The prevalence of technology and the widespread use of digital tools, gadgets, and solutions have left their mark on all industries and sectors. Even industries traditionally reluctant to change that were slower at introducing technology into their way of operating are now moving in this direction, and the legal field is a good example of that.
We've come to think of legal services as being stuck in the past – law firms, lawyers, and other legal professionals have been relying on the same methods and strategies for years to provide the services required by their clients. But now, as the whole world is becoming increasingly digitalised, they've come to embrace some of these innovations, with Big Data being at the forefront of the digital transformation.
But where does Big Data fit in the legal practice and how is it being used in this context? Since the relationship between Big Data and the legal system is still in its early days, there are many questions to be answered and aspects to be explored. So, let's take a closer look at the role that Big Data plays in the legal industry at the moment and what it means for both professionals and people in need of legal services.
For most people, Big Data is still a vague concept, much like machine learning or IoT. Although many grasp the general idea, the particularities remain somewhat elusive, as we don't have a deep understanding of how these technologies and their applications can influence our daily lives.
In simple terms, Big Data is the collection and storage of all types of structured, semistructured, and unstructured data by companies and organisations, in such large amounts and with a high degree of complexity that makes it difficult to be processed by traditional data management tools. In other words, Big Data refers to large volumes of data, just as the name implies.
There's no denying that in recent years the quantity of data available has been growing at unprecedented rates and continues to do so. However, there's no value in simply collecting and storing data. Although volume, variety, and velocity are the three elements that characterize Big Data, what matters the most is not the amount or type of data collected, but the way it's being interpreted and used.
Therefore, the term tends to be used today in reference to Big Data Analytics – the process that implies the examination of data in order to uncover patterns, trends, and other types of information that can provide valuable insights, helping organizations improve their operations and make better-informed decisions.
It's obvious that the law industry produces large amounts of data. Back in the day, this data was collected, stored, and organized in the form of physical documents, creating piles of records and paperwork to go through every time a piece of specific information was required. But with the emergence of tech devices and the advent of the internet, these methods have changed drastically.
Law firms can now store the data they collect from their clients, courtroom hearings, contracts, or legal history on digital devices and access it whenever they need it. So, let's take a look at the impact of Big Data on the legal industry and the use cases evolving from it.
Dealing with such vast amounts of data can make it difficult for legal professionals to go through it all and analyse it quickly and efficiently. Fortunately, these days technology has made it possible for law firms to use all this information to their advantage and draw the insights they need in order to make better-informed decisions. Big Data combined with advanced analytics gives lawyers instant access to the information they need, helping them make predictions about the outcome of a case, determine if it's worth getting involved or not, or calculate fees. This also contributes to a cost reduction, so Big Data helps law firms save both time and money.
Law firms are not the only ones that can benefit from Big Data. Clients can also enjoy the various perks provided by the use of Big Data in the legal industry. For example, the search for legal services has been made easier by the numerous tools and apps available that help clients compare and evaluate different law firms and the services they provide. Similarly, people can use different apps to calculate compensation for scar injuries in the UK or they can benefit from personalised services.
Big Data has made it possible to access a vast array of information from a wide variety of sources. This not only changes the process of assembling evidence and presenting it in the courtroom but also the type of evidence that can be used in court. As the amount of data collected through tech tools from the online environment continues to grow, the litigation landscape is bound to undergo significant transformations.
Law firms are in constant need of talented professionals, but finding them can prove rather difficult. HR departments have a difficult task, as they have to go through a large number of applications in order to find the talent they're looking for. Big Data can provide support for HR departments and facilitate the recruitment process by making it easier for law firms to evaluate potential candidates and find the right match for their specific requirements.
It's obvious that Big Data, along with other technologies, has the potential to revolutionise the legal industry and change it for the better and make life easier for both legal professionals and clients. This is already the direction that things are going, but since the use of Big Data in the law field is still in its early days, we still have a long way to go until we can fully understand the whole array of benefits it can provide.
