College of Law Practice Management Announces 2013 InnovAction Award Winners

Global News

28
Aug
2013

Editor

Two Law Schools and new model law firm are awarded for innovation and imagination

The College of Law Practice Management, an international organization that recognizes excellence in law practice management, today announced the recipients of the 2013 InnovAction Awards. The University of CA Irvine School of Law, Michigan State University College of Law and Riverview Law are the three recipients of the coveted 2013 InnovAction Awards.

For the ninth year, the InnovAction Awards have recognized outstanding innovation in the delivery of legal services, demonstrating to the legal community what can happen when passionate professionals, with big ideas and strong convictions, resolve to create effective change.

“The InnovAction judges were greatly impressed by the groundbreaking submissions from law firms, law schools and companies, said Timothy B. Corcoran, Principal of Corcoran Consulting Group and chair of the 2013 awards program. "The winning entries exemplify not only innovation, but the practical necessity for bold ideas to benefit multiple stakeholders. This year's winners reflect an admirable clients-first approach."

Here are the 2013 InnovAction Award-winning entries:

• University of CA, Irvine School of Law Consumer Protection Clinic, The California Monitor Program. Key Team Members: Professor Katherine Porter and Michael Troncoso. Consumer protection laws are notoriously under-enforced, constrained by not only the availability of legal services and government resources but also by the difficulties of consumers to frame their problems in legal terms. Restrictions on class actions also have limited the incentives for lawyers to analyze consumers’ problems in a collective framework. The California Attorney General appointed Professor Katherine Porter to be a watchdog for the landmark National Mortgage Settlement. Porter, an expert in consumer law, took a novel approach to ensuring consumers got the rights set forth in the Settlement. The California Monitor Program built from scratch an innovative system for how government responds to consumers seeking help.
• Michigan State University College of Law, ReInvent Law Laboratory. The ReInvent Law Laboratory at MSU Law was created by Professors Renee Newman Knake and Dan Katz in spring 2012 to promote innovation in the space of law + tech + design + delivery. Through scholarship, curriculum development, fast-paced conferences, and entrepreneurship training and competitions, ReInvent Law both analyzes and helps build the future of legal services. New courses include e-discovery and quantitative methods for lawyers, a professional ethics course focused on technology, and an entrepreneurial lawyering class that helps bring law students' ideas to reality. A London study abroad program exposes students to deregulation and innovation in the UK legal market. ReInvent Law has brought thought leaders to the masses with free conferences built around 6-minute Ignite presentations in London, Dubai, and Silicon Valley (next in New York City, Feb. 7, 2014). The Lab also partners with start-ups and legal tech companies to provide learning and networking opportunities for forward-thinking law students and practicing lawyers.
• Riverview Law, Creating a New Model Law Firm. The UK’s Legal Services Act of 2007 was designed to “promote competition, innovation and the public and consumer interest” and served as a catalyst for new business models to deliver on this promise. While the market’s attention was predominantly fixed on the opportunities for individual consumers, one group of executives in an HR services business (AdviserPlus) believed a significant opportunity also existed in the commercial law arena. Presented with several alternatives for entering the market, the decision was taken to start with a blank slate and to build a new organization from the ground up. Drawing on principles more typically taught in business schools than in law schools, the team developed a streamlined fixed-fee business model around the answers to these questions and officially launched Riverview Law in February 2012.

"Future survival of a vital and contributing legal profession now depends on the innovative, unstuffy thinking of a few individuals and organizations around the world. It is the mission of The College of Law Practice Management to shine a spotlight on extraordinary thinking and impressive implementation to illustrate what can be accomplished when firms dare to take a risk.” said InnovAction judge Thomas S. Clay, consultant, Altman Weil, Inc. 

In addition to Mr. Clay, the other InnovAction award judges included Ida Abbott, principal, Ida Abbott Consulting; Patrick Lamb, The Valorem Law Group, Merrilyn Astin Tarlton, Astin Tarlton/Attorney at Work; and Tony Williams, Jomati Consultants LLP. Additionally, Raymond Bailey, Novus Law joined the judging panel this year. Novus Law received an InnovAction Award in 2008. 

The awards will be presented on Friday, October 4, at a special session during the 2013 Futures Conference, held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the College of Law Practice Management in Chicago, IL.