Johannesburg 5 December 2024 - Premier African law firm Bowmans has announced a new partnership with generative AI platform Harvey, a tool designed specifically for the legal industry. Bowmans is the first African law firm to integrate Harvey into its operations, a move expected to set a new standard for law firm innovation on the continent.
Harvey offers a range of functionalities, including first-level contract analysis, legal research assistance, and due diligence and regulatory compliance checks. The platform has an intuitive interface and uses advanced AI algorithms to assist lawyers to efficiently and accurately review contracts, summarise and translate documents, and perform redline reviews.
Bowmans' decision to adopt Harvey is rooted in the firm’s commitment to innovation and the continuous improvement of its client-centric service offering.
Bowmans managing partner, Alan Keep, explains, ‘Bowmans is committed to embracing technology and growing in a sustainable way. Adding this software to our legal tech toolkit will allow us to test technological innovation in the African legal context. We believe that using the bespoke tool in our legal processes will assist us to further streamline our workflows and optimise the value that we can deliver to our clients.’
The implementation of Harvey follows other Bowmans initiatives to adopt innovative legal technology. As far back as 2018, Bowmans began utilizing Kira, an AI solution designed to improve efficiencies in certain key legal processes, primarily in the mergers and acquisitions, private equity and compliance areas.
‘Harvey seeks to work with innovative firms like Bowmans that share our commitment to driving change in the legal industry. We are excited to partner with Bowmans and bring Harvey to Africa,’ says Rob Saliterman, VP of Sales at Harvey.
Keep concludes, ‘Successful law firms of the future will be technology-driven, expertly balancing humanisation with digitisation, and Bowmans is committed to being at the forefront of this innovation.’
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Bowmans is widely regarded as the pre-eminent African law firm. With over 500 lawyers, the firm delivers integrated legal services to clients throughout Africa from nine offices in six countries. Bowmans has three offices in South Africa, two offices in Namibia, and one office each in Kenya, Mauritius, Tanzania and Zambia. Bowmans’ advice uniquely blends expertise in the law, knowledge of local markets and an understanding of clients’ businesses. Clients include corporates, multinationals, funds and financial institutions as well as state-owned enterprises and governments.
