Talking legal tech in Hong Kong

I have just returned from a trip to Hong Kong, working closely with our lawyers and clients to explore ways in which we can continue to deploy legal technology to augment due diligence, regulatory/compliance, equity capital markets and other transactional work.

The main event of the week saw over 60 clients attend a seminar at our offices led by Clara Choi (partner, Slaughter and May), Thomas Chuang (from legal artificial intelligence platform Luminance) and me during which we showcased the ways in which we are creating value for clients by using artificial intelligence . 

Our partnership with Luminance since early 2016 has transformed the way in which we deliver certain services for clients and we continue to work with Luminance as they expand their product base into new and exciting areas. In addition to showcasing the Luminance Diligence module at the seminar, we spoke about the various ways in which artificial intelligence can empower lawyers to get to grips with large data sets, surfacing unknown unknowns within a data set and then quickly and easily producing reports. We also highlighted to our clients the other legal tech tools which our lawyers use to enhance their practice.

The visit to Hong Kong also proved timely given China's recent announcement that it plans to create a hub of technology, research, finance and innovation by linking together nine cities (including Hong Kong) which will no doubt help to fuel the boom of legal tech in the region. 

Many of the tools we use now include an element of collaboration, allowing us to work even more closely across borders and with our clients and local counsel around the world. The key to the success of any legal tech tool is how it can help strengthen these working relationships, adding value to each interaction. It's great that we are seeing an increasing number of our clients in many jurisdictions work with our lawyers using these tools.