If you’re like me, your in-box (and SPAM filter) were packed with ILTA messages to come visit vendors at booth #XXX. It is amazing how many vendors and legal tech folks who are going to be there and vying for your attention next week. I have to say that my calendar is packed, and that’s
This week, we sit down with Conrad Everhard, founding partner of Flatiron LLP, a pioneering law firm that has revolutionized M&A services with their innovative flat fee model. Conrad shares the fascinating origin story of Flatiron, its unique approach to legal services, and the challenges and successes they’ve encountered along the way.
Everhard recounts the inception of Flatiron LLP, co-founded with Mark Haddad and Lenny Nuara, former big law partners, who sought to modernize legal services post-financial crisis. Despite their elite backgrounds, reentering the private law firm space proved challenging due to their detachment from Big Law for a few years. Driven by their frustrations with Big Law’s resistance to change and the convergence of factors such as acceptance of virtual models and access to senior labor, they took the bold step of founding Flatiron. This new model law firm leverages technology and client-focused solutions to disrupt traditional legal services.
When it comes to Flatiron’s groundbreaking flat fee M&A services, Conrad explains that the motivation behind this disruptive approach was to bring more transparency, predictability, and cost-efficiency to the fee structure. Over several years, Flatiron has honed a model that relies on low overhead, innovative labor deployment, and technological advancements. They operate on a general contractor model, utilizing a network of expert contractors on a project basis, which allows them to offer high-quality services at a lower and more predictable cost compared to Big Law.
Conrad highlights Flatiron’s development of “Deal Driver,” a workstream efficiency platform that streamlines the M&A process. Initially created as an internal tool, Deal Driver organizes and manages data through each phase of a deal, incorporating AI and human intelligence to enhance efficiency. This platform has not only improved their internal processes but has also gained popularity among clients, leading to its spin-off as a proprietary platform. The success of Deal Driver underscores Flatiron’s commitment to innovation and client satisfaction.
Flatiron’s unique labor pool taps into senior associates and counsel with elite firm backgrounds who, for various reasons, seek alternative work environments. Flatiron offers better pay and a more flexible, engaging work culture, attracting highly skilled professionals. Conrad emphasizes the importance of their “coolness factor” in recruitment and client acquisition, noting their collaborations with Stanford Codex and the positive reception from private equity clients who appreciate their efficiency and data management capabilities.
In the crystal ball segment, Conrad speculates on the future of the legal industry. He predicts that traditional Big Law firms may eventually adopt more innovative models, possibly through spin-offs or off-brand ventures, to stay competitive. Additionally, he foresees alternative legal service providers and sandbox experiments in places like Utah and Arizona challenging the traditional legal market. Despite the potential for disruption, Conrad remains confident in Flatiron’s model, emphasizing the green field of opportunities ahead and their readiness to adapt and innovate continuously.
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Music: Jerry David DeCicca
Flatiron LLP: flatiron.legal
Conrad Everhard on LinkedIn: Conrad Everhard
Email: ceverhard@flatiron.legal
Flatiron’s Deal Model
Negotiation Simulator
Demo at Codex
Article on Fixed M&A Deals
TRANSCRIPT
Continue Reading Inside Flatiron’s Flat-Rate M&A Model with Conrad Everhard
This was one of those weeks where I had to decide whether to scroll through a few hundred/thousand emails, or just declare email bankruptcy after spending the previous week in Chicago at the AALL Conference. I won’t say exactly what I did… but, I will say it was the faster of the two decisions. ILTACon
I just flew back from Chicago… and boy are my arms tired. 😉
Besides getting to wear my flashy new white suit for the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Gallagher Awards ceremony, I also caught up with lots of colleagues, old and new. AALL is one of those sneaky tech conferences that dresses up
It’s been a bit of a crazy week around here. Power is back on in (most of) Houston, and I’m headed to Chicago for the American Association of Law Libraries Annual Conference. Hopefully, the massive Internet outage that’s happening with CrowdStrike and Microsoft 365 won’t have me hanging out at the airport bar all day.
Starting in January of 2023, I started a project that compiles summaries for legal tech and innovation articles and creates a daily automated podcast. The AI Lawyer Talking Tech podcast has been a lot of fun, and gets a few hundred listens each week. That’s not too bad for something that I really created as
In the fourth round of interviews of “The Geek in Review” podcast’s mini-series “Love & Legal Tech,” hosts Greg Lambert and Marlene Gebauer chat with Chris Ford and Nikki Shaver, the dynamic couple behind the Legal Technology Hub. Their project, conceived out of necessity and frustration with the lack of a single source of truth for legal technology solutions, has grown into a thriving business that categorizes and reviews over 2000 legal tech products, aiding law firms and corporate legal departments in navigating the vast landscape of available technologies.
Their story begins in Australia, where Chris and Nikki first connected through a dating site, a testament to their adventurous spirits and willingness to embrace new technologies, even in their personal lives. This spirit of innovation and exploration carried over into their professional lives when they decided to tackle the challenge of creating a centralized platform for legal technology solutions during the pandemic. Their complementary skills in marketing, legal tech, and innovation have been crucial to their success, demonstrating the power of collaboration and mutual respect in both business and personal relationships.
Working together presents its challenges, notably in balancing professional demands with family life, as they navigate attending the same industry events while ensuring the wellbeing of their two children. Yet, it’s clear that their partnership strengthens both their business and their relationship, as they share a common goal and a deep understanding of each other’s strengths.
