®
oundtable:
Changes in the legal sector Law firms were forced to adopt technology at an unexpected pace in the past year. Here, legal experts discuss the tech trends that have impacted their practices.
Suzanne Bogdan
Regional Managing Partner, Fort Lauderdale Fisher Phillips
What trends in the legal sector have you identified? Outside of COVID-19, the Supreme Court Bostock v. Clayton County case that was decided in 2020 finally settled the question, nationwide as to whether or not gender identity and sexual orientation were protected areas of discrimination under federal law. The court said those were protected and when that came out, it changed the landscape across the country. Several companies were not prepared to accommodate gender identity and sexual orientation. We helped educate them and move them forward. At the same time, the Supreme Court decided another case, which was important for religious institutions and religious schools. That case, Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, expanded the ministerial exception for religious institutions. The court made clear that whether someone is a functional minister depends on their duties, not some formalistic test. This provides churches and schools with more flexibility in making employment decisions. How did your firm tackle COVID-related tech challenges? In 2018, we knew we had to upgrade all of our technology to accommodate our fast-paced growth. We wanted to make sure all of our software programs nationwide were working together and communicating seamlessly with each other. Our CIO completely revamped our technology team and our technology department. By the time COVID-19 hit, we already had software, hardware, processes and training in place and we did not miss a step. Data breaches necessarily create concern among a company’s clients but we have not had to face that circumstance due to our upgrades. 56
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Philip Rosen
Shareholder & Chair, Real Estate Practice Group Becker
Which practice areas have beem most in demand? We have been very busy because when COVID first hit, every homeowner and condominium association needed to know what to do to keep their residents safe and limit their liability. We spend a lot of time these days working in conjunction with our litigation department on loan workouts for either lenders dealing with bad loans or clients who are borrowers and need us to negotiate with lenders. The courts have figured out a way to start moving dockets along so we expect to see some foreclosure velocity beginning soon. What technology trends has Becker adopted? Physically doing a closing has been very challenging so we have been on top of a digital notary and signing technology. I have a client in Costa Rica who was closing on a property in Florida. We managed to get the documents notarized virtually. That is not as much a competitive advantage as the lack of it is a disadvantage. What is your outlook for real estate litigation? Real estate is still one of the only investments that holds its value well over the long term, which makes it one of the strongest assets anyone could ever own. In the short term, I think there will be some distress. For veterans of the 2008 market meltdown, we know it took about two years for the vast majority of the properties that were lost to foreclosure to filter through and be resold on the market. But that crash was due to a meltdown in the market, with no liquidity to be seen. This situation is very different and although banks have ratcheted down, they are still lending. The government also came to the rescue much more quickly and effectively this time.
