Legal tech is reshaping the legal industry as law firms adopt new technologies to meet evolving client demands and leverage the productivity benefits of generative AI.
The transformation is creating a wide range of roles, both for legal professionals and tech specialists.
Law firms themselves are expanding their technology departments, hiring more developers, and bringing in so-called ‘legal technologists’ - legal tech specialists tasked with sourcing and deploying legal tech solutions to improve how the firm delivers legal services to clients.
These specialists can work in law firms, as part of in-house legal teams, or for legal technology providers. Many come from legal backgrounds - either former lawyers or people with relevant legal qualifications - bringing industry know-how to their roles.
Beyond more specialised roles, legal tech companies also require talent for traditional tech company functions, like product management, marketing, business development, sales and customer success.
For client-facing roles, particularly those involving law firms or company legal departments, companies often seek candidates with legal experience to ensure they understand their customers' (often law firms) challenges and needs.
A move into legal tech is becoming increasingly attractive to practising lawyers who value their connection to the legal industry but are looking for a fresh challenge away from the demanding, billable-hour-driven culture of corporate law firms.
Naturally, this varies depending on the role and the maturity of the company.
Salaries for legal technologist roles at large law firms in London tend to start around the £50,000 - £60,000 mark.
Client-facing roles at well-funded legal startups that require people with previous private practice law experience can pay between £120,000 - £150,000.
Sales roles at legal tech companies will generally offer a lower base salary but come with an attractive commission-based pay component which can be very lucrative (if you close new business).
The UK is a world leader in legal tech, driven by its large and mature legal services industry.
As well as housing some of the world’s largest law firms, the UK boasts a thriving ecosystem of legal tech startups. For a snapshot of the most innovative companies in this space, take a look at our list of the UK’s hottest legal tech startups.
The sector is also supported by established media and technology giants, like Thomson Reuters, LexisNexis, and iManage, which are big employers in the legal tech space.
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