Chris and Nikki’s journey is a shining example for other couples in the legal tech industry, emphasizing the importance of shared vision, respect for each other’s expertise, and the willingness to support one another’s ideas, no matter how ambitious. Their advice for other couples looking to work together in the industry is to focus on their common goals and leverage their unique strengths, ensuring that their partnership is both professionally rewarding and personally fulfilling.
Their dedication to innovation, coupled with their strong relationship, showcases the potential for couples to make significant contributions to the legal tech industry while building a life together.
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Music: Jerry David DeCicca and Eve Searls
Transcript
Continue Reading Love and Legal Tech: Nikki Shaver and Chris Ford of Legal Technology Hub
In our third installment of Love and Legal Tech, we talk with Ab Saraswat and Priti Saraswat. Ab and Priti met while training to be barristers in the UK. They were on opposing debate teams, and Ab proposed within a year of meeting Priti. They have been married for almost a decade. Though they didn’t originally intend to work together, they both ended up at legal tech company Litera for several years but in different roles. People were surprised to later learn they were married.
Currently, Ab is the Chief Revenue Officer at legal project management startup Lupl. Ab is also the podcast host at Fringe Legal. Priti is the Legal Tech Consulting Manager at Baker Hostetler’s alternative legal services provider IncuBaker. Though their roles differ, being in the same industry allows them to bounce ideas off each other. However, the blurred lines between personal and professional lives can be challenging. They try not to talk about work on vacation.
Professionally, they handle disagreements through discussion and debate thanks to their backgrounds. They present their opinions but don’t fight about them, often agreeing to disagree. Socially, they set expectations ahead of time for how long they’ll stay at events. They “divide and conquer” at conferences by networking separately but checking in.
The common reaction now is that it’s cool they work in the same industry because they understand each other’s challenges. They want to stand on their own professionally, not just be known in relation to each other. Their advice to other couples considering working together is to focus on communication and keep an open mind when sharing opinions.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1ho94hGGyx4q2tuhKcfI6n?si=piRnLczqRl-Yq1t7zllKkw
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Music: Jerry David DeCicca and Eve Searls
Transcript
We kick off our new “Love & Legal Tech” series this week where we embark on a journey to explore the personal and professional lives of couples in the legal tech industry. We are excited to interview couples who share in the excitement of weaving their professional endeavors into their personal relationships. We think this is going to be a great series where couples get a chance to tell their stories of how they balance what one of our guests describes as “Work-Life-Integration.”
Our inaugural guests, Alex Macdonald and Cassie Vertovec share their unique story of how a solid professional collaboration slowly turned into a deep, personal connection. Alex, the Chief Strategy Officer at McCarter and English, LLP, and Cassie, the Practice Director of Corporate and Director of Practice Strategies at Barnes & Thornburg, began their journey in the legal tech world at Seyfarth Shaw. Over the years they have found themselves leading teams together, moving across the country, isolating together during the pandemic, and most recently working in similar firms. They navigated their careers with mutual respect and understanding, highlighting the importance of communication and shared values in both their professional and personal lives.
They provide insights into the dynamics of working as a couple while maintaining a balance between work and persona life. Which is no easy feat as they are both intertwined with the legal profession. Their story is a testament to the idea that professional collaboration can lead to personal growth and deeper connections.
Our hopes with the “Love & Legal Tech” series are that we not only offer a glimpse into the lives of a couple navigating love and legal tech but also shed light on broader themes within the legal industry, including the shift towards greater tech integration and the challenges and opportunities it presents. Our sincere thanks to Cassie and Alex for sharing their story with us on this series premiere.
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Music: Jerry David DeCicca
Transcript
Continue Reading Love and Legal Tech: Cassie Vertovec and Alex Macdonald
This week, Greg Lambert sat down with Caroline Hill, Editor-in-Chief for Legal IT Insider to discuss the new partnership with NetLaw Media. Hill described the new partnership between Legal IT Insider and NetLaw Media as a mutually beneficial collaboration with significant synergy between the two organizations. She emphasized the complementarity of their focuses, with Legal IT Insider’s emphasis on impartial coverage and promotion of various conferences in the legal tech sector, and NetLaw Media’s focus on technology and IT security. Hill noted that both organizations share common sponsors and audiences, which enhances the partnership’s potential.
She also mentioned the importance of working with Frances Anderson, the chief executive of NetLaw Media. Hill pointed out that NetLaw Media has been running the British Legal Technology Forum for years, indicating a deep involvement in the legal tech community.
Greg and Caroline also discussed the dramatic change in Legal Tech in 2023, and the continued shift in the industry as demands increase on law firms and others to truly implement AI solutions in 2024.
Hill pointed out that many law firms lack the expertise to build AI solutions themselves and therefore rely heavily on their business partners (vendors) for these capabilities. She suggested that the solution might lie in leaning on these business partners, but noted the challenge of justifying the costs to law firm leadership. She further mentioned the challenge of capacity and waitlists for AI projects, indicating that this has become a source of competition among law firms. The ability to quickly understand and adapt to the requirements of working with AI and establish effective vendor relationships is crucial for law firms to stay competitive and relevant in the rapidly evolving legal tech landscape.
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Music: Jerry David DeCicca
Continue Reading Navigating the Future of Legal Tech with Caroline Hill (TGIR Ep. 233)