Agility may appear unusual for an industry built on precedent. But the paradox in today’s practice of law is that, as the world changes, firms have to become adaptable.
The legal profession is based on precedent. However, it does not offer the same level of protection in today’s world. Clients want real-time regulatory updates and changing information nearly every year. On the other hand, younger associates are increasingly concerned that if a law firm does not leverage modern tools, then it is not worth their time.
The realization of how things had changed hit Harrison & Cole LLP, a mid-sized corporate litigation firm. One of its long-term clients threatened to move its entire portfolio to a smaller, more technology-enabled competitor. The distress signal wasn’t about size or expertise; it was about agility. The ability to redesign operations, client service, and talent management at the velocity the market now commands.
The Agility Triangle for Law Firms
Agility in law has three dimensions. Harrison & Cole’s story illustrates how each side can impede a firm or release its potential for growth.
- Operations
The internal bottlenecks had slowed the firm down. The length of the billing cycles had moved to weeks. Document review took hours of associate time, and discovery was still being done the old way. Harrison & Cole was able to modernize its processes using automation and cloud-based software to eliminate unnecessary wait times, unlock financial visibility, and give lawyers more time away from administration to think and plan strategy.
- Clients
The client, who had almost left the firm, once said, “We knew more about Amazon deliveries than we did about our legal matters.” Communication delays began to erode trust. Working together, we prototyped a secure client portal that afforded 24/7 access to case updates, filings, and billing—changing the experience for their clients. Transparency was not an added value; it was the deciding pillar for retaining the client’s business.
- Talent
The associates began to disengage and burn out due to repetitive research or manual work that was entirely laborious. Two associates left for competitors who had better technology-enabled infrastructures. With their brand damaged, Harrison & Cole introduced “legal technologist” positions and incorporated technology training into the headcount’s professional development. In less than six months, the associates had billed 15% more client-facing hours, and attrition began to flatten.
Four Practical Steps for Creating Agility
Harrison and Cole’s turnaround was not about adopting the latest app — it was about discipline in execution. Here are those steps in practice:
- Thorough audit processes
They mapped every workflow, from intake to invoicing, and highlighted red flags such as duplicate data entry, breaches in the chain of approval via email, and associates spending hours doing research manually. The exercise did not simply reveal defects; it provided partners with a common language to prioritize fixes. Without an “X-ray,” all they would do is invest in the wrong things.
- Embed scalable platforms
From there, they did not seek to patch each bottleneck with a niche tool. Instead, they invested in a document system powered by AI across litigation, billing, and client communications. The payout was not speedy. The payout was consistent. Data flowed, and staff no longer had to navigate multiple logins to accomplish a single task.
- Create a cross-functional committee.
Much of the implementation effort for modernization was hindered before it could be fully realized, as IT was pushing wellness tools, while lawyers resisted. This time, they established a steering group comprising a partner, a practice head, an IT lead, and an operations manager.
They each had veto authority, which everyone knew compelled the best priority alignment. The governance structure effectively cut through conflicts and ensured the adoption of a cohesive model.
- Commit to ongoing training.
Instead of a standalone onboarding webinar, they launched “lunch and learn” monthly endeavors during which associates tried tasks with the latest technology. Usage rates surged, and attorneys began to suggest new use cases on their own, indicating that agility transitioned from compliance to culture.
The Dangers of Doing Nothing
Harrison & Cole acted only because a client was on the verge of walking away. Too many firms wait until something irreversible happens. This is what “doing nothing” really means:
- Clients drift
This doesn’t usually happen in a grand gesture. Instead, a corporate client will simply steer the smaller matters to a savvy competitor “to make things more efficient.” Within a year, the competitor will have the client’s whole account.
- Operational inefficiencies escalate
A 45-day billing process is not just a finance issue. It affects cash flow, slows partners’ strategic decisions, and erodes margins. Inefficiencies accumulate and erode profitability, transforming a previously profitable practice into a financial burden.
- Compliance exposure deepens
Policies like GDPR and the CCPA, as well as upcoming guidelines on AI usage, evolve faster than legacy systems can adapt. Harrison & Cole operated at the edge of a missed deadline for a privacy disclosure because the data needed to produce the disclosures was siloed in various platforms. It would have been devastating if we had missed that deadline with litigation waiting.
Reality check: in a tech-driven market, doing nothing is not stability. It is a decline measured by clients lost, hours wasted, and risk realized.
Looking Beyond Today
Harrison & Cole’s renewed agility has led to an increased openness to experimentation. The firm is piloting agentic AI tools for legal research, exploring blockchain in contract review, and testing VR trial prep for complex litigation. None of these initiatives is gimmicky. So, combining tech and litigation support services together can help you ensure that the firm can gear up for a new era.
The point is that agility is not a program in itself. It is an operating principle. Firms that consciously design their systems and culture to be flexible will be well-positioned, irrespective of the change. Whether it is AI regulation, new data-privacy mandates, or the emergence of virtual-first legal practices.
Closing thought
Agility may appear unusual for an industry built on precedent. But the paradox in today’s practice of law is that, as the world changes, firms have to become adaptable. For law firms, agility is the difference between designing the future of legal practice and being designed by it.
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