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In this year-end episode of The Geek in Review, hosts Marlene Gebauer and Greg Lambert are joined by legal tech experts Niki Black, Principal Legal Insight Strategist at AffiniPay, and Sarah Glassmeyer, Director of Data Curation at Legal Technology Hub, to recap the top stories of 2024. From the evolution of generative AI in legal tech to groundbreaking acquisitions, the conversation delves into the successes and challenges that shaped the year in the legal industry.

The discussion kicks off with a look at AI’s growing role in legal research and practice management. Greg recalls the controversial Stanford report that questioned the reliability of AI tools marketed as hallucination-free. The guests explore the importance of unbiased evaluations, the complexity of defining legal research, and the rapid pace of AI development that often outpaces regulatory and academic studies. Sarah highlights the need for peer-reviewed analysis to guide the effective use of these tools, while Niki emphasizes the user-friendly interfaces that generative AI brings to legal software.

Marlene shifts the conversation toward the challenges of integrating AI into law firms’ existing frameworks. The hosts and guests discuss the hesitancy of document management systems to adopt generative AI due to trust and security concerns. Niki and Sarah examine how firms are adapting to AI by organizing data more effectively and addressing client expectations. They also reflect on the potential of AI to bridge access-to-justice gaps, with tools that empower self-represented litigants and underserved communities.

The episode takes a closer look at notable mergers and acquisitions in 2024, such as Bloomberg’s acquisition of Dashboard Legal and Thomson Reuters’ purchase of SafeSign Technologies. Sarah raises concerns about the consolidation of the legal tech market, warning of diminished innovation and competition. Niki observes how cloud-based technologies have facilitated these integrations, making it easier for companies to offer comprehensive solutions that touch multiple aspects of legal practice.

Wrapping up, the group forecasts trends for 2025, including regulatory developments around AI and shifting priorities within law firms regarding tech adoption. While some predictions are cautious, like Sarah’s concern over the impact of external political factors on the tech workforce, others remain optimistic about the growing sophistication of legal tech. The episode concludes with reflections on how the industry can better prepare junior lawyers and law students to navigate an increasingly AI-driven landscape.

Join Marlene, Greg, Niki, and Sarah for this insightful look back at 2024 and an exciting glimpse into the year ahead. As always, we thank our listeners for tuning in, and we encourage you to share this episode with colleagues and connect with us on LinkedIn or Blue Sky!

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Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@gebauerm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@glambert
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Music: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jerry David DeCicca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

TRANSCRIPT

Continue Reading Sarah Glassmeyer and Niki Black on Legal Tech in 2024 – Highlights, Hiccups, and Hopes for 2025

If you’ve been around the legal tech block a time or two, you’ve probably noticed a familiar pattern: We deploy technology to better understand and streamline the law as we know it. Legal analytics platforms sift through case law, AI-driven tools tackle contract review and due diligence, and blockchain-driven “smart contracts” hold the promise of self-executing agreements. But here’s a shift you might not have considered: It’s not just about making sense of the legal texts we already have. It’s about the laws themselves evolving to fit the tools we’re building.

Most of us think of legal technology as something that reacts to what Congress and courts produce. But what if tomorrow’s legislative drafters start structuring statutes—right from the get-go—in a code-like, machine-friendly manner? Over time, lawmakers might take their cues from how AI and automated reasoning systems process text. They could craft statutes with hyper-structured logic, standardized definitions, and reduced interpretive leeway. This would be more than just a stylistic choice: it could fundamentally reshape the balance of power among the branches of government and the role of agencies.

Courts and the Waning Ambiguity
Traditionally, the courts have a big job: interpret ambiguous statutes, reconcile conflicting provisions, and apply legal canons to unpack what Congress might have meant. If laws read more like neatly organized code—complete with precisely defined triggers, conditions, and outcomes—the courts’ interpretive heavy lifting could be significantly reduced. Judges would still have their constitutional role: to say what the law is and to apply it to specific facts. But if there’s less wiggle room, their work might look more like verifying whether the facts meet the clearly stated criteria, rather than engaging in lengthy interpretive gymnastics. While that doesn’t strip the courts of their authority, it does streamline their function. They become less about discovering meaning and more about confirming that a given scenario fits the predetermined parameters.

Agencies and the Loss of Regulatory Latitude
This shift could also ripple through the administrative state. Right now, agencies benefit from statutory ambiguity to interpret and fill in the gaps. They set rules and policy through their regulatory authority, often receiving deference from courts in recognition of their expertise. But if statutes are drafted with fewer interpretive grey areas—each statutory provision carefully defined and logically consistent—agencies may find themselves with less room to maneuver. The “we’ll fill in the details” model of agency rulemaking loses steam when Congress provides the details up front.
Continue Reading When Law and Legal Tech Start Writing Each Other’s Code

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