In today’s legal environment, great litigators are more than just stellar trial lawyers. They need to be able to think strategically, earn the trust of their colleagues, courts, and clients, and have a deep understanding of technology.
Several of these leading litigators recently gathered in London as part of UnitedLex Summit to discuss “Evolving Litigation Leadership.” As moderator Savitha Masson, SVP, Enterprise Strategy & GTM at UnitedLex, said, “Today’s litigation leaders need to have some kind of strategy that aligns with business practices, and then think about how they are building a road map to implement the best use cases for the business.”
Among the insights from the distinguished panel:
Litigators will need to be fluent with technology
Just a few years ago, litigators were defined by their trial skills. That has changed. Going forward, law firms and organizations will also prioritize candidates who understand automation, data analytics, and prompt development—competencies that weren’t essential just a few years ago.
Damian Murphy, a barrister at Trinity Chambers, pointed to advancements from AI that allow legal professionals to do things they couldn’t have dreamt of 10 years ago. “I’m a massive buyer of the value of AI as a means to provide organizations with early insight into the merits of evidential and core merits of litigation and investigation,” he said. “The person with the right set of skills, right talents, and the right brain can sit in front of a computer and take, say, 100,000 documents and within a week be able to put together an advice on the evidence or an advice on the merits, which was impossible to do before.”
So-called losses can actually lead to wins
Litigation can shape strategic outcomes and lead to success beyond courtroom victories. However, to quantify that, litigation teams must look to factors such as cost avoidance, mitigating reputational risk, improving operational efficiency, and achieving the desired business outcomes.
Jomaire Crawford, Global Head of Litigation at Rio Tinto, urged attendees to think beyond traditional wins and losses. “That is our bread and butter and how we typically measure disputes outcomes. But I think at some point we will augment that emphasis with a focus on other KPIs, including cost avoidance and revenue protection for our businesses,” she said. “There’s a whole host of data that in the next 5-10 years will become more accessible and important to demonstrating to the board and to the C-suite, our value as strategic advisors and partners, more than some of the traditional metrics that are helpful but much easier to track. Those data points will be one piece of a broader picture that we’ll be expected to create.”
Anthony Kenny, Assistant General Counsel for GSK, said that may mean some litigators have to change their ways of thinking. “It’s also thinking more broadly about what the business is doing, and the impact on that business.”
Culture must encompass both technology and people
As technology becomes more important, so will human capabilities, and technology will augment what people do, not replace it. In order to achieve long-term success, law firms and legal departments must also cultivate curiosity, empathy, and trust.
Crawford pointed to the importance of trust, particularly as litigation leaders expand their scope as strategic advisors. “GenAI is not going to teach you how to become credible in front of the courts, the C-suite, or your board,” she said. “I do think the ability to leverage data and insights in new ways will allow lawyers to offer more nuanced but practical and simplified positions. I’m really excited to see that evolve over time.”
Murphy also encouraged litigators to not just value curiosity and empathy for themselves, but to see the value in younger lawyers and legal professionals. “Curiosity is such a good word to describe how legal leadership can evolve. As you get older, it’s easy to become less curious.” He said senior leaders might also struggle with a new generation who has new ways of viewing their careers, with less interest in the type of decades-long commitment to a single firm or organization, or less willingness to work exceptionally long hours. “If you are only focusing on those ‘old-school’ approaches, you might actually be missing out on the best talent, because the best talent might have that different set of expectations. The ability to be empathetic, to evolve that curiosity, is absolutely core to great legal leadership.”
Combining experience and tech savviness will lead to progress
While many organizations have tended to hire more experienced lawyers, it’s becoming more important to hire younger professionals who are often more willing to experiment with technology and understand potential use cases. “There’s an appetite for hiring tech-savvy and high-potential juniors in organizations that typically have a more mature workforce within their legal department,” said Crawford. “That has been a strategic priority of mine and is starting to deliver returns. I want a team with expertise in automation, with Power BI tools, and building AI-driven platforms to augment the work that we do,” which “were not core skill sets [in many litigation departments] several years ago.”
Kenny pointed to the advantages of bringing those younger lawyers together to work with more experienced attorneys who have connections and have earned trust. “I think a good team is a combination of all of those things,” he said.
Litigators must balance business skills and professional duties.
Litigation leaders must be able to understand and navigate broader business impacts, while always remembering their ethical duties and responsibilities. According to Kenny, “We have to be careful about the idea of being a business partner, particularly for those in the litigation space who have a duty to the court. It’s always important to remember what our role is, but I think within that we can be really strong business partners.”
Masson described it as combining a litigation strategy with a broader advisory role. “It’s about influencing the business and taking that into account.”
