Every now and then, I publish guest posts. I’m especially thrilled to offer the following posts for a couple of reasons. First, it is written by the esteemed and well-known plaintiffs’ lawyer, Jeffery Kimmel. His bio is at the end of the post but suffice it to say he’s a talented plaintiffs’ lawyer and author who frequently appears as an expert legal source for national media. The second reason I’m happy to offer this is that the post looks at the use of technology from a plaintiffs’ lawyer perspective. I come from a defense, bill by the hour, perspective so it’s refreshing to see another viewpoint. I hope you find the post as interesting as I do.

Innovative Advancements: How Plaintiff Attorneys Use Technology and Work Processes Differently

The use of technology in the legal industry has become increasingly important. This is especially true for plaintiff attorneys who represent individuals or groups of individuals wronged by another party. In the Bloomberg Law 2022 Legal Ops and Tech Survey, 86% of the survey participants agreed that legal tech significantly impacts their firm’s ability to meet client demands. With continual advancements in technology, this blog post aims to delve into the diverse ways plaintiff attorneys utilize these tools to effectively navigate the intricacies of their legal practice, adapt, and stay ahead.

Leveraging Legal Research Tools

Thomson Reuters announced several new generative artificial intelligence tools and platforms earlier this week. I had the privilege of attending a press briefing hosted by Thomson Reuters in advance of the announcement. Thomson Reuters personnel discussed the new products and offerings and allowed several of us to try them out. The presentations and products were impressive.

A recent Major Lindsay & Africa Survey shows a startling gap between law firm management and law firm associates. Major Lindsay & Africa is a legal search firm that conducted its study at the beginning of 2023.

Here are some results that should cause management to take notice:

• 60% of the associates surveyed say their firms are doing little to nothing to keep them at their firms.

• 25% say they do not plan to stay at their firm for over a year.

• 92% say they have yet to be asked to participate in an interview to give feedback on their experience at the firm.

For years, many of us toiling away in law firms thought that life would be so much better as an in-house counsel. You didn’t have to bill time; you didn’t have billable hour quotas. You didn’t have to hustle business. Life would be so much simpler.

But a couple of recent surveys pretty clearly confirm that the grass is seldom greener. A study by Axiom, an alternative legal service provider, for example, has disturbing news for those thinking about jumping ship to in-house. 89% of the in-house lawyers surveyed say they are dissatisfied with their positions. That’s just about every in-house counsel surveyed. 61% say they are very stressed with their current jobs (so much for the simplistic, carefree life we outside lawyers envisioned).

I was recently a guest on a podcast called Discussions at the Round Table. The podcast is put on by the Round Table Group. The Group is a premier expert referral service. It locates, vetts, and engages expert witnesses in complex litigation matters. I was asked to talk about my work as a practicing lawyer with experts over the years.

For most of my career, I was a national mass tort defense lawyer. I had the chance to work with all sorts of experts in all types of cases and jurisdictions. Some of these experts were better, and some were worse. And the fact that the rules concerning what must be disclosed and how detailed expert reports must be sometimes made working with experts complicated.