The Ryerson Legal Innovation Zone (LIZ) was recently launched in Toronto, becoming Canada's first legal incubator. It aims to develop innovative solutions to improve the legal system. At the launch, various legal innovators, public servants, academics and students attended. Sheldon Levy, President of Ryerson University, said the LIZ will give young people a chance to be employers and develop solutions that may disrupt old ideas. Several legal startups showcased new technologies and processes. Carla Goldstein spoke about how the conservative legal field can be challenging to change but the LIZ provides a space for new ideas. Peter Carayiannis launched a new app called StandIn and said the LIZ will be an

1. Legal Insights & Practice Trends
KARIN GALLDIN
Canada now has its first legal incubator.

2. Created by Chris Bentley and Hersh Perlis, and billed as a space to develop innovative
solutions to make Canada’s legal system and services “smarter, faster, and better,” the
Ryerson Legal Innovation Zone (“LIZ”) brought an enthusiastic group of innovators,
public servants, academics, and students together in celebrating its launch yesterday.
Sheldon Levy, President of Ryerson University, described the contribution that the LIZ
can make to today’s changing economy: “It’s about giving young people a chance not
just to be the employees, but to be the employers,” he said in his opening
remarks. “Young people will listen intently to people’s problems and develop solutions to
them. Those solutions may disturb some old people,” he said, to some chuckles from
the crowd, “but young people can’t be stopped.”
The young legal entrepreneurs in the room surely knew what Levy was referring to when
he commented on resistance to new ideas. But Noah Waisberg of Kira, a provider of
contract review and analysis tools and Shelby Austin of ATD Legal, Deloitte’s document
review branch, and Sahil Zaman of Closing Folders also understand the rewards that are
garnered by disruptive new processes and technologies. Their presence at the launch
was demonstrative of the growing community of legal innovators in Toronto, who now
have a place to exchange stories and ideas, and to connect with young entrepreneurs in
need of mentorship and resources.
Carla Goldstein, formerly of Seyfarth Lean and now Director of Strategic Initiatives and
Associate General Counsel at BMO Financial Group, spoke to the crowd about feeling
like she “went into a box” when she started her legal career in a traditional law firm. “Can
the right brain exist in a left-brained system?” she asked the attendees. No spoilers
here; it can, but making change in a conservative profession is a challenge. This is why
Goldstein is supporting the LIZ as a place where people who want to create solutions
can really let their minds go, or as she said somewhat teasingly, stand on your head,
rather than sitting at a desk trying without success to create something new.
I was chatting with Peter Carayiannis of Conduit Law, who was characterising the LIZ as
a potential ``centre of gravity`` for legal innovation in Toronto, when he exclaimed, ``I`ve
just launched a new app!`` Pulling out his cell phone, he walked me through the
operations of StandIn, a location-based app that matches lawyers with other lawyers,
agents, and legal professionals for court appearances. It`s slick and easy to use, but
also clearly meets the needs of certain communities within our bar, i.e. the busy criminal
defence bar. His co-founder, Andrew Johnston, had developed the idea through
Reinvent Law while a law student at the Michigan State University College of
Law. Reinvent Law is widely known as a smart and effective ecosystem for creating
legal innovations. Andrew wondered if he would have been able to come up with this
idea had he not been at Reinvent Law, commenting that ``I wish there were more
spaces like Reinvent Law here in Canada.” Judging by who was in that room, and the
enthusiasm they brought to the launch, it`s clear that LIZ will be that space – and that is
worth a great celebration. Congratulations, LIZ!
Photo: From left to right, Noah Waisberg, Shelby Austin, Peter Caryannis, and Andrew Johnston, co-founder of
StandIn.