The next two weeks will be heaven for legal tech enthusiasts: LegalWeek and ABA TechShow will both happen between March 24 and April 5.
LegalWeek 2025, the glitzy New York legal tech shows kicks off this week. It’s one of the biggest legal tech events and is geared toward big law though perhaps not exclusively. It’s put on annually by ALM. It’s appropriate the Show is always in the Big Apple. Everything about LegalWeek is big.
The conference typically draws over 6,000 attendees from around the world, including legal professionals—law firm partners, general counsel, legal operations leaders, IT professionals, legal tech vendors, and consultants. It’s one of the largest legal tech conferences.
It’s been hosted annually at the New York Hilton Midtown since the early 80s. In recent years, the educational programming foscuses high level thought leadership across several key areas, cybersecuity, data privacy access to justice, and—of course—AI. Networking will be big, as always.
The 2025 Show will be headlined by the actor Rob Lowe who kicks Tuesday off with his keynote. Other popular sessions include ALM’s annual State of the Industry presentation and the judicial roundtable where several well respected jurists discuss noteworthy e discovery developments and the challenges of AI in the courtroom, among other things.
There is a extensive exhibit hall spread out over three floors at the Hilton with most significant players (and less significant) in legal tech offering their wares. There are parties, happy hours and dinners galore over the 4 days.
Expect a slew of announcements by vendors of products that are, will be or someday might be introduced in the legal marketplace. Vendors are also racing to set up meeting with buyers, analysts and even bloggers like me. All in all it will be a fun, informative and exhausting week. LegalWeek lives large.
ABA Tech Show is More About Small Law
And then next week comes ABA Techshow in Chicago on April 2-5. Since I am co-Chair this year, that will be even more scurrying around to be sure the Show goes off without a hitch ( or at least not manu big ones). The two shows are very different in that they appeal to slightly different audiences. LegalWeek is largely focused on larger law firms who typically have big IT and marketing teams.
ABA TechShow on the other hand is more about small law. Many attendees are practicing lawyers from small firms or solos that don’t have sophisticated IT and marketing departments and are thus more hands one. The shift in focus is interesting in and of itself since it reflects different marketing approaches and pitches and different products. The educational session programming also reflect this difference.
These contrasts say a lot about the way different sectors of the industry learn and buy
LegalWeek sessions tend to be more vendor driven. TechShow has fewer sessions presented by vendors and stresses a strong no selling from the podium philosophy. TechShow is a more relaxed environment where people tend to be more collegial and low key. These contrasts say a lot about the way different sectors of the industry learn and buy.
I’ll be reporting on both shows, covering the announcements, highlights from the exhibit hall and, of course, the parties.
It’s going to be a wild two weeks.