At the time, the COO’s message wasn’t always welcomed
Bec Robertson realised years before it actually happened that AI was going to significantly impact legal roles and legal service delivery. Her foresight on this wasn’t always popular or welcome then, but it has since paid off.
Today, Robertson is on board legal tech company AI Legal Assistant as its COO, leading the charge of AI use in law. In the second half of this interview, she tells Australasian Lawyer how she was introduced to AI and began seeing its applicability in the profession.
What made you choose a career in law, and what's your favourite part of the job?
My parents are medical professionals, and I grew up in hospitals waiting for them to finish their rounds. Yes, that has nothing to do with the law, but I saw how data and information helped make treatment decisions. I was the only person in high school who chose to do work experience in the medical records department of a major metropolitan hospital. I was fascinated by the way data assisted doctors in making more informed recommendations.
Thinking I might go into medicine, I worked in a day surgery during my final year of high school. Ultimately, being too squeamish to go into medicine, I studied law and behavioural science instead - two other professions that deal with data and information. During this period, I learned how to conduct research, make predictions, and evaluate situations objectively.
Halfway through university, I chose the law because it gave me the ability to present arguments in court - my favourite part of the job. I’ve taken the skills I learned during my advocacy years and applied them to presenting on legal AI topics.
How were you introduced to the idea of using AI in law?
Several years ago, I could see that legal roles and legal service delivery were going to change as a result of AI. I started talking about this to in-house teams, law firms, and legal recruiters. My message wasn’t always popular or welcomed, but here we are in the age where legal AI is commonplace and everyone’s talking about AI! Thankfully, I’m grateful to have found an incredibly supportive environment at AI Legal Assistant. Getting here has been a journey where I can look back with hindsight and see that each career milestone was leading me to this moment.
Two decades ago, I undertook a stint as a precedent lawyer in the knowledge management team at Sparke Helmore. I worked closely with technical experts and learned a lot about legal tech tools. It gave me my first insight into the productivity aspects of working in the legal profession.
I then moved into a data, privacy and technology role in-house at a large entertainment company. This experience deepened my understanding of technology and its potential to significantly impact operations. I continued to develop my skills in this area, knowing that eventually the legal profession itself would face a reckoning when the technology industry forced a total change in the way we perform legal services.
What in your opinion has been the biggest benefit of AI to the profession?
It forces us to rethink how we deliver legal services instead of getting stuck in the status quo or outdated methods. It also requires us to evaluate how we see ourselves as lawyers or legal professionals, and this type of reflection is a good thing.
