Denise Farmer shares four important things she learned from her previous positions
Denise Farmer has pretty much done it all in legaltech. She’s logged stints with top names in the industry, from LexisNexis to Sympli and now to Clio.
In the second part of this interview, Farmer talks to Australasian Lawyer about the four lessons she learned throughout her storied runs in these firms, and why she believes we’re only just seeing the true potential of AI in the legal profession.
You spent several years with LexisNexis and with Sympli before making the move to Clio – what are the three most important things you learned from your stints at these organisations?
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First, keep an open mind. At LexisNexis, I made the most of every opportunity, which gave me a super diverse range of experiences that included everything from marketing, to sales, to strategy, to product – which was all great training for a GM. At Sympli and Clio, the very nature of scaling is not linear. You don’t have all the answers, you have to take risks, and you’re learning and adapting all the time. Being open and curious, listening and appreciating different perspectives, and not getting too fixed in your world view – it’s all essential.
Second, be prepared to push yourself out of your comfort zone. Until I entered the world of e-conveyancing, I don’t think I had fully appreciated the network of parties and interests, and the influence and advocacy that is required to achieve competition. I’d never been exposed to anything like that before Sympli. It was definitely an education.
Third, culture trumps everything. Clio has a truly unique, positive, and powerful culture. Jack Newton (Clio’s CEO and founder) sets the tone right from the top, and it informs everything we do – from hiring practices, to onboarding, to how we treat our employees and customers, and to our business practices themselves. Of course we have amazing products, but who we are as a business, how we conduct ourselves and what we stand for, that’s what makes Clio really stand out for me.
I know you only asked for three things but there’s one final thing I’ve learned. LexisNexis, Sympli, and Clio all have one thing in common: they are purpose-driven enterprises. Whether it’s advancing the Rule of Law with LexisNexis, bringing competition to e-conveyancing at Sympli, or transforming the legal experience for all at Clio, I’ve learned what a powerful motivator it is for me personally to be involved – even in a small way – with businesses that are making the lives of everyday Australians better, whether it’s through increased innovation, more affordable services, or improved access to justice.
What are your thoughts on AI and its use in the legal profession?
AI is a powerful technology that is advancing rapidly. It can both complement and enhance the work that legal professionals do every day – ultimately helping them do their work better. It offers immense capabilities for understanding, synthesising, summarising, and generating legal content. We’re already seeing lawyers use ChatGPT to review and summarise legal content and to draft documents and communications. We’re also seeing an explosion of new solutions being developed for unique applications in businesses – and law in particular. These new innovations will open up new opportunities for innovation in legal services in the years to come, benefitting both law firms and their clients.
We’re only just seeing the true potential of AI in legal. We’ve seen over the course of the last two decades how cloud technologies have had a transformative impact on how lawyers manage their practices. The cloud has given lawyers the ability to better organise their work, the ability to work remotely, and the ability to automate routine administrative tasks that involve manual data entry and processing. AI will have just as significant an impact, giving lawyers access to tools and resources that can retrieve information, help understand their business, and even take on some of the work involved in developing routine documents and communications.
AI is also being used for things like E-discovery and legal research to scan and review extensive libraries of information, as well as for due diligence and litigation analysis to assess for inconsistencies and recommend arguments. In each of these examples, AI offers substantial advantages in terms of efficiency and cost savings. At Clio, we’re deploying AI to help lawyers prioritise tasks, summarise complex legal matters, and draft communications – in other words to take on routine administrative tasks, so that lawyers and other legal professionals can focus more on the work that matters.
What are you looking forward to most in the coming year?
So many things. We have so much to look forward to. I already mentioned our amazing team – we’ll be growing that team even more in 2025. The whole APAC team is excited to head to Toronto in January for our annual Team Day. Yes, all “Clions” (as we call ourselves) – currently a team of over 1,100 and growing – will be gathering together in person for the very first time. It’s going to be phenomenal (and cold!). I’m excited about the community of Clio users we’re building in the region and growing that even more.
And last but not least, I’m excited about future innovation. We have a significant R&D team at Clio, we’re investing continuously in the product, and we have some fantastic features in the roadmap that I know our customers and prospects will love.