As we progress into 2017, it’s increasingly clear that data analytics is ushering in the next wave of technological change for in-house legal department and law firm management. In particular, these analytics, from matter management, e-discovery and elsewhere, are being formalized through the process of “business intelligence” (BI), an integrated approach of technology and best practices for data.
Given the changing expectations of legal, BI may be necessary. As Scott Forman, shareholder at Littler Mendelson, wrote for Corporate Counsel earlier in January, “Garnering the data necessary to compare a legal department’s efforts with others isn’t easy, as most actionable information isn’t public. But finding ways to leverage that kind of data is becoming more important, if in-house counsel want to provide new metrics to company leaders and strategically manage potentially damaging litigation—before and after it starts.”
