Deconstructing LegalTech from a Vendor’s Perspective

TitanFile CEO Tony Abou-Assaleh sees positive future for cloud tech as buyers become better informed.

LegalTech has this remarkable ability of keeping up with the pulse of technology and every year it tends to take on a new personality. This time around, not only did the organizers do a great job of attracting a range of innovative vendors, but they also managed to bring in very well-informed buyers.

Having been an exhibitor at LegalTech for two years in a row now, I was shocked with how much more aware the general public was of trends in technology than last year, especially with respect to secure file sharing and cloud technology. In 2013 the cloud was a scary topic for everyone; it was unknown, untested, and its adoption was considered reckless. As a result, when folks approached us, the cloud vendors, the conversation was more about education – they were not interested to buy.

This year however, people came up to us already having done significant research; they asked smart questions and they were ready to purchase the solutions – a very progressive shift. I met with a wide array of groups: CIOs, IT managers, operations managers, attorneys, and their assistants – most of them comfortable with the idea of cloud technology.

These micro-observations are paralleled by a broader mindset shift that is occurring in the legal world today. According to recent reports by law blog LexisNexis, 40% of small law-firms are now using cloud based products, a 10% increase from last year. Similarly, 41% of small law firms believe the cloud to be secure. In my opinion, this move towards adoption of cloud tech is coming from 2 sources:

  1. Increased use of consumer products such as Dropbox: forming people’s habits at home i.e. sharing photos and docs with their friends and family easily and quickly through the cloud. The more people get comfortable using the cloud at home, the more they become open to adopt a similar solution at work.
  2. Educational events such as LegalTech and ABA Techshow: raising awareness through keynotes that get people disposed to the idea of cloud tech on a business scale. For a great example check out Law Technology News Editor-in-Chief Monica Bay talk on privacy and security.

Over all I believe we are moving in a great direction, getting both buyers and sellers on the same page. It is a good time to be a cloud vendor in the legal industry. I am certainly looking forward to attending the event again next year.

Tony Abou-Assaleh


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