Technology, compliance and training: key factors for the future of the legal profession
“We must appreciate the impact of technology in order to devote more resources and thus improve efficiency and performance, but really to deal with the challenges of A.I.,” said Miguel Klingenberg, former general manager of legal matters at Repsol, at the 10th anniversary celebrations of Professional Forums during a discussion chaired by Cristina Sancho, president of the Aranzadi LA LEY Foundation, and Eugenia Navarro, professor of strategy and legal operations at Esade Law School.
“It’s essential to use artificial intelligence ethically to avoid complications for the organization. It’s important to understand the origin of the source and have a human team to supervise what’s happening”, explained Juan de Rueda, Legal Vice President of the Iberia Business Unit at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. Klingenberg highlighted the need for training programs and the importance of team building, “Personal contact and customer proximity are human factors that technology can’t provide”.
Training and compliance: essential for today and tomorrow
Another crucial challenge for the future of the profession is compliance, something that has become increasingly important over the last decade. “It’s essential for companies to abide by their commitments – whilst respecting the regulated framework in which we live”, declared Klingenberg. Along the same line, De Rueda believes in independent control, despite the difficulties in obtaining the necessary resources.
“The professionals of today and tomorrow must have a strategic, transversal mindset that enables them to know every area and discipline in the business in order to move ahead,” said De Rueda. Klingenberg also reiterated the importance of knowing and understanding the business model well, with an eye on headhunting the people who have the talent and necessary commitment to learn.
In addition, Klingenberg underlined the evolution of the legal sector over the last decade, the changes in how it works, the profiles sought by companies and the acknowledgement of the need for talent. “The training and outlook of corporate counsel has changed too: they must stay close to the business and understand it,” he pointed out, together with greater flexibility and work-life balance. De Rueda mentioned that lawyers are more in contact with the upper echelons of corporate life, “Lawyers have more influence now than a decade ago.”
Renewal of the agreement
During the Professional Forums 10th anniversary celebrations, the renewal of the agreement between Esade Law School and the Aranzadi LA LEY Foundation was announced. These forums, which started in 2013 and have welcomed more than 200 experts and nearly 4,000 attendees over the years, aim to transfer knowledge and generate debate in the legal profession. During this decade, Professional Forums have addressed such varied and innovative issues as legal operations, GPT Chat, corporate compliance, business development and document automation, to name but a few.
“These forums have a history and a future. They’re an opportunity to get together to discuss current events and topics of interest to the legal profession,” said Jorge Castiñeira, dean of Esade Law School. Meanwhile, Vicente Sánchez, CEO of Aranzadi LA LEY and vice president of the Aranzadi LA LEY Foundation, explained that “the numbers convey the dimension of a great shared project and reflect the success of a good idea, i. e., the creation of an unprecedented networking space for professionals and experts that’s open to the entire legal community and has facilitated the on-going transfer of knowledge and contact between professionals.”
The 40th edition of Professional Forums held by Esade Law School and the Aranzadi LA LEY Foundation was sponsored by Banco Santander Spain.