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ILTACON 2025 is officially in the books, and it was a whirlwind of keynotes, pirates, and more hallway conversations than anyone's social battery could handle. The energy was electric: a mix of curiosity, skepticism, and genuine excitement about how legal work is changing in real time. The conversation was no longer about what was coming, but what had finally arrived.
If you were wondering how long you could get through this blog without hearing the term “AI,” one paragraph is all you get. Because the buzz this year was all about agentic AI. The conversations about generative AI we were having at last year’s ILTACON (“will we use it?”) shifted into something far more urgent: How are we using it, and how do we use it responsibly?
From Microsoft to Thomson Reuters, from BigLaw CIOs to organizational psychologists, everyone was grappling with the same questions: What does AI mean for client value, talent, data, and the very identity of a law firm?
In this blog, I’ll share:
- Hard-won lessons from ILTA’s Influential Women in Legal Tech
- Why the best tech for your case might not be the shiny new thing
- How a pink Cadillac reminded us what’s truly important
- What’s at the heart of generational battles in the workplace
DISCO session highlights: Key insights from our experts
One of the privileges of attending my first ILTACON was seeing DISCO step into the spotlight, with two sessions full of lively discussion and honest questions. Here’s what stood out to me.
The Good, The Hard, and The Hindsight: Lessons from ILTA’s 2025 Influential Women in Legal Tech
“The confidence I found to stand up for myself came from practice. I just did the things over and over again. I'm comfortable speaking on stage now, not because I was born that way, but because I've spent years doing it, even when I was nervous. The more you do anything, the easier it gets.” – Nikki Shaver, CEO and Co-Founder, Legaltech Hub
Brief summary
This year, DISCO’s own Katie DeBord was honored with the ILTA Influential Women in Legal Tech Award. She used the opportunity to bring together the rest of the honorees, including powerhouse leaders Gina Buser (Traveling Coaches), Priya Lele (She Breaks the Law), Michelle Mahoney (King & Wood Mellsons), and Nicola Shaver (Legaltech Hub). It was a candid, funny, and deeply human conversation about what it takes to lead in an industry moving faster than ever.
Main problem or challenge addressed
How do you build a career—and stay authentic – when the ground is constantly shifting beneath you? For women in particular, the legal tech space has been both full of opportunities and fraught with biases. One of our panelists, Priya Lele, addresses this in her report No Woman Left Behind, covering the gender gap in AI adoption.
Key solutions and actionable takeaways
- Careers aren’t linear: Each panelist described twists and turns in their careers, from HR to IT, from ediscovery to innovation, from stable firm roles to launching companies. The message: Don’t fear detours. They often become the most valuable parts of your story.
- Authenticity is strength: The panelists underscored that leadership isn’t about mimicking others; it’s about leaning into your own strengths and voice. Gina Buser reminded us that, anytime you’re hesitating over speaking up due to potential discomfort, the discomfort typically lasts no more than 8 seconds. We might spend 8 months thinking about it, but the actual feeling of discomfort in the room will pass, so why not take the leap?
- Change management is human management: New technology rollouts succeed or fail not on features, but on communication, reinforcement, and empathy.
- Find your tribe: Mentors, peers, and allies matter. Every leader on stage credited others who pushed, supported, or believed in them at pivotal moments.
Why this conversation matters
This panel wasn’t just inspirational; it was strategic. As legal tech accelerates, we need leaders who can navigate ambiguity, call out bias, and bring their whole selves to the table. As a young female professional, seeing our moderator Kristin Zmrhal on stage alongside such female trailblazers was a reminder that DISCO has a seat at the table, shaping the future of not just technology, but of culture.
Scope it Out: A Survival Guide to Choosing the Right Tech for Modern Review
“In the industry we have a tendency to say that because GenAI is the latest technology it must be the best. But that’s not always the case, each tool has its different purposes and advantages for different reviews.” – James Park, Director of AI Consulting, DISCO
Brief summary
Imagine this: You’re handed 150,000 documents and told you have two weeks to review and produce. What do you do? This session tackled that real-world challenge, moderated by DISCO’s Kristin Zmrhal and James Park, with insights from Manatt, Phelps & Phillips’ Ramu Anne. The session walked through a practical framework for choosing the right review methodology, from linear review to TAR to GenAI.
