any Welsh law firms utilising or developing similar technologies in Wales, any start-up or scale-up offering or developing commercial solutions in the field, and any academic researcher in a Welsh university involved in research and development relevant to the query.
Recommendation 5 A centre for LegalTech needs to be established as a key reference point for the ecosystem. Such a centre should be tasked with coordinating the ecosystem, maintaining the mapping and referral system, organising relevant events, and promoting engagement and collaboration (including the forum suggested in Recommendation 1). The centre could also be tasked with managing branding and other administrative aspects for the Welsh LegalTech ecosystem. The existing Legal Innovation Lab Wales at Swansea University provides an already existing facility that could be utilised for such purpose, expanding membership to it to all other Welsh universities and adopting a shared leadership model for its management. We note that this would require additional funding after June 2023. Recommendation 6 Welsh Government should take a leading role in supporting the Welsh LegalTech ecosystem and its branding, identifying this as a key priority for its engagement with the legal services sector. This may require multiple departments and other entities (e.g. Business Wales) within Welsh Government to coordinate their efforts in more effective ways, or to re-structure their competences to consolidate relevant ones in a single department or entity. Recommendation 7 All the components of the Welsh LegalTech ecosystem should commit to the circular requirements outlined above for expertise, knowledge, and market, as a pre-condition for accessing the unitary branding and referral system. The centre for LegalTech suggested in Recommendation 5 should develop a timeline for the implementation of the circular requirements and assess compliance with it, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders. Recommendation 8 The LegalTech ecosystem in Wales should be characterised by inclusivity, collaboration, respect, fairness, and sustainability. Each component of the ecosystem has the responsibility to actively contribute to its functioning, to collaborate and support knowledge-sharing in the sector, and to promote the development of innovation with the ultimate goal of improving access to justice for all.
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