Latest news with #Law200
Business Wire
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Elite Advances Cloud and AI Adoption in Top Law Firms
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Elite, the leading enterprise SaaS platform purpose-built for the legal industry, has unveiled the latest innovations to 3E, its pioneering cloud-based financial management product. 'We are excited to write the next chapter of legal technology—where real-time data becomes the engine of firm-wide transformation, driving improved business operations.' Elite also announced that demand for cloud migration rose sharply—with a 75% increase in SaaS subscription usage in 2025—signaling a decisive shift in how legal firms are choosing to run their operations. Momentum for Elite's invoice management solution, Elite Payments by Tranch, is also accelerating, with a threefold increase in monthly transactions since January. Five new firms recently adopted Elite Payments, including Clark Hill, Gentry Locke, and Greenspoon Marder. 'The legal industry is considered by many as the last frontier for digital transformation, but in 2025 we've seen the demand for new ways of working increase significantly. As a result, legal industry leaders are realizing faster billing cycles, reduced write-offs, and reclaimed lawyer time for their firms. Looking ahead, we know that Elite's investments in cloud and AI will drive even more meaningful outcomes for our industry,' said Mark Dorman, Chief Executive Officer, Elite. Nine out of 10 law firms are choosing cloud-based solutions when replacing their financial management systems, according to a recent ILTA survey, a significant jump compared to just a few years ago. 1 At this year's ILTACON, Elite presented three breakthrough innovations to continue driving forward this momentum: Elite Payments is now natively embedded in 3E: Invoice delivery, secure client invoice portals, and faster client payments are all directly in 3E. Clients receive greater transparency and the flexibility to split payments into smaller, manageable installments. At the same time, firms get paid faster and with the full sum up front. Users already report time-to-payment is reduced by up to 40%. Nearly three-quarters of the firms using Elite Payments are within the Am Law 200. Near real-time, Centralized Data Access: Later this year, customers will gain new ways to access data through a real-time, data lake in customers' Microsoft Fabric instance that is fully managed by Elite. This will unlock easy-to-use data anytime through Elite's robust embedded dashboard and analytics capabilities, while also supporting direct access from external BI tools. This innovation delivers a single source of truth across time, billing, collections, and profitability, allowing firms to always be in sync and make more informed decisions, much faster and without complexity. 'The ability for customers to access data in near real-time is only possible due to Elite's industry-leading investments in AI and cloud,' said Elisabet Hardy, Chief Product Officer, Elite. 'We are excited to write the next chapter of legal technology—where real-time data becomes the engine of firm-wide transformation, driving improved business operations.' Proforma AI Agent: Early next year, Elite plans to introduce an AI assistant that will enable users to review proformas and check matter status instantly. Users will be able to route proformas, flag delays, or escalate invoices directly from the chat. The agent will facilitate real-time interaction and information based on natural language prompts and questions, while adhering to each firm's unique billing rules and workflows. By reducing the manual back-and-forth that slows down billing cycles, the Proforma AI Agent will help firms accelerate cash flow, improve compliance, and free up time for higher-value client work. Taken together, these advancements are the latest bold steps forward from Elite to enable firms to unlock operational efficiency and empower smarter decision-making. "We see substantial value in leveraging 3E in the cloud, with its continuous enhancements, and updates that don't require full system upgrades. These tools not only streamline our operations but also empower us to deliver even more efficient and tailored client services," said Jen Fante, COO/CFO of Greenspoon Marder. About Elite Since its founding in 1947, Elite has transformed law firms with innovative technologies that are at the center of their success. Today, Elite is a leading, independent technology company that continues to develop cutting-edge digital financial solutions that drive success for the world's most successful law firms. Visit to learn more. 1 ILTA'S 2024 TECHNOLOGY SURVEY,
Boston Globe
22-04-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
As most of Big Law stays quiet, WilmerHale finds some allies in its face-off with Trump
The future of WilmerHale, based in Boston and Washington, could be at stake: Advertisement For a growing number of law firms, though, much more is at stake: The foundations of the country's legal system could crumble if the threats against WilmerHale and other firms in Trump's crosshairs are allowed to stand. WilmerHale has apparently invited Trump's wrath because of its involvement in voting rights cases, diverse hiring practices, and employment of Robert Mueller and two other lawyers who worked on a probe into Russia's activities in the 2016 presidential election. In Trump's words, WilmerHale has 'abandoned the profession's highest ideals,' undermined justice with its pro bono activities, and employed lawyers such as Mueller (now retired) who 'weaponized' the government. Trump promised retribution against those he feels have wronged him — and now he is delivering. Advertisement In early April, more than 500 law firms That number comes with a huge asterisk: Fewer than 20 of the 200 largest law firms, known in the industry as the Of the Am Law 200 firms that did speak up, at least three have a major presence in Boston: Choate, Hall & Stewart, Foley Hoag, and Goulston & Storrs. The amicus brief that the firms signed in the WilmerHale case says Trump's executive order should be permanently blocked because it violates the Constitution's First, Fifth, and Sixth amendments, as well as basic separation-of-powers principles. The legal system, the firms argue, depends on attorneys willing to be fierce advocates for clients without fear of retribution. Zealous representation, the argument goes, helps impartial judges arrive at just and informed decisions. That 'proud tradition is in jeopardy,' the firms state in their brief. 'Unless the judiciary acts decisively now, what was once beyond the pale will in short order become a stark reality.' Advertisement Even the big firms that support WilmerHale seem to be doing so cautiously. A spokesman for Choate Hall & Stewart didn't return messages seeking comment, and Goulston & Storrs declined to comment. Foley Hoag has won many admirers in Boston's legal community for standing up; its managing partner, Jim Bucking, offered a prepared statement when asked to comment. 'We were proud to stand with our friends at WilmerHale and the other firms targeted by executive orders,' Bucking said. 'Our decision was guided by the values and principles that we apply to our own practices and service to our clients. We concluded that this was the right thing to do for Foley Hoag, even though the vast majority of the country's largest firms made a different decision.' Attorneys at smaller firms and in academia appear more willing to speak freely about the conundrum the legal sector faces. 'The independence of lawyers is essential to the rule of law, to a functioning legal system, and for our country,' said Colin Van Dyke, managing partner at Anderson & Kreiger. 'Once we agree to give up some of that independence, it's hard to see where it stops.' That's one reason Van Dyke and his 45-lawyer Boston firm signed the amicus brief in support of WilmerHale. There was no question Boston College's Cheryl Bratt would sign on with a pro-WilmerHale brief, along with nearly 700 other law school professors. Early in her legal career, before joining academia, Bratt was an associate at the firm and was drawn to it in part because of its civil rights legacy and reputation for taking on tough public causes. During an orientation, the new lawyers learned about WilmerHale's history, including how Advertisement Bratt says she's teaching her first-year students at BC Law about the executive orders, and the pushback — a fight she says could have ripple effects in other sectors of business. 'Trump is instilling fear in lawyers [and] this gives him a long and wide runway to act brazenly and unlawfully,' Bratt said. 'You can see how quickly society can unravel when we no longer have lawyers as checks on power.' Jon Feingold, a law professor at Boston University who signed the WilmerHale brief, said he's frustrated that so few of the big firms are standing up to Trump. That could make it more challenging for people or organizations that believe they've had their rights violated by the federal government to find good legal representation. 'Instead of leveraging all of your wealth and legal talent to resist, you capitulate,' Feingold said. 'It undermines the fabric of the entire legal system.' Feingold and other WilmerHale allies raise an important question: What kind of legal system will remain if the president can cajole law firms into subservience and punish those that don't make a deal? Jon Chesto can be reached at