Main problem or challenge addressed
There’s a dangerous assumption floating around: That GenAI is automatically the best tool for every review, just because it’s the latest tool. The panel unpacked the errors in that mindset, highlighting that your only options aren’t to use GenAI or not, but to pick the right tool for your case, client, and context.
Key solutions and actionable takeaways
- Define your why and what: Before picking a tool, scope the matter: data types, languages, deadlines, ESI protocols, and opposing counsel dynamics all matter.
- Know your options:
- Prioritized linear review: simple and defensible, but labor-intensive
- TAR 1.0: saves time and cost, but dependent on curated seed sets
- TAR 2.0: adaptive and efficient, but requires skillful management
- GenAI: provides speed and automation, but not always cost-effective
- Mantra of the session: “The right tool for the right case.” Spending $100k on review tech for a $1k case isn’t smart, no matter how shiny the tech.
- Don’t forget your people: Even the best tools fail without champions who understand how to leverage them.
Why this conversation matters
This was a reality check session. In the rush to ride the GenAI wave, it was refreshing to hear leaders say “Slow down. Be strategic.” For DISCO, it validated our philosophy that innovation isn’t about chasing hype: It’s about delivering defensible, client-aligned results. The lawyers who partner thoughtfully to master scoping and tool selection won’t just save money; they’ll build trust and credibility with clients in ways that truly differentiate them.
Other standout sessions
What made ILTACON special was the collective wisdom of the legal tech community. I spent 1,110 minutes at 17 different sessions and took 46 pages of notes! These sessions stood out to me:
Ryan Campbell’s Keynote: What’s Your Pink Cadillac?
I wasn’t sure what to expect from a keynote with this title. Was this going to be one big Cadillac ad? A plug for more pink cars? But Ryan Campbell’s session was a masterclass in emotional storytelling.
He used his incredibly life story—from a world record-breaking trip to a devastating plane crash—to deliver a message that, for a change, had nothing to do with AI. It was about mental health and resilience, the title coming from a toy pink Cadillac he bought that reminded him of a childhood dream to own a real one, and eventually the real pink Cadillac he bought became a catalyst for change during a period of deep anxiety and burnout.
The session stood out for its sincerity and unique message in a tech-heavy environment. The main point was that to combat the overwhelming negativity in our lives, we need to balance out the good stuff and the bad stuff. Not by removing the latter – there’s always going to be bad in our lives – but by piling on more good. His call to action, “to do an audit on the most important commodity we have [time]” was a powerful and personal challenge to take a look at how we spend our time. The keynote started off the week with a reminder that the technology we build should ultimately help people achieve a better quality of life. And it was a great reminder to rest and prioritize joy ahead of a hectic week!
Resistance to Change: Change Management for the Corner Office
This session with Julia Montgomery and Dr. Larry Richard was easily one of the most eye-opening of the entire conference. As a psychology major, I may be biased, but I'm also trained to recognize cognitive biases, which is why I can confidently say that this session was, objectively, amazing. The session stood out because it didn't just tell us change is hard: It gave us the why.
Dr. Richard, a behavioral psychologist, explained that constant change triggers our brain's threat circuit, leading to "socially induced cognitive impairment." To put it in business terms: a law firm’s best assets are their lawyers’ cognitive strengths, ability to advise clients, emotional intelligence, etc. When everyone is exhausted by the relentless pace of disruption, not only do we suffer on an individual level, but law firms suffer at a business level as their lawyers' cognitive impairment is eroded.
The main revelation was also that we're dealing with "steady-state change," not brief, episodic moments of change, which is what our brains were designed to handle. This means our old change management tactics are outdated. My favorite takeaway was the discussion of indirect influence — strategies like social proof and reciprocity — that work with a lawyer's psychology rather than against it. It was a profound session that reframed a common business problem into a human one, and it left me with a new sense of empathy for the attorneys we’re proud to serve.
