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In an era where technology is rapidly reshaping the legal landscape, staying informed about emerging trends and innovations is essential for legal professionals. To help you navigate this evolving terrain, we're excited to continue our vLex Innovator Q&A Series, which shares insights from leaders across legal tech, law firms, in-house legal teams, and law schools.

After our inaugural interview with Colin Levy, we're thrilled to share the second interview in our series featuring previous winners of the prestigious Fastcase 50 award – a conversation with Wendy Butler Curtis, Chief Innovation Officer at Orrick. Named the "Most Innovative Lawyer of the Year" by Financial Times in 2018, Wendy is celebrated for her "fresh thinking, legal nuance and practical understanding of the courts." She leads Orrick's efforts to operationalize innovation through novel products, streamlined processes, technology, and client consulting on tailored solutions.

In our conversation with vLex's Chief Strategy Officer, Ed Walters, Wendy discusses how diverse teams drive innovation, AI's transformative impact on legal practice, her predictions on what 2025 holds for the legal industry, and much more.

Watch the full interview with Wendy Butler Curtis

Building Innovation Through Diverse Teams

The most transformative aspect of Wendy's career has been the shift from working exclusively with like-minded attorneys to collaborating with professionals from varied backgrounds. "The thing that I think changed most in my career," Wendy explains, "is that I, I am a litigator, I'm a trained lawyer, I've practiced law for a long time. But suddenly, when I moved into this space, the people that I work with dramatically changed." This transition into her role as Chief Innovation Officer introduced her to new perspectives as she began "working with data scientists, and finance people, and business development, and talent," allowing her to see opportunities that might otherwise have remained invisible.

Wendy draws inspiration from Admiral Michelle Howard's leadership during the Captain Phillips rescue mission, where Admiral Howard assembled a diverse team of military specialists to tackle an incredibly complex challenge. This approach – bringing together people with unique skills and viewpoints to collaborate on solving difficult problems – has become central to Wendy's innovation philosophy at Orrick.

By embracing this multidisciplinary approach, Wendy has fostered an environment where innovation thrives through the collaboration of different perspectives. The result has been more robust solutions that address complex legal challenges from multiple angles, ultimately delivering greater value to clients. And in today's rapidly evolving legal landscape, the ability to bring together different viewpoints has become not just advantageous but essential for firms looking to lead rather than follow.

AI's Impact: From Preparation to Transformation

When it comes to AI's impact on the legal industry, Orrick found itself well-positioned thanks to early investments in building robust innovation teams. "One of the things that has been really rewarding with the advent of and the democratization of generative AI, especially after the fall of 2022," Wendy shares, "is we had the benefit that I had been in my role as Chief Innovation Officer for several years, but also we had built out our data teams and our innovation teams." This foresight meant that "when this happened, we had the scale and we kind of had Admiral Howard's team already in place."

While acknowledging that everyone in the legal industry has experienced disruption from AI, Wendy notes that Orrick was "ready and busy" – not immune to disruption, but "very prepared" for the changes AI would bring.

Wendy offers a compelling metaphor for how AI has expanded our collective ability to envision change: "Each of us, our human brain can't see all the change, but rather if you look through a small peephole at any given moment, you can see about a peephole worth of change and that's how much your brain can process. But I think with ChatGPT, our peephole or our lens got so much bigger and everyone could have this common imagination and that allowed us to collaborate even better."

While Wendy observes that we're currently seeing the highest impact in "incremental innovation" – doing existing tasks better and more efficiently – she emphasizes that "what's on the horizon, why we really lean into the line that it's an exciting time to be alive, is that the disruptive innovation is coming. And so we're kind of leaning into the incremental and learning as we go, but we know bigger change is coming."

Orrick's Unique Vantage Point in the Technology & Innovation Sector

Orrick's deep involvement with technology innovators gives the firm a distinctive perspective on the future of both technology and legal practice. "Orrick does have a really unique vantage point," Wendy explains. "We've done 55 AI-related M&A transactions, valued at over $10 billion in 17 markets. Those are global markets since September of 2023. So we are working and living in and our clients are leading in this space."

This position at the intersection of law and technology allows Orrick to learn directly from the innovators themselves. "Because of who our client base is – we have a sector strategy, and one of our four sectors is Technology & Innovation – we're collaborating with our clients around this change in a way that is so unique," says Wendy. "We're learning from them. They understand how this technology works. We're all talking about the incredible opportunities, but also working together on the risks."

Perhaps most fascinating is how this collaboration is helping define industry standards ahead of regulation. As Wendy notes, "Because of who our client base is, we don't have a regulatory structure yet. So those who are leading in this industry are setting the standard ahead of the regulators. And it's such an exciting time to think about what is the customer expectation? What is the right thing to do?"

This collaborative relationship extends to skill development as well. "We all have to develop new skills. We have to understand this technology. We have to think about ourselves in some ways as a technologist," Wendy explains. "We're working together to bring those skills to the current lawyers and legal professionals, and then working with the law schools to think about what the skills are for the next generation."

Wendy's Predictions for 2025

Looking ahead to 2025, Wendy shared three thought-provoking predictions for the legal industry.

First, she sees a shift from experimentation to strategic reflection with AI: "I think that in 2025, we're going to see a shift. We're going to move from experimentation to reflection," Wendy predicts. The initial race to adopt and understand the technology is evolving into a more thoughtful phase. "We've had a moment and we are at a place to understand the technology's potential, but also its limitations. So we experimented, we learned, now we pause. And now in this point of reflection, what is the bet to make to have the big impact?"

Her second prediction focuses on the ongoing competition for specialized talent: "We're going to continue to see the war for talent. And in particular, in law, the business professionals that can lead through this incredible time of change," she says. With a touch of humor, she adds, "We are in the market right now, we have postings. Please look, listeners!" But the underlying message is serious – "finding people who understand this and have the passion and the competence, it's a tight market."

Finally, Wendy makes what she calls both a prediction and a hope – that generative AI will significantly improve quality of life for legal professionals: "In my crystal ball, we're going to be talking a lot more about how GenAI actually increases the satisfaction and the quality of life for legal professionals. I don't think we're talking about that enough." She reflects on the challenges of legal practice, noting that "this is a wonderful profession, and I'm grateful every day that I went to law school. But it's intense and it's demanding and it's deadline-based and it's unpredictable. And this technology has the potential to really help manage some of those challenges that can make this a difficult job at times."

Innovation Continues

Our conversation with Wendy Butler Curtis offers a window into how one of the legal industry's most innovative leaders is navigating the profound changes reshaping the profession. Her emphasis on diverse teams, strategic preparation, and the human benefits of technological advancement from GenAI provides valuable guidance for legal professionals at all levels.

We're grateful to Wendy for sharing her insights and vision for the future of legal practice. Her perspective – informed by both deep legal expertise and direct exposure to cutting-edge technology – reminds us that the most successful innovation happens at the intersection of diverse viewpoints and disciplines.

Connect with Wendy on LinkedIn to follow her ongoing work in legal innovation.

Stay tuned for our next interview in the vLex Innovator Q&A Series, where we'll speak with Christina Wojcik, Managing Director of Corporate and Legal Operations at LexFusion, to continue exploring the frontiers of legal innovation.

Authored By

Jeff Cox