Richard Susskind has long theorized about the potential for consumer oriented intelligent systems to package legal advice to meet a vast
latent market for legal services.
June 29, 2012, «More Disputes Are Being Resolved by Non-Lawyers: Tap into
Latent Markets with New Services and New Delivery»
«Richard Granat believes that attorneys who lag behind in using technology are denying themselves access to what he calls «a
large latent market» worth billions of dollars of middle - income clients who can't afford the high hourly rates of many law firms.
For example, Richard S. Granat previously suggested a «$ 45 billion
latent market for legal services.»
That latent market is evaluated at $ 45 billion in the U.S. alone.
What big data can tell [lawyers] about
the latent market and how to reach it.
A big challenge for solos and small law firms is to figure out how to serve
the latent market for legal services — the approximately 80 percent of US consumers who can't afford today's legal fees.
Figuring out ways to have more lawyers serve
this latent market at affordable prices has proved to be a challenge.
On the other end of the legal spectrum from Big Law, there is about a $ 40 billion
latent market for consumer legal services yet to be served by lawyers.
But I think that
this latent market for legal services presents huge opportunities for document automation.
The size of
this latent market is estimated at $ 45 billion giving a total market size of $ 88 billion.
There is no guarantee that specialization, or creating abundant legal counsel for
the latent market, will create more or better jobs for lawyers, but that was certainly the experience in the auto industry.
The presentation on
the latent market for legal services states this industry is worth upwards of $ 45 billion.
James Keane founded the ABA's eLawyering Task Force, which looks at ways lawyers can use the Internet and other electronic resources to deliver legal services to the «
latent market» of people of moderate means.
Yet, these tendencies have fueled an $ 88 billion
latent market of DIY legal services.
Some have estimated that almost 90 % of the people who need professional legal services do not get them and that the value of
the latent market for legal services world wide could be as high as $ 800 billion.
He believes the legal profession is out of touch with
the latent market.