International law firm Simmons & Simmons joins Barclays’ Eagle Labs law-tech initiative.
- New Eagle Lab will help turbo-charge London’s law-tech ecosystem
- Venture backed by major law firms including Simmons & Simmons, University College London (UCL) and The University of Liverpool
- Start-up community Legal Geek to provide community events
- Co-working, incubation, mentoring, introductions to major firms and other services will help law-tech firms start up and scale up
Barclays has launched a new law-tech incubator in partnership with the Law Society. The venture is backed by major law firms including Simmons & Simmons, as well as leading universities UCL and The University of Liverpool.
Together, they aim to turbo-charge the UK’s law-tech sector, helping companies start up and scale up, and become international leaders in their field – matching the UK’s reputation as a leader in the legal services sector.
The law-tech Eagle Lab will open soon in Notting Hill, London, and create a centre of excellence. It will provide co-working space and support for up to 100 individuals, with events and meet-up space expected to be confirmed soon.
Ashok Vaswani, Chief Executive of Barclays UK, said: “Law-tech is an area where the UK has every reason to be a world leader. It is home to some of the greatest law firms in the world and we want to help build on the success of its legal sector, and play a leading role in transforming law-tech in the future. The impressive range of partners supporting this initiative shows just how important this is.
“Our Eagle Labs are supporting thriving new businesses up and down the country, and our Notting Hill lab will lead the way as an industry centre of excellence for law-tech.”
Stephanie Pagni, General Counsel for Barclays UK, said: “This initiative will help trigger a transformation in law-tech with significant potential, addressing not just commercial but also societal legal problems, and drawing on the expertise of data scientists, engineers and a range of other graduates and contributors from our university partners.”
Ben McGuire, Innovation and Business Change Director at Simmons & Simmons also commented: “We are excited to be partnering with Barclays on this initiative and supporting fledgeling law-tech start-ups in the new Eagle Lab. Technology is transforming the delivery of legal services and this collaboration is a great opportunity for us to guide new players in the market on the key challenges they might face and help them build sustainable businesses. We look forward to embarking on this journey with Barclays and the wider legal community.”
The new incubator will provide access to mentoring and workshops. It will be supported by a dedicated Ecosystem Manager and Barclays’ colleagues who will provide on-site advice for entrepreneurs on areas including business and personal finance, as well as connections into Barclays’ international networks.
Legal Geek, a start-up community, will also play a vital role in organising events to encourage the sharing of ideas, and help entrepreneurs network and collaborate.
As a partnering law firm, Simmons & Simmons will provide feedback and guidance to help entrepreneurs develop, test and refine their products, with the potential to implement new technology into their firms. Academic support will come from UCL and The University of Liverpool, which have valuable expertise in artificial intelligence and law-tech.
The law-tech Eagle Lab is the latest in a growing network of 15 Labs set up by Barclays to help start-up and scale up businesses to create, innovate and grow. Eagle Labs originally converted under-utilised bank spaces to create thriving ecosystems at the heart of their community. They have developed into a UK-wide network, partnering with organisations that share Barclays’ vision to empower businesses and communities to drive the UK economy. Many of the Labs have a specific industry focus on technology areas such as artificial intelligence and home automation.