From Boomers to Zoomers: Demographic Challenges in Knowledge, Legal Tech, Risk and Records Management
In an event so focused on the technology itself, this session was a necessary and welcome reminder of the human element behind all the data and code. Lawyer and stand-up comedian Eugene Cipparone dove into a topic that many of us whisper about but rarely discuss openly: the clash of the four generations now coexisting in the workplace.
We’ve all heard and leaned into generational stereotypes, but the best part of this session was Eugene’s ability to roast each age group for their qualities while also pointing to historical and societal circumstances that made us this way. For example: There is a notion that millenials are more optimistic and positive while GenZ is pessimistic and doom and gloom. Whether or not you believe this is true, Eugene gave a great example of a piece of pop culture that demonstrates this. For millennials, the middle grade book series that defined their generation was “Harry Potter,” a series about magic and friendship and good beating evil. GenZ’s age-defining book? The Hunger Games.
The main revelation about this session was that the “War for Talent” is not just a buzzword; it’s an active battle for the hearts and minds of the next generation of legal professionals. The panel highlighted how each generation approaches work and technology differently. For example, the speakers noted that Gen Z, or "Zoomers," want everything at once, from instant answers to seamless workflows, much like they get from tools like ChatGPT. This was an "aha!" moment for me, a proud Zoomer. It provided a clear, generational reason why tech adoption has accelerated so quickly: the future of the workforce simply expects these tools to exist. This conversation put a human face on our adoption challenges, reminding us that success isn't just about rolling out a new product, but about understanding the very different expectations and needs of our colleagues, from a seasoned Boomer to a fresh-faced Zoomer.
The big question everyone’s still asking
As I look at my notes, one theme keeps surfacing again and again, across sessions, networking events and casual conversations.
How do we reconcile the pursuit of efficiency with the value of human expertise?
This is the central tension that emerged from every corner of the conference, and will define conversations in 2026 because the easy answer — that AI is just a tool — is no longer enough. The industry is moving toward a world of "agentic" AI, where systems can act on their own, and the line between human and machine is getting blurrier. In 2026, we will need to decide not just whether or not the human must remain in the loop, but where the human must always remain in the loop, and what new roles will be created to bridge the gap.
The tools are ready, but are we—as humans, as organizations, as an industry – ready to adapt without burning out?
What now? Applying ILTACON’s lessons.
Looking back, ILTACON 2025 showed us a clear shift in the industry's tone. The conversations were more practical, the questions were more pointed, and the focus was on the human element more than ever before. We saw that our customers are ready to move past the hype, but they are also dealing with very real challenges of a workforce that is exhausted by constant change.
Here are the key takeaways I’m taking back to my team:
- Adoption is people-first: We can’t just drop new tools and expect lawyers to use them. We need change champions, storytelling, and empathy.
- Pick the right tool for the right case: GenAI is not a silver bullet, but when it’s the right fit, it’s transformative.
- Resilience matters: Finding our own “Pink Cadillac” isn’t easy, but it’s also not something that can be ignored. Prioritizing joy is the only way we can sustain this pace of change.
And as we move into 2026, here are the key trends and strategic shifts I’m watching:
- How agentic AI moves from exhibit hall demos into day-to-day workflows
- Whether firms embrace value-based pricing at scale (I know, we made it almost this entire blog without talking about the billable hour. So close)
- If change management becomes a true strategic function in law firms, not just a line item for IT
Conclusion
ILTACON 2025 left me equal parts energized and humbled. The future of legal work is being rewritten in real time, and none of us has all the answers. We do have an unprecedented opportunity: to combine human expertise, resilient mindsets, and cutting-edge tools into something better than what came before.
At DISCO, we’re all about exploring that balance to help the industry find practical, human-centered ways to harness technology.
To dive deeper into the insights from ILTACON and discuss how these innovations can be a part of your firm's strategy, I encourage you to check out our post-ILTA webinar or reach out to us directly.
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