Reed Smith has launched an ‘AI Leadership Program’ at Cornell University, which the firm said will equip partners to support clients who are ‘navigating one of the most significant technological shifts in a generation’. But will this schooling really help?
AL would argue it’s not one of the most, but the most significant tech change….since the development of the printing press. Why? Because for those in the knowledge industries it almost entirely reinvents the means of production…and that has not happened for the legal world in particular for centuries.
They continued that ‘the program progresses from foundational AI knowledge to applied strategy, ethics, and governance, all with the goal of enhancing the firm’s ability to guide clients through the legal complexities of AI adoption and use’.
And that ‘participants will develop actionable roadmaps for AI transformation that directly strengthen client service, addressing workforce impact and responsible adoption within regulatory and professional standards’.
All of which is very handy.
Of course, the real change that Reed Smith can affect the most powerfully is to reinvent themselves as a legal business. Or as the proverb goes: ‘Take up thy bed, and walk.’
(And they have an incredible resource on tap to help with this – their very own legal AI consultancy, Gravity Stack. They just need to call Bryon.)
Do most clients want advice from a law firm’s partners on how to deploy AI? Maybe on ethics and governance issues, as those are legal matters, but beyond that…? And, it’s fair to say that the Cornell course does seem to tilt toward the legal issues related to AI.
As noted, what would be even better would be courses to help the equity partners and leadership move away from the current Big Law model and to help them reinvent the firm for the legal AI age. That said, any increase in engagement with AI is a boon, so let’s be positive here.
Casey Ryan, Global Managing Partner of Reed Smith, commented: ‘Our clients are navigating one of the most significant technological shifts in a generation, and they need trusted advisors who understand AI at the highest level. The Reed Smith AI Leadership Program at Cornell University equips our partners to meet that moment, combining strategic vision, ethical grounding, and practical insight to guide clients through the complexities of AI-driven transformation.’
Is this a big deal?
Well, as noted above, it’s a positive move. But it also raises interesting questions about legal education within law firms. Do partners need to advise clients on the ethical issues around AI? Yes, for sure. But, is that where the greatest value is? Probably not.
Should a law firm’s partners be advising clients on AI deployment in practical terms? Well, one can say that if they want to that’s up to the client, but again is that where the maximum value resides?
AL would argue that the highly skilled and experienced senior lawyers of any firm should just keep on doing what they do….but, take this moment in history to change how they and their business work.
It’s not the final output that needs to change, (clients just want legal advice, after all, albeit with a smidgen of AI ethics input now served on the side). It’s the means of production; the leveraging of firm data and client relationship data; the billing and time capture model; the junior lawyer training model; changes to progress up the pyramid structure itself and more, that needs to change, and will change via the adoption of AI at scale and at depth across any firm.
I.e. if you’re going to take your top team off billable client work even for a short time, then maybe get them to focus on the most central of issues that all law firms face now, namely that the Big Law model V.0.1, that has served the corporate world since the 1980s, is coming to an end and is in major need of rejuvenation.
Can you go back to school for this part? Possibly, but do universities teach such skills? One alternative is to attend the Legal Innovators conferences in New York and London, which are specifically designed for senior people in law firms and inhouse, with a focus on high level discussions that explore the intersection of AI with the business of law. You can meet your peers from other leading firms and engage with the frontier of the legal AI sector all across two days: Law firm day, and inhouse day. More here.
Come and join us in New York and London this November at Legal Innovators!
Legal Innovators New York – Nov 17 and 18.
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