Mar 11, 2019
From large law firm lawyering to legal coworking to blockchain lawyer, this week's guest, Yev Muchnik, has a really cool perspective on future-forward law practice.
Yev makes some great points about how the traditional law practice model isn't working for many attorneys in 2019 and how coworking spaces focused on legal can help solve this issue.
Ethics of legal coworking:
- Many state bar associations have decreed that coworking is ethical for lawyers and law firms to do.
- Make sure conference rooms are enclosed and bring your own white or blue noise machine to keep conversations private.
Blockchain Lawyering:
- Currently focused on securities and corporate law
- 'Smart contracts'
Engaging in a new practice area and becoming the go-to expert:
- Meetups
- Collaboration & 'distributed lawyering'
- Conferences within that niche
- Speaking engagements
- Facebook groups, Slack channels, etc
- Stay away from being 'salesy' and focus on providing information or being a resource.
In this practice area and moving into the legal world in general, clients are looking for tech-savvy lawyers. Yev is using security and technology to be an asset for her clients, instead of a burden.
- MyCase, case management software
- HelloSign, to be a remote office
- Signal, a secure phone app for texting and phone calls
- Zoom, for video conferencing with clients
Yev works with Citizn Company which uses smart contracts to help customers become more aware of what they are signing. They discuss the ethics of AI and smart contract readers.
Technology makes us more efficient, accountable, and provide better service for clients. As Yev says, technology = superpowers. Legal consumers are beginning to have expectations that their lawyers will be technologically aware.
Yev's mission of Access To Justice with the Colorado Bar Association and how unbundled services will allow clients better access to legal services. Which means there is also a place in the market for lawyers who are willing to unbundle their services and gain more market share.
Find Yev at Yev@launch-legal.com or her website at techlawstartup.com.