Alternative Legal Service Providers Should They Be “Alternative?” By Doug Kim For the past several years, the legal profession has been searching for ways to respond to staffing short-ages, increased complexity in legal matters and clients’ demand for cost control and faster response times. The use of Alternative Legal Service Providers (ALSPs) has been one way to meet these challenges. Failing to understand, explore and, when applicable, properly incorpo-rate ALSPs into your legal practice will unnecessarily diminish the value you can provide to clients and companies. This is especial-ly true when the ALSP leverages modern technology for document review and signature, e-discovery and analysis, litigation support, and regulatory and compliance proj-ects. The introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) makes the decision to adopt or ignore ALSP even more timely and relevant to the modern law practice. 28 SC Lawyer ALSPs can be very beneficial when properly implemented, as they provide non-traditional ways, even revolutionary ways, to provide legal services. There is also no ques-tion that the industry is growing. An online article by Thomson Reuters in January of 2023 stated that the ALSPs comprise a $20.6 billion por-tion of the legal market. 1 The article noted that the rapidly increased use of ALSPs is causing a blurring be-tween law firms, legal departments and technology companies. The offerings for alternative legal ser-vices come in many forms: online legal platforms, virtual law firms and artificial intelligence technolo-gies that can be used for document review and even document drafting. As client demands increase, ALSPs can help firms and companies meet this demand by providing non-tra-ditional and even disruptive solu-tions. We have all seen the change PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY GEORGE FULTON
South Carolina Lawyer January 2024: Page 28
