Tuesday, November 13, 2007 9:18 AM
Hat tip to Susan Cartier Liebel for pointing out a really interesting series from the United Kingdom entitled The End of Lawyers by Richard Susskind, published at the Times Online.
Mr. Susskind started his series with the following:
The title and theme of this series might appear rather self-destructive. I am a lawyer myself (of sorts). Many of my close friends are lawyers. Most of my clients are major law firms. Socially and commercially, it might seem that I am shooting myself in both feet.
However, as the question mark in the title should at least hint, I write not to bury lawyers but to investigate their future. My aim is to explore the extent to which the role of the traditional lawyer can be sustained in coming years in the face of challenging trends in the legal marketplace and new techniques for the delivery of legal services.
This is neither a lawyer-bashing polemic nor a gratuitous assault on the legal profession. Instead, it is a collection of predictions and observations about a generally honourable profession that is, I argue, on the brink of fundamental transformation.
That said, I do admit, if I may give away the ending, that these articles will point to a future in which conventional legal advisers will be much less prominent in society than today and, in some walks of life, will have no visibility at all. This, I believe, is where we will be taken by two forces: by a market pull towards commoditisation and by pervasive development and uptake of information technology. Commoditisation and IT will shape and characterise 21st century legal service.
Whether you ultimaely agree with Mr. Susskind's commentary or not, he offers up some thought-provoking commentary, especially as you look ahead over decades, not years.
You can catch up with Mr. Susskind's entire series via the following links.
Part 1: Legal profession is on the brink of fundamental change
Part 2: A decade on: much changed, much still to unfold
Part 3: How the traditional role of lawyers will change
Part 4: Outside investors will demand a very different type of law firm
The Times Online has also collected a variety of other viewpoints under a collection entitled simply The End of Lawyers? The subtitle is even more provocative, wondering Will lawyers exist in 100 years? while asking readers to Join the Debate.