Extract from Cassandre Coyer’s article “Struggling With Data and Deadlines, Legal Department Budgets Aren’t Keeping Pace”
Today, corporate legal departments navigate a bit of a conundrum. Many face smaller budgets, coupled with more plans to invest in technology tools. Others deal with data in unprecedented amounts and complexity, while still resisting the implementation of new technology.
And according to the 2023 State of Corporate Legal Industry Report, these conflicting pressures will continue into 2023 and beyond.
The report, which was conducted by e-discovery and data governance technology solutions company IPRO and the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists, is based on a survey of 126 corporate legal professionals interviewed in December.
Many of the findings weren’t surprising, IPRO Chief Executive Officer Dean Brown told Legaltech News, but rather a confirmation of some of the trends he’s seen emerging over the last couple of years.
For example, the report found that about half of respondents said budgets would create legal departments’ biggest challenges in 2023, especially as 74% said that increasing their use of technology was their top priority this year.
To work around budget constraints while still prioritizing technology implementations, Brown said, will require legal departments to get better at creating business plans to present to chief financial officers to justify costs.
