stakes litigation decisions
The past few years has seen pioneering litigation analytics company Solomonic utilise machine learning technology and human expertise to create powerful structured data from unstructured litigation documents and judgments. This has, for the first time in English High Court cases, brought data and insight to the decision-making process. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Litigation analytics brings hard data to high-stakes decisions”
With AI and ChatGPT on the rise, Stephen Dowling explores how, and why, these new tools are a necessity for the future of dispute resolution
Litigation is undergoing a quiet revolution. Underpinning these changes are powerful AI and ChatGPT tools, which are ultimately changing how we work, and impacting on outcomes. The days of manual processes are numbered. Digital tools are now commonplace in litigation. But the next phase of development will see a harnessing of these tools to bring efficiencies never thought possible – with implications for those who do not adapt. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Putting AI in its place: the rise of the litigation workspace”
Theodore Pistiolis, managing partner of Andersen Legal in Greece, examines the benefits of doing business in the Greek market
During the last years and despite adversities, Greece became an investment destination for local and foreign capitals. The perception of Greece as an investment destination is strong, and the country built trust and optimism about its prospects. Greece’s economy recorded solid growth in the first half of 2022, but rising inflation took its toll on growth in the year’s second half. However, the RRF program (Recover and Resilience Facility loans) supported the economy. Government measures cushioned the impact of energy prices on businesses’ input costs and households’ real disposable incomes. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Doing business in Greece”
Dimitris Zepos, managing partner of Zepos & Yannopoulos, on what the future holds for the legal market in Greece
The Greek legal market has traditionally been highly fragmented and therefore shallow, with freelance lawyers and small family-owned offices making up the lion’s share of the market. To be fair, small-scale business models have not been a particularity of the Greek legal market, but rather a replicate of the average Greek entrepreneurial model. According to the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises, 96% of SMEs employ up to nine people and this includes companies without any employees or with just one.
According to data published by the Greek Authority of Public Revenue, the number of individual lawyers has remained steady since 2019, amounting to approximately 35,000 (34,672 for 2021). According to the same data, the total turnover of legal services in Greece amounted to €940M in 2019, out of which, approximately €470M was generated by individual lawyers. This means that 35,000 individual lawyers generated approximately 50% of the sector’s total turnover in 2019. To put things in perspective this amount is equivalent to the annual turnover of one single international law firm, Bird & Bird, which in 2019 was ranked 100th in the world, based on turnover.
The figures in question have started shifting, indicating that the legal market is moving slowly, yet steadily, towards a more mature way of doing business. In 2021, the number of law firms increased to 1,060, compared to 907, back in 2019. The total turnover of legal services reached €1.4bn, growing by 60% compared to 2019. Out of that figure, approximately €940m of turnover has been generated by law firms, whereas the performance of individual lawyers has remained in the range of €500m. In other words, growth in the sector has been fuelled by the increasing number of law firms and their growth.
Fragmentation of the legal market is also evident when one looks at figures concerning headcount. The ten-largest law firms in Greece, based on headcount, employ approximately 600 lawyers in total, out of the approximately 38,000 active lawyers in the country.
At Zepos & Yannopoulos we have always believed that strength derives from teaming up. With a total team of 118 lawyers, 14 economists and 82 other professionals, we are proud to be within the top 3% of employers in Greece. Consolidating practices and people allows us to adapt to the pace of a constantly changing world, to foster legal talent and encourage innovative thinking, all to the benefit of our clients, our people and the community as a whole.
The legal profession in itself is changing. Firms are called upon to cater to a wide and complex range of comprehensive needs. The question is no longer whether the Greek legal market should change to adjust to this new era, but instead how fast it can do so.
Dimitris Zepos,
Managing partner
Zepos & Yannopoulos
280 Kifissias Ave. 152 32 Halandri Athens, Greece
T: (+30) 210 69 67 000
Early 2023 held a sweet spot for cross-border M&A activity in Greece, unmuting all those opportunities that had joined a waitlist during the Covid-19 pandemic and have been looking for the right time to be deployed and lead into new business models and scaling deal-making strategies.
In fact, the current market status suggests that deal-makers rebound with a strong intention to radically shift the transactional landscape by throwing into the mix highly sophisticated implementation plans and solid completion strategies, opening up to new industry sectors and playing up to transformational deals that will most definitely impact their core operations and medium-term strategic goals. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Greece: M&A outlook and FDI attractiveness from a legal and regulatory point of view”
After overcoming a decade-long financial recession, Greece is currently going through a period of political stability and economic growth. During this period, the Greek government has taken a proactive role in charting a determined course for Greece that is friendly to investment, promotes growth and welcomes new business, primarily by enacting legislation that provides considerable incentives to investors.
