In opening this session of Legal Career Week, moderated by Toby Henley, a Legal Business Analyst at Perkins Coie, the panel examined the rise of the Legal Business Analyst (LBA) role in response to a rapidly evolving legal landscape. As AI adoption accelerates and clients demand greater efficiency, law firms are rethinking how they train and deploy junior talent. The conversation highlighted how this hybrid role combines legal training with business and technological expertise, creating an alternative pathway into the profession.
A New Entry Point into Legal Practice
Henley described the LBA role as a structured alternative to the traditional training contract. Instead of focusing solely on legal work, the role is deliberately split between legal and business functions. This includes exposure to areas such as marketing, innovation, CRM systems, and legal practice areas, including antitrust, M&A, and privacy.
The programme enables junior professionals to gain practical, client-facing experience from the outset, while simultaneously preparing for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). This integrated approach accelerates both technical and commercial development.
Rethinking Legal Training
A key theme was the inadequacy of traditional legal training in preparing lawyers for modern practice. Henley highlighted that most firms overlook the “business of law”, leaving lawyers underprepared to understand clients, pricing, and firm operations.
The LBA model addresses this gap by:
- Embedding business literacy early in careers
- Providing exposure to firm operations and client strategy
- Encouraging multidisciplinary skill development
This approach reflects a broader industry shift towards producing commercially aware, tech-enabled lawyers.
The Role of Technology and AI
Technology plays a central role in the LBA programme. Firms like Perkins Coie are actively integrating AI into workflows to remain competitive. However, this creates tension with traditional qualification processes such as the SQE, which still rely heavily on memorisation and do not reflect real-world practice.
The session highlighted a disconnect between regulatory frameworks and the realities of modern legal work, raising questions about how quickly the profession can adapt.
Client Expectations and Value Creation
Clients increasingly expect efficiency, innovation, and cost-effectiveness. The LBA model supports this by enabling firms to deploy junior talent at lower cost while maintaining high levels of capability.
Henley emphasised that early exposure to client interactions builds confidence and commercial awareness, allowing junior professionals to contribute meaningfully much earlier in their careers.
Skills for the Future Lawyer
The discussion highlighted that success in this new model requires a combination of interpersonal strength, commercial awareness, and technical capability. Lawyers must be able to communicate effectively, understand the business context of their work, and engage confidently with emerging technologies, particularly in the field of legal tech and AI.
Adaptability and academic capability remain important, but cultural fit was also identified as a key factor, particularly within firms operating with a start-up mindset where collaboration and shared purpose are essential.
Broadening Access and Diversity
The session also addressed access to the profession. Initiatives such as virtual vacation schemes and partnerships with organisations like Zero Gravity aim to widen participation and provide exposure to non-traditional candidates.
There was strong support for hiring individuals with diverse backgrounds, including those with experience outside law, to foster resourcefulness and innovation.
Implications for the Profession
The LBA model represents a significant shift in how legal talent is developed. While still relatively new, the LBA model represents a significant shift in how legal talent is developed and deployed. While still in its early stages, it signals a move towards more flexible career pathways and a greater emphasis on practical, commercial, and technological skills.
The session concluded that although regulatory frameworks may currently lag behind these developments, the direction of travel is clear. The future lawyer will need to be not only legally proficient, but also commercially astute and technologically capable.
