Harbor Opens Innovation Lab for Legal Operations

New Harbor Labs organization focused on advanced technologies such as generative AI

CHICAGO, January 25, 2024 – Harbor, an expert services provider to the legal industry, today announced the formation of Harbor Labs, a new innovation lab focused on advanced technologies and processes for law firms, corporations, and their law departments. The launch of Harbor Labs also marks the integration of KP Labs into Harbor following its acquisition in June of last year.

“The advent of generative AI has been a catalyst for corporate law departments to seek new ways of delivering legal services. Harbor Labs provides legal engineering services that help enterprises accelerate the speed of business using AI and other advanced technologies,” said Matt Sunderman, CEO, Harbor. “Our innovation lab is also developing solutions that will transform how Harbor delivers managed services to law firms, so they can leverage advanced technologies cost-effectively and at scale, and keep pace in this rapidly changing environment.”

Navigating a rapidly evolving landscape

The new organization is co-led by former KP Labs CEO Rudy DeFelice, now global head of Harbor Labs, and Lauren Chung, who serves as practice optimization officer for Harbor Labs, as well as lead of the Strategy + Transformation practice of Harbor. They are joined by Nick Kadochnikov, head of AI and advanced tech engineering, and Justin Hectus, co-founder and former CIO at KP Labs, who is now a managing director of Harbor Labs.

“Solving hard problems and innovating alongside our clients have always been core to the KP Labs mission. As part of Harbor Labs, our team continues this mission, now with the broader resources that Harbor has to offer,” said Rudy DeFelice. “Our focus on advanced tech equips us with additional insights that will help legal operations leaders navigate a rapidly evolving array of options.”

Legal engineering services provided by the Harbor Labs teams include business process automation, AI-assisted contracts intelligence, and advanced analytics that help corporate law departments reduce the “friction” of legal services. Harbor Labs also has an internal R&D focus for evaluating, testing, and piloting advanced technologies, and exploring new innovations that Harbor could commercialize in the future. A key focus area for the R&D team is the application of machine learning and natural language processing to enhance Harbor’s tech-enabled managed services delivery to law firms.

“Harbor Labs brings all of our teams focused on advanced technologies, practice optimization, and legal engineering and automation into a unified group,” said Lauren Chung. “Many of our clients are already realizing the benefits of tapping into the broader range of services we offer as Harbor. Formalizing the Labs organization allows us to hone our innovation efforts, so that we can all benefit from emerging trends and technologies in an efficient and impactful way.”

About Harbor

Harbor is the preeminent provider of expert services across strategy, legal technology, operations, and intelligence.

Our globally integrated team of 650+ strategists, technologists, and specialists navigates alongside our clients – leading law firms, corporations, and their law departments – to provide essential resources and invaluable insights.

Anchored in a rich heritage of deep knowledge, steadfast relationships, and mutual respect, our unwavering dedication lies in shaping the future of the legal industry, and fostering enduring partnerships within our community and ecosystem. www.harborglobal.com