In particular, during the year 2021, the Greek economy manifested a GDP growth of 8.3% and welcomed an increase of 90.2% in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), in accordance with the data provided by the Hellenic Statistical Authority and Bank of Greece respectively. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Legal trends in Greece”
1. A BURGEONING INDUSTRY
Green bond issuance is expected to balloon over the next few years. On a global scale, predictions for 2023 alone estimate up to $600bn will be raised from green bonds, with Europe playing a leading role in this. The European Commission will fund up to €250bn over the next few years by issuing NextGenerationEU green bonds, making the EC the largest green bonds issuer in the world. Greece is expected to raise substantial amounts through green bonds in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 and achieve net-zero by 2050. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Green bonds: the future of equity financing?”
Alexander C Dovles, partner at Saplegal – A.S. Papadimitriou & Partners Law Firm, outlines why knowledge of the Greek jurisdiction and law is often crucial in shipping disputes
Historically, Greece has always been a maritime nation, which is distinctly reflected in the modern Greek economy. Undoubtedly, Greece remains today the top ship-owning nation in the world, since the Greek shipowners with their 5,514 ships currently control approximately 21% of the global fleet. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: The importance of the Greek jurisdiction and Greek law in international shipping disputes”
Mark Sansom will take over from Claire Wills as London managing partner at Freshfields, the firm has announced. The move comes at the end of Wills’ four-year term, and will take effect on 1 May. Sansom will also continue his client work.
An accomplished competition litigator, Sansom has worked closely with Wills, first as a partner and from July 2022 as London head of dispute resolution. ‘Mark and I have been in the trenches together, working with the other practice heads, developing the London strategy,’ Wills told Legal Business. ‘What I am planning to spend my time on now is supporting Mark in action, at the coal face, with my corporate, transactional, and M&A work.’ Continue reading “‘We’re in a really exciting moment for the London market’: Freshfields appoints Mark Sansom as new London managing partner”
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Limited version Continue reading “Access your pdf edition of LB magazine – issue 313”
While our annual risk and professional indemnity report in conjunction with Marsh Specialty charted the movement of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) concerns up the law firm risk management agenda in 2022, this time around ESG is all-consuming. So much so that insurers and brokers are making it a key component of discussions with corporate clients.
The increase in the level of interest in ESG and the role it plays in risk management discussions has been significant. In last year’s survey, 73% of respondents said that ESG is now firmly part of their firm’s risk management agenda. That figure has now increased to 77%, with just 6% of respondents saying that ESG does not currently fall within the risk management remit. One might argue that even that is too high a proportion of leading law firms, given that ESG is front and centre of the corporate landscape today. Continue reading “Risk management and professional indemnity survey 2023: Walking the talk”
ChatGPT, an AI program, has experienced unprecedented growth, amassing over 100 million monthly active users. This raises concerns regarding potential threats to safety, privacy, employment, and the urgency for regulatory intervention.
A Goldman Sachs report indicates that AI could automate up to a quarter of work in the US, impacting 300 million jobs globally1. However, AI technology could also enhance labor productivity growth and increase global GDP by up to 7%2. The legal profession is among those at the highest risk of AI automation, with 44% of tasks potentially being automated. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Rise of the Machines: Shaping the Legal Response to AI’s Rapid Expansion”
The last two years have been a steep learning curve for the jobs market, and never more so than in the legal sector. Post-pandemic, the market has changed drastically- and while things are certainly starting to get easier, challenges still remain.
Here at LR Legal, we’re acutely aware of the struggles employers face right now, and we know how vital it is to recognise the impact of the changes that are taking place in the legal industry. So how can LR Legal help law firms not only secure the top talent in today’s difficult market but keep them too? Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Recruiting top talent”
Leading several high-profile moves this week, White & Case has hired antitrust partner Michael Engel from Kirkland & Ellis in London. Engel, who is dual-qualified in the UK and Germany, had been a partner at Kirkland since January 2021 and, before that, was at Sullivan & Cromwell for a decade.
Engel advises on the full scope of EU, German and UK-governed competition issues. Continue reading “Revolving Doors: White & Case and Proskauer make antitrust plays as Paul Hastings raids A&O in New York”
Tilleke & Gibbins’ Sittiwate Jewsittiprapai and Michael Ramirez share their insights into the working of Thailand’s legal system
Thailand’s legal system is based on European continental civil law systems, with a three-tier court system. Precedents set by the Thai Supreme Court are merely considered as examples of the application of laws and are not binding on Thai courts.
