As the legal industry evolves at a rapid pace, it’s more important than ever for lawyers to keep learning and growing.
Often, the best way to do that is at legal conferences—which give professionals an opportunity to network, discuss the latest advances, and take their careers and firms to the next level.
Yet, with so many legal conferences available, determining the best one to invest your time, money, and energy in can be overwhelming.
This guide will help you choose the best conferences for lawyers to attend. To start, we’ll offer our top three picks for legal conferences. We’ll also delve deeper into legal conferences by category, along with the value they bring.
The top legal tech conferences for 2024
Legal tech conferences are incredibly valuable for legal professionals. But with so many options, where do you even begin?
Below, we’ve rounded up our picks for the top three can’t-miss choices.
The top 3 legal tech conferences for 2024
- Clio Cloud Conference, October 7-8, 2024
Location: Austin, TX
Cost:
Team pass: $1599
Individual $1699
Credits: CLE eligible
As the world’s biggest legal conference, the annual Clio Cloud Conference brings together thousands of like-minded professionals for an experience that touches on all the best things that legal conferences can offer. It’s an exciting option for those looking into legal CLE conferences.
2024’s conference allows attendees to join the conference individually or as a team—in Austin. Stay tuned for more details and updates to come. Register early for discounted rates!
- ABA TECHSHOW, February 14-17, 2024
Location: Chicago, IL
Cost:
Members: $1,100
Non-members: $1,200
Credits: CLE eligible
The ABA TECHSHOW brings together legal professionals and technology to showcase the latest tools and strategies to help lawyers practice law more efficiently and effectively (fun fact: Clio debuted at the ABA TECHSHOW in 2008). The 2024 TECHSHOW is an engaging event for those looking into legal CLE conferences.
- Legalweek, January 29-February 1, 2024
Location: New York, NY
Cost:
Full conference passes: $1,995
Team passes: $800
Day passes: $1,150
Credits: CLE eligible
With a focus on driving the industry forward, Legalweek is an ideal conference for large firms. It has content targeted to a wide range of roles—including law firm CEOs and partners, legal technology leaders, legal operations professionals, in-house counsel, marketing professionals, and knowledge management leaders.
Why lawyers should attend legal conferences
The best legal conferences allow lawyers to immerse themselves in powerful training and educational opportunities in just a few days.
Notably, attending a legal conference is valuable for:
Continuing Legal Education (CLE) opportunities
Ongoing lawyer training is key to staying competitive, but you also need to earn CLE credits. By attending legal conferences that offer CLE credits, you can work towards meeting CLE requirements while learning from the conference and upgrading your skills.
Networking and building professional relationships
Establishing good relationships with other legal practitioners is important to furthering any lawyer’s professional career. Legal conferences bring together like-minded professionals and are one of the best, most natural places for attorney networking.
Marketing and promotion
Effective law firm marketing is essential for success, and legal conferences are excellent sources for learning the latest strategies for promoting your practice. Legal conferences are also great for connecting with vendors, other attorneys, and potential clients.
Who should attend a legal conference
It’s simple: Any legal professional who works at a law firm can benefit from attending a legal conference. Here’s why:
Lawyers
All lawyers will benefit from networking, marketing, and gaining insights on the latest trends in the legal industry. However, partners and law firm decision-makers may find added value in attending legal conferences that highlight legal technology and innovation. Firm leaders who stay ahead of the curve with useful tools are better equipped to help drive innovation and growth at their firms.
Paralegals
While paralegals are not lawyers, they take on substantive legal work on behalf of lawyers. It is just as important for paralegals to stay updated on the latest trends and opportunities in the legal industry. Moreover, paralegals can use the knowledge gained from legal conferences to drive change and innovation at law firms.
Law firm administrators
Part of a law firm administrator’s responsibilities involves managing workflows, processes, and implementing new technology. Therefore, they need to stay up to date on the latest in law firm productivity and tech. Attending a legal conference is a useful way for law firm admins to discover new ways to increase efficiency and productivity.
Make time for legal conferences in 2024
No matter what point you’re at in your legal career, there’s always room to grow. The best legal conferences for lawyers are an efficient and effective way to invest in your career, your law firm’s future, and yourself.
It’s easy to get caught up with the day-to-day of your legal work. But taking the time to attend legal conferences is valuable for your work as a lawyer.
Whether you choose to attend one of many legal CLE conferences or an event focused on legal technology or your practice area, it’s important to be prepared. You can get ready for the legal conference experience by reviewing the agenda, setting some goals, and bringing an open mind.
Not sure where to start? Consult Clio’s 2023 Legal Trends Report, which provides crucial information about the state of the legal industry. Understanding where the legal profession is going will help you set goals and stay on track—now and into the future.
