Legal professionals use paper to record legal information in the form of wills, deeds, indentures etc. However, these paper documents deteriorate in the long run. To prevent such loss of data, law firms are converting their valuable documents into various digital formats with the help of data conversion services. It makes it easy for law professionals to manage their documents, and they find themselves better equipped to deal with their day-to-day challenges.
Although digitization in the legal industry has been there for the past few years, last year has been a significant year for digital transformation in the legal industry due to the outbreak of COVID 19. With the law firms and courts working remotely, the traditional practices of law firms and courts have now become more client centric. The focus is on minimizing waiting and transfer times.
Technology is transforming the legal profession and it is important for legal entities to keep up with the latest technology trends to stay competitive as well as to meet the rising customer needs. Following are some of the latest trends that the legal industry should embrace in 2021.
- Move to Digital Transformation: The rise of new technology like AI, Big Data analytics, Blockchain etc adds value to the legal industry by enhancing their legal operations. With these advanced technologies, law firms are able to serve their customers efficiently and also expand their services to new markets.
- Artificial Intelligence: AI is a branch of computer science that helps to process huge volumes of data, and it plays a crucial role in the legal industry. It helps to understand the basics of any legal document by simplifying legalese for the clients. AI-enabled assistants help upload legal documents and get simplified versions of the documents in just a few minutes. AI helps to perform repetitive tasks, so that lawyers can focus on their core activities.
- Automation of Documents: Converting paper documents into digital format greatly improves the efficiency of the law firms and legal departments. Implementation of this automation software helps to automate routine and repetitive tasks that revolve around documentation. Embracing document automation can simplify complex legal processes.
- E-signature: E-signature is very popular these days and businesses are already using it. According to IDAS, there are three types of signatures – simple, qualified, and advanced e-signature. These signatures offer email certifications to verify the identity of the people and the authenticity of the signed documents. E-signature is mandatory in law in certain cases and it holds a significant value in legal documents. Digital signature software allows legal practitioners to sign documents on the computer and authenticate the signer more efficiently than with the physical signature.
- Cloud Computing: Cloud computing is a model of technology service where all important data can be stored on the Cloud. This data can be accessed from anywhere. By investing in these types of advanced infrastructures, unnecessary expenses can be avoided and all you need is only the internet to access data.
- Virtual Law: Even though virtual law has been popular in the USA for some years now, it gained popularity last year. Virtual law firms are legal practices that operate from the home or other remote locations. They function just as traditional law firms. The only difference is that the attorneys can be independent consultants rather than employees or partners.
Legal firms are looking at various options to expand their services and the integration of technology is just the beginning of redefining the legal framework.
According to Statista, the legal tech market generated US$17.32 billion in revenue worldwide in 2019. The legal tech start-up market, which generated 570 million U.S. dollars in 2019, is forecast to grow at a CAGR of 27.82 percent by 2025, with revenues set to reach 2.49 billion U.S. dollars at the end of this period.
Conversion of large volume legal documents to digital formats has rapidly increased in today’s legal industry. Prior to document conversion, law firms should identify the files that are to be converted and those which employees will actually use. Digital conversion of documents improves efficiency and is cost-effective too. It helps in the processing and management of a wide variety of legal documents. Digital information can be stored, copied, reproduced and shared faster and is cheaper than paper. It involves only a one-time investment and helps to gain more benefits.
Dedicated document conversion services can help a law firm or business manage documents more efficiently, with large files converted into convenient digital format. These reliable service providers have skilled and experienced employees who ensure quicker completion of projects.