While the country’s judiciary and dispute resolution mechanisms are well developed, some aspects can be unfamiliar or even surprising to counsel unfamiliar with the Thai court system. This article introduces some of the Thai civil court procedures and practices, and covers several key issues it is important to understand regarding civil litigation in Thailand.
In Thailand, there is no such thing as an ‘offer without prejudice’. Anything put in writing can be used against the offering party. Therefore, compromises, settlements, and offers to compromise or settle should not be made before consulting with legal counsel. Similarly, parties at trial or anticipating litigation should be cautious in all communications with the opposing party.
Before initiating litigation, plaintiffs should investigate the nature and extent of the defendant’s assets in Thailand and abroad. A monetary judgment is of limited value if the defendant has little or no recoverable assets. Therefore, any information a claimant has on the opposing party should be assessed at the beginning of the case or as soon as is reasonably possible.
All documents submitted to a Thai court must be in the Thai language. Foreign documents must be the originals or certified copies, and certain documents also need to be notarised and then authenticated by a Thai consular official.
A plaintiff must pay a court filing fee when submitting a case. This is usually 2% of the claim amount but will not exceed THB 200,000 per action for claims of up to THB 50 million. There is an additional 0.1% calculated on the amount of a claim exceeding the THB 50 million threshold. If the suit is successful, some of these advanced court costs are usually recoverable.
Additionally, non-resident plaintiffs may be required to deposit security with the court to insure against a potential award of court costs in favour of the defendant.
In civil cases, appeals must be filed within one month of the judgment being read. Extensions may be granted at the court’s discretion if requested and reasonably justified.
At each level, the appealing party must deposit additional court costs of 2% of the judgment amount, with a maximum of THB 200,000 for claims of up to THB 50 million and an extra 0.1% calculated on claim amounts exceeding THB 50 million. The appealing party may also be required to post an additional guarantee to ensure its ability to cover judgment should the appeal be unsuccessful.
The Courts of Appeal and Supreme Court are not trial courts, and generally no new evidence may be introduced after the trial in the lower court is completed. Appeals at all levels are resolved through written pleadings and supporting documentation only. There is no live oral advocacy.
In 2015, Thailand changed its appeal system from a right-based system, which allows any party to appeal against the lower courts to the Supreme Court, to a permission-based system, where a judgment or an appellate court order is final unless an appeal is accepted by the Supreme Court. This change gave the Supreme Court the power to grant permission to file an appeal to the Supreme Court if it deems the question a significant matter worthy of a decision. Under this new discretionary system of review, only a minority of Supreme Court appeals are accepted by the Supreme Court.
Unless settled by compromise, civil litigation typically lasts between 12 and 18 months, counting from the initiation of action until a judgment by the court of first instance. Cases in the Courts of Appeal usually take an additional 18-24 months, with a similar period for appeals to the Supreme Court.
Foreign judgments cannot be enforced in Thai courts. Thailand is not a party to any treaty or convention on the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. As such, a creditor must bring a new lawsuit to the relevant Thai court to obtain satisfaction. This means that a foreign judgment creditor must file a court case against a Thai debtor in Thailand and submit the foreign court’s judgment as evidence. The Supreme Court has ruled that for a foreign judgment to be admitted as evidence, it must be a final, dispositive order.
Deciding whether to litigate or seek alternative dispute resolution is commonly an anticipatory decision made by the parties to a contract before a dispute exists. Parties either specifically elect mediation or arbitration uniquely tailored to their needs or leave the matter of dispute resolution to the responsible court.
Some key reasons for choosing arbitration over court litigation are flexibility and the ability to tailor how a party’s dispute would be resolved by selecting the arbitration rules and institute, the venue, and the number of arbitrators. Administrative costs and arbitrator fees are pretty reasonable at local institutes and may help decrease the overall cost of dispute resolution in Thailand.
Thailand has three arbitration institutes: the Thai Arbitration Institute of the Office of the Judiciary, the Thai Commercial Arbitration Institute of the Board of Trade, and the Thailand Arbitration Center under the Ministry of Justice.
In general, foreign arbitral awards are recognised in Thailand if they fall within the recognition of treaties, conventions, and international agreements to which Thailand is a party – and only to the extent that Thailand is committed to be bound by them. Thailand is a party to both the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958 and the Geneva Convention on the Execution of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1927. Awards brought under the auspices of the former are easier to enforce than under the latter. Foreign arbitral awards can be executed in Thailand without having to be relitigated, although enforcement does require the filing of an enforcement claim with the Thai court of jurisdiction for execution against a debtor’s assets.
Sittiwate Jewsittiprapai, senior associate
T: +66 2056 5809
E: [email protected]
Michael Ramirez, counsel
T: +66 2056 5794
E: [email protected]
