Washington Lawyer - December 2017 - 32

Gary Swisher, president of the Association of Legal
Administrators, a professional organization providing support to professionals involved in the
management of law firms, corporate legal departments, and government agencies, says the decline
in lawyer hiring in recent years correlates with the
increased use of technology within the legal field.

corporate clients are not paying for the time to
research and conduct in-house e-discovery."

THE GROWTH
OF E-DISCOVERY

"It is critical that lawyers and other legal professionals understand e-discovery technologies so
they can effectively select and manage e-discovery
service providers," he explains. "Technology-savvy
legal professionals have significantly better hiring
prospects given the pervasive nature of technology
in the legal profession. Firms face a balancing act
between hiring the right professionals that can
handle these processes and the fact that many

Electronic discovery, or e-discovery, started as
a trend among the largest law firms, but it has
grown to become a standard aspect of the litigation process. In 2006 David Tanenholz founded
Tanenholz & Associates, PLLC, a discovery counsel
law firm where lawyers focus on electronic discovery, document review, and related litigation
and legal services. He says a majority of his firm's
clients are other law firms and corporate legal
departments that prefer to outsource their discovery matters.

TIPS FOR THE JUNIOR ASSOCIATE
IN A CHANGING LEGAL ENVIRONMENT

s the presence of technology
evolves within the law firm
setting, so does the role of the
junior associate. Traditional
document review tasks are increasingly handled by computers or outsourced, leaving firm managers to
reevaluate their need for junior associates and how to best utilize their
skills. Setting yourself apart in this
transitioning environment requires a
willingness to take on new roles and
responsibilities. Legal experts offer
tips to help turn transition into
opportunity.

The prevalence of document review created
an environment where junior associates
often perceived partnership as unattainable.
Instead, law firms offered a means for paying
off debt while new attorneys are figuring
out long-term plans. By enthusiastically

* DECEMBER 2017

BE PREPARED TO HELP
BUILD THE PRACTICE
As firms retain fewer junior associates, one
factor that becomes vitally important is an
associate's potential for bringing in new
business. At the junior associate level, this is
demonstrated through client service and
relationship building. Become an invaluable
asset to the firm by providing quality work
and effectively meeting the needs of senior
associates and partners. Begin cultivating
your own contact list by participating in
outside networking events.

BE A PART OF THE FIRM

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE
LONG-TERM POSSIBILITIES

32 WASHINGTON LAWYER

embracing more substantive responsibilities,
like trial preparation and client engagement,
junior associates may find that the road to
partnership becomes increasingly accessible.

Most law firms offer numerous opportunities
to get involved in the management of the
firm. Join the marketing team or volunteer to
represent the firm with a pro bono project.
From committee involvement to participation in firm-related social activities, enthusiastic engagement helps position you for
long-term opportunities.

"The two main reasons to outsource e-discovery
tasks are a lack of expertise or a lack of resources, or
some combination of both," he says. "Responsible
attorneys will recognize when they lack either, and
they have an obligation to make sure their clients
have full and competent representation. Over the
short term, that likely means collaborating with
others who do have the appropriate resources and
expertise. Over a longer period, many attorneys can
learn the skills they need to properly provide, or at
least oversee, these e-discovery tasks."
Tanenholz also says AI plays a part in the services
provided by his firm. "In the context of e-discovery,
artificial intelligence is generally thought of as the
use of advanced analytical and predictive coding
tools to help organize, cull, manage, and execute
data and document review projects. Naturally, we
rely heavily on these artificial intelligence technologies when we manage document reviews," he says.
"The exact application we choose will vary for each
case and can run the spectrum from initial case
assessment through more fuller technologyassisted reviews."
According to Tanenholz, the use of AI technology
significantly reduces the cost and time associated
with large document review projects by quickly
identifying and grouping similar documents. This
technology also provides a level of quality control
that ensures documents are accurately categorized, which can reduce the number of documents
that require attorney review. "In short, AI can help
make reviews shorter, cheaper, and more
accurate," Tanenholz says.

FEWER HUMANS NEEDED
The global law firm of Foley & Lardner LLP relies
on AI for the review and analysis of documents in
litigation, mergers and acquisitions, and regulatory
matters. Andrew L. Hurst, a partner and litigator at
Foley, says these technological trends have affected
the number of associates hired in recent years (see
sidebar on junior associates).
"Overall, outsourcing of document review and
related work has reduced the need for junior and
mid-level associates to do these tasks, and our firm
(like many others) hires fewer junior attorneys as
a result," Hurst says. "It is not directly proportional,
because as rules and expectations on what is
reviewable and what must be produced have
increased, the universe of what must be examined
in the context of litigation, deals, or regulatory
inquiries has grown many-fold. So, there is still high
demand for attorneys to create and oversee procedures to review this data, though if it were not
outsourced or automated, the demand for junior
attorneys at Foley would be much higher. It is hard
to assign a percentage or value to this reduction
in demand, but it is there."

http://www.dcbar.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Washington Lawyer - December 2017