LegalEDHEC published a press release on January 15, 2020 announcing the creation of the first competency framework for the augmented lawyer and the development of a legal talent management platform in partnership with Seraphin.Legal.
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"The LegalEDHEC research centre publishes the results of a survey of 100 legal leaders to identify the key competencies of the "augmented lawyer", in partnership with theFrench Association of Corporate Lawyers, and signs a partnership with Seraphin.Legal for the development of the first online competency repository designed to assist the legal market in managing its talent.
The study suggests that in order to adapt to a VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity*) environment, legal practitioners need to develop multiple intelligences and skills. If soft skills are considered as prerequisites to be recruited, digital skills appear as essential to stand out.
CONCLUSIONS OF THE STUDY CONDUCTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE AFJE
THE LEGAL MANAGER: DIGITAL SKILLS FOR DECISION-MAKING
The Top 15 essential skills for a legal manager or to perform as a lawyer or attorney reveal that the ability to use digital tools is essential. However, this result does not herald the advent of the coder lawyer, as these skills should enable them tooptimise the operational management of their activity, their budget, their workflow, their mobility and their knowledge.
In addition to usage, the ability to identify the right tools on the legaltech market, to test them, to identify the risks and opportunities, and to integrate them into a deployment strategy within one's organisation, is decisive. For example, the ability to optimise the drafting of contracts using digital tools will be appreciated. But this use requires a good understanding of technological and business concepts, particularly if disruptive technologies are involved.
The legal manager or partner (in a law firm or in a law firm) must be attentive to the legal risks inherent in these tools and to the adaptation of his organisation to the challenges posed by digital technology.
In this Top 15, the only soft skill expected by the manager is decision-making ability.
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE, A KEY SKILL FOR THE YOUNG LAW GRADUATE
The law leaders surveyed place soft skills very high in the Top 30 priority skills for young graduates.
To be recruited, they will need to have excellent communication and teaching skills, self-control, resilience and judgement.
Students and young professionals should cultivate their emotional intelligence to better serve the collective intelligence. Good legal practice must be client-oriented, which requires humility and absolute integrity.
Business skills also play a major role in recruitment:
- The ability to be a business partner
- Be able to assert yourself as a negotiator
- Cultivating strategic intelligence
PARTNERSHIP WITH SERAPHIN LEGAL: FROM A REPOSITORY OF SKILLS FOR STATIC LEGAL PROFESSIONS TO AN EDHEC PLATFORM FOR DYNAMIC LEGAL TALENT MANAGEMENT
Cette enquête a permis d’aboutir à un premier référentiel de 150 compétences clés du juriste augmenté disponible sur la plateforme https://alll.legal/
The objective is now to move from a static repository to a dynamic repository of the Augmented Lawyer. Regularly updated with the help of a Committee of experts, it will be accessible to all. On the basis of this open EDHEC market repository, legal departments, law firms and other legal practice structures will be able to set up their own team repository and conduct skills assessments.
" We are delighted to have signed this partnership with Seraphin Legal who will develop for us this digital platform to create a dynamic Repository. Seraphin is a legaltech recognized in the market, which has the agile know-how to develop our project", underlines Christophe Roquilly, Professor at EDHEC and Director of LegalEDHEC.
"It is with great pride and enthusiasm that the Seraphin teams are involved in this project to develop the first dynamic reference framework for the augmented lawyer. For the past 3 years, we have been developing a technologically-enhanced lawyer, and we have been contributing on a daily basis to the development of their digital skills and to the validation of their competencies with AFNOR Certification. It is very satisfying to see that institutions recognized for the transformation of the legal profession, such as LegalEDHEC and the AFJE, are involved in a global and collaborative approach to managing the skills of tomorrow's lawyers," said Thomas Saint Aubin, Managing Director of Seraphin.legal and creator of the Legal Tech Academy.
This digital platform should be available in spring 2020.
TOWARDS A LEGAL TALENT MANAGEMENT TOOL
The aim is to provide recruiters and lawyers alike with a legal talent management tool.
The next step for LegalEDHEC will therefore be to develop an online skills assessment tool and to deploy a certification that will be delivered by EDHEC Business School: the ALL Certificate (Advanced Lawyer & Lawyering Certificate)".
Read more about the LegalEDHEC Research centre.
