Nehal Madhani, attorney and now CEO of Alt Legal, discusses technologies that lawyers can use to make their practices simpler, more efficient, and more profitable.

1. Learning to Thrive as a Tech-Savvy Lawyer
Nehal Madhani
nehal@altlegal.com
@nehalm

2. OVERVIEW
Intro
Modern Web Tech
Legal Tech
Value of Legal Tech
Implementing Legal Tech
Becoming a Tech-Savvy Lawyer
Ethics and Other Considerations

3. Nehal Madhani
Founder & CEO
Alt Legal
@nehalm
Nehal Madhani is the founder and CEO of Alt Legal,
whose software makes it easy for law firms to
create and manage IP filings. Before starting Alt
Legal, Nehal practiced as an attorney at Kirkland &
Ellis, LLP. He is a self-taught Python/Django
programmer and a CodeX fellow at Stanford Law
School.
Nehal has a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania
Law School, a Certificate in Business and Public
Policy from the Wharton School of Business, and a
B.A. from Northwestern University.
Nehal Madhani
CEO of Alt Legal
@nehalm

5. LEGAL TECH: THEN & NOW
1867 1986 1993
Source: www.lawsitesblog.com

6. TRADITIONAL LEGAL PRACTICE

7. MODERN LAW PRACTICE

8. Legal tech can make practicing law easier.

9. MODERN WEB TECH

10. HOW DO MODERN WEBSITES AND MOBILE APPS WORK?
Request data
Receive data

11. WHAT IS CLOUD-BASED SOFTWARE?
Cloud-based software is delivered
over the internet.
• Online access
• Data stored in the cloud
• Ongoing vendor relationship
(“SaaS”)
• Easy set-up
• Greater mobility
• Minimal maintenance costs

12. Source: zapier.com
WHAT ARE APPLICATION PROGRAM INTERFACES (APIs)?

13. • Your organization’s data may be in many platforms – emails,
accounting software, practice management software, and more.
• This results in multiple products to manage, which can be time-
consuming and overwhelming.
• APIs can create an automated workflow to make managing
information in multiple tools easier.
WHY ARE APIs VALUABLE?

14. UNDERSTANDING ZAPIER
• Zapier is an online service that
transfers information from one
web application to another.
• You can easily automate tedious
tasks and let Zapier do it for you.
• Zapier utilizes IF/THEN
statements:
[TRIGGER] à [ACTION].

15. USING IF/THEN STATEMENTS TO CREATE ZAPIER “WORKFLOWS”
If Gmail tags a new emails with a label called DMCA Notice, Zapier
(1) automaticallyadds a new matter, (2) creates a new task, and (3) a new
calendar entry.

16. GOVERNMENT APIs

17. LEGAL TECH

18. LEGAL TECH TRENDS
• 85% of firms surveyed maintained or increased their technology
budgets.
• 62% of lawyers cited the versatility/mobilityof cloud solutions as the
most compelling reason to embrace the cloud.
• The percentage of lawyers who used cloud-based software has doubled
between 2011 and 2015.
Sources: insidelegal.typepad.com
www.americanbar.org

19. PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

20. BILLING SOFTWARE

21. LEGAL MARKETPLACES

22. DOCUMENT ASSEMBLY

23. LEGAL RESEARCH

24. SPECIALIZED SOFTWARE

25. VALUE OF LEGAL TECH

26. Oliver Platz, Esq.
Boutique law practice
“The challenges of a small firm are
probably the same for everybody.
Whether you’re a lawyer or you have
a flower shop or you run a
consulting agency – you have to do
everything.”

27. TECH CAN DRIVE EFFICIENCY AND DIFFERENTIATION
• 73% of lawyers believe that technology will be a key factor in
determining firms’ success.
• 86% of lawyers say they prioritize efficiency in their practices.
• 86% of law firms note that technology tools and solutions help them be
more efficient.
Sources: connect.iltanet.org
www.legaltechnology.com

28. SELLING MARGINS, NOT HOURS
• Jordan charges $300/hour for
trademark filings
• Jordan can complete a TM
application in an hour
• Effective rate: $300/hour
• Jaime charges $500 per
trademark filing
• Jaime can completes a TM
application in under an hour
• Effective rate: $500+/hour

29. BETTER CLIENT EXPERIENCE AND TRANSPARENCY

30. REDUCING RISKS
• Automation minimizes errors in
data management.
• In some cases, software is
required or can lower malpractice
insurance costs.

32. IMPLEMENTING LEGAL TECH

33. LEGAL TRANSACTION PROCESSES
Initial inquiry
Assess legal
needs
Collect
specific
information
Review
client intake
Follow up
with client
Complete
legal
transaction

34. TYPES OF TASKS
• Substantive: Require interpretation and critical thinking
• Repetitive: Are repetitive in nature and ripe for automation
• Administrative: Require minimal interpretation cannot be entirely
automated

35. LEGAL TRANSACTION PROCESSES
Initial inquiry
Assess legal
needs
Collect
specific
information
Review
client intake
Follow up
with client
Complete
legal
transaction

36. BECOMING A MORE TECH-SAVVY LAWYER

37. PRACTICE-SPECIFIC COMMUNITIES

38. GENERAL LEGAL COMMUNITIES

39. ONLINE LEGAL COMMUNITIES

40. BLOGS

41. ETHICS AND OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

42. ABA MODEL RULE 1.1
Competence: “A lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client.
Competent representation requires the legal knowledge, skill,
thoroughness, and preparation reasonably necessary for the
representation.”

43. ABA MODEL RULE 1.1, COMMENT [8]
Maintaining Competence: “To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a
lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice,
including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology,
engage in continuing study and education and comply with all continuing
legal education requirements to which the lawyer is subject.”

44. 23 STATES HAVE ADOPTED ETHICAL DUTY OF TECHNOLOGY COMPETENCE

45. OTHER KEY ETHICAL ISSUES TO CONSIDER
• Duty of confidentiality(Model Rule 1.6): Are you acting competently to
safeguard client information against inadvertent or unauthorized
disclosure?
• Safeguarding property (Model Rules 1.15 and 1.16): What are the right
safeguards to have in place when you’re storing your clients’ confidential
information on the cloud?
• Responsibilities regarding nonlawyer assistants (Model Rule 5.3): How
should you apply these responsibilities to your technology providers?

47. KEY CONSIDERATIONS IN VENDOR SELECTION
• Security: Is your data stored security? Who has access to your data?
• Server and data location: How and where is your data stored?
• Data accessibility and exportability: What safeguards are there to
preserve your data and how can you get it out?
• Data destruction: How is data removed?
• Financial stability: Is the vendor financially stable?
• Terms and transparency: What are the ToS? Does the vendor have
access to your data?
• Vendor credibility: Who is behind the company?
• Customer support: How hard is it to get a hold of them?
• Subpoenas: How do they handle subpoenas? Do they notify you?

51. THANK YOU
Nehal Madhani
nehal@altlegal.com
@nehalm