Trudy Knockless

“Skills can only be gained by judgment, and skills can be gained by doing the work. Once you learn the work, you can automate it and save time efficiently. But if you start with using the tools, if you don't know the rules, then I'm not sure they're learning the right tools,” said Hiro Oshima, deputy general counsel of SMBC.

“Skills can only be gained by judgment, and skills can be gained by doing the work. Once you learn the work, you can automate it and save time efficiently. But if you start with using the tools, if you don’t know the rules, then I’m not sure they’re learning the right tools,” said Hiro Oshima, deputy general counsel of SMBC.

Norman Pentelovitch, who joined Faegre Drinker as a partner in July, says the best outside counsel understand that their case is rarely the only problem on a client's desk, and that a lawyer's job ultimately is to give advice, not simply analyze options.

Legal Edge, a technology-driven center of expertise inside AT&T's legal department, has grown from 24 to roughly 35 people in just six months.

membership Law.com Pro Corporate legal departments increasingly want to be seen as strategic business partners rather than cost

Kirupa Pushparaj became chief legal officer for Mews, a tech provider for the hospitality industry, in April.

Kirupa Pushparaj became chief legal officer for Mews, a tech provider for the hospitality industry, in April.

Speaking at the Running Legal Like a Business Conference in Las Vegas, Clio executive Damien Riehl said corporate legal departments have an incentive to push for pricing that reflects the efficiencies AI creates, while firms operating under fixed-fee arrangements could use the technology to reduce the cost of delivering the work and increase their margins.

4 minute read September 10, 2026 at 02:35 PM If legal departments cannot keep pace with the business, AI is making it increasingly

membership Law.com Pro Long-standing relationships have always carried weight when in-house lawyers choose outside counsel, but AI