RALEIGH — LexisNexis is accepting applications for the fifth cohort of its Legal Tech Accelerator designed to give start-ups a leg-up in the legal tech industry.

Based at the Raleigh Technology Center for LexisNexis on the Centennial Campus of North Carolina, the Accelerator will run September through November 2020 — and for the first time, it will be a fully virtual experience due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It will again be led by Owen Byrd, Lex Machina, chief evangelist and general counsel and Jeff Pfeifer, LexisNexis North America chief product officer. Josh Becker, Lex Machina Chairman and other LexisNexis leaders will actively participate in learning sessions throughout the virtual program.

“After four successful programs with 26 startup participants, we will be executing in a new format this year,” said Jeff Pfeifer, in a statement. “While fully virtual, we will deliver an exciting curriculum for this cohort.  Participants have commented on the value each company receives in the program sessions and from the networking with other legal tech startups.  Each year, we are increasingly impressed by the depth and quality of applicants to our program.”

“Joining the LexisNexis Legal Tech Accelerator was powerful – it changed our trajectory,” said Sonja Ebron, CEO and Co-founder Courtroom5. “As part of the 2019 cohort, we deepened our knowledge of legal tech marketing, product development and business operations. Frequent networking opportunities helped us connect with potential mentors and investors. Most importantly, we formed valuable friendships with other founders building innovative legal tech startups.”

As part of the planned three-month program, Accelerator companies will participate in a rigorous curriculum designed especially for early-stage companies in the legal market:

  • Mentorship: Weekly sessions with LexisNexis executives on growing legal tech companies, and ad hoc discussions with other LexisNexis executives about technology, user experience & design, product development, product marketing and other topics
  • Education: One-hour strategy sessions on a variety of topics, including marketing and selling to legal departments; running an agile product development organization; leveraging legal data; best practices in customer service, employee management, marketing and funding
  • Connections: Leverage relationships with Stanford and other Bay-Area schools, businesses, VCs and other influencers

“Lex Machina successfully traveled the legal tech startup journey, from public interest project at Stanford Law School, to venture-backed Silicon Valley company, to acquisition by LexisNexis and leadership of the legal analytics market” noted Owen Byrd. “The Accelerator program directly draws from our experience with product development, fundraising, early sales and marketing, and all the other challenges of launching a company in the legal tech market.”

Launch of the LexisNexis Legal Tech Accelerator complements an ongoing partnership with the Duke Law Tech Lab. LexisNexis and the Duke Center on Law & Tech have collaborated over the past year to develop complementary programs that catalyze new legal tech companies and enhance access to legal services.  Several companies have now participated in both programs and we are excited to share content and speakers that are beneficial to each group’s participants.

For more information, or to apply to the LexisNexis Legal Tech Accelerator program, interested parties can find more here.  The deadline for applications is August 14, 2020.

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