Award shows, 'best of show' galas and fancy award ceremonies are dime a dozen ... especially the legal community has its fair share of 'attaboys' recognizing any legal-themed superlatives you can think of. And there's the Fastcase 50, an annual no-strings attached recognition of entrepreneurs, innovators, and trailblazers — people who have charted a new course for the delivery of legal services, and are paving the way for new legal disruption by providing a first look at what’s next for law and technology.
The 2015 Fastcase 50 recognizes 50 such innovators bringing the total of '50ers' to 250 since the inaugural award in 2011. Legal tech 'heavy' and Fastcase 50 brainchild (and CEO) Ed Walters points out how much collaboration there is among honorees. “There are only 250 people who we’ve recognized, but the world of legal tech is a small town, especially in a time of social networks and conferences. Many Fastcase 50 winners from 2011 are working with honorees from 2014 and 2015.”
The Fastcase 50 class of 2015 again showcases the brightest and most 'rogue' and disruptive of what our law firms, law schools, legal think tanks, courts, bar associations, government legal and legal technology companies have to offer. First off, JoAnna Forshee, my long time colleague and fearless leader of InsideLegal and Envision Agency, made the 2015 list for her 16+ years of service within the legal technology space. When she recognized a gap in information between legal technology providers and legal professionals over a decade ago, she created InsideLegal.com to serve as an online community and blog for legal pros about doing business in the legal technology marketplace. Also, JoAnna herself is no stranger to legal awards, having collaborated with legal legend Ross Kodner on the annual 'Dinner' a who's who of legal influencers for 7 years and co-producing the 'CityWealth 100' with editor Karen Jones in 2004.
And yes, there are 49 other just as deserving 2015 recipients representing law firms [11]; academia: universities, legal think tanks and incubators [8]; legal (technology) companies [16]; bar associations/state practice management advisors [9]; and government legal/judiciary [6]. 30% of this year's honorees are Founders and/or CEOs of their respective organizations.
InsideLegal congratulates all 2015 winners and is particularly proud and excited to share the stage with long time legal colleagues and influencers Laura Calloway, Director of the Practice Management Assistance Program at Alabama State Bar and Natalie Kelly, Director of the Law Practice Management Program, The State Bar of Georgia.
