Episode 200: Future 50 Series – Innovator in Residence – A leap forward in legal AI from the Ontario Bar Association!

In this session, we spoke with Colin Lachance, the Innovator in Residence at the Ontario Bar Association (OBA) and the Principal of law firm coaching and consulting business, PGYA Consulting. Colin has spent most of his career in the legal industry. He's worked in publishing, consulting, and legaltech development just to name a few. In all that he has done, and it's a lot, there's been a consistent theme – he's comfortable with challenging the status quo and doing things differently. He's been named one of the "Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers" by Canadian Lawyer Magazine, a "Legal Rebel" by the ABA Journal and is a member of the Fastcase 50 class of legal innovators and visionaries. Colin's amazing background both qualifies and recommends him for his role as Innovator in Residence at the OBA. It's a unique role for legal member organisations. It was launched in 2018. Each innovator is appointed for 12 months and pursues a different focus area, always with a change agenda. Colin's focus area could not be more topical…it's legal AI. His action plan is ambitious, critical, timely and compelling. It comprises a multi-pronged approach to supporting the digital literacy of OBA's members at scale. His work will impact the 16,000 lawyers OBA represents and influence many, many more. It includes tech demos, weekly information sessions, establishing an interactive learning platform and…he is just getting started! We spoke about all of this as well as the global and local context that led to Colin's appointment i.e., how GenAI has become an enabler for significant change in the legal world; how the pace, depth and breadth of that change is reinventing legal practice; and how it is incumbent on us all to embrace that change.  Don't miss this spotlight, it's going to excite and inspire you! If you would prefer to watch rather than listen to this podcast, you'll find the video here. About the Future 50 Series In the Future 50 Series we're chatting with legalpreneurs who, through their ideas and actions, are challenging and transforming legal BAU all around the world. If you would like to recommend people for this Series, please contact us at: [email protected].