Design Thinking for the Legal Profession

There has never been a more exciting time to practice law. While artificial intelligence promises to minimize mundane tasks, clients' legal issues are becoming more complex. But, to successfully navigate these changes, legal professionals must better develop and exercise their creative problem- solving skills.

For decades, companies in other industries have refined techniques to better understand their customers' needs, uncover insights, and develop new-to-the-world ideas, which are now products and services we use every day. Organisations have concluded that successfully adopting these methods, known as Design Thinking, have greater financial returns than pursuing more traditional ways of operating. As the legal industry grapples with increased complexity, accelerated market deadlines, and budget constraints, design thinking holds promise to create a more delightful client experience while also increasing profitability. This book features insights from leading experts in the field.

Chapter 1: What is Design Thinking? By Lann Wasson, associate director of legal project management, and Rebecca Holdredge, innovations manager, Husch Blackwell Chapter 2: Designing lawyers down from their ivory tower By John Alber, futurist Chapter 3: Using emotional empathy and design thinking to define user-centered service needs By Meghann Barloewen and Jason Dirkx, Littler Mendelson Chapter 4: Why design thinking in law? By Nicola Shaver, managing director, innovation and knowledge, Paul Hastings LLP Chapter 5: Design thinking - a legal industry imperative By Zena Applebaum, director of customer insights and engagement, Thomson Reuters Canada Legal Tax and Accounting Chapter 6: Legal Lean Sigma Design By Catherine Alman MacDonagh, CEO and founder, Legal Lean Sigma Institute LLC Chapter 7: From enthusiasm to execution: the growing legal design community By Josh Kubicki, founder, Bold Duck Studio Chapter 8: Learning to see - how to develop new insights for services By Lann Wasson, associate director of legal project management, Husch Blackwell Chapter 9: The legal design jam By Tess Blair, litigator and legal entrepreneur, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Chapter 10: How design thinking makes for good business development By Mark Beese, president, Leadership for Lawyers Chapter 11: When the customer isn't always right - designing for user needs, rather than asks By Amani Smathers, senior legal solutions architect at Davis Wright Tremaine, and Amy Monaghan, practice innovations manager at Perkins Coie Chapter 12: Quick and dirty - tactics for leveraging design thinking in your daily work By Andy Peterson and Kate White, Design Build Legal Chapter 13: Counter-intuitive practices: how to master the design thinking mindset By Mark Beese, president, Leadership for Lawyers Chapter 14: Practical approaches for making service design work in a global law firm By Alex Smith, global product lead, iManage RAVN Chapter 15: The designer's dilemma By Duncan Hart, Duncan Hart Consulting