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Management Assistance Program

Fast Fish and New Technologies – Are Small Law Firms Outcompeting Large Firms?

By Jim Calloway

My friend Dennis Kennedy, who serves as Interim Director, Center for Law, Technology & Innovation at Michigan State University, recently did a LinkedIn post entitled Fast Fish And New Technologies– Are Small Law Firms Outcompeting Large Firms?

Perhaps the easiest way to explain his piece is to quote the first two paragraphs.

We have moved from a world where the big fish eat the little fish, says Tom Peters, the famous management consulting guru, to a world where the “fast fish eat the slow fish.”

I’ve noticed lately that many of the most innovative developments in legal technology have come from smaller firms and solo practitioners. Small firms and solos have developed some of the most successful legal website, pioneered the use of legal applications, and taken the lead in productizing legal services with technology. They have become the fast fish.

Dennis then outlines ten advantages he believes small firms and solos have over large law firms when it comes to innovation and technology. Dennis is a gifted writer with as much background as anyone in the legal technology field. This is a thought provoking read.