The Rise of the O-Shaped Lawyer: Rethinking What It Means to Work in Law

At LegalTechTalk, one conversation stood out for looking beyond tools, policy, or platforms—and focusing instead on people.

The session, “Meet the O-Listers: There’s No Business Like O-Business,” brought together a group of lawyers redefining what it means to build a career in law today. Among them was Shreya Vajpei, Chief Ecosystem Officer at ILTN and a 2024 O Shaped Listee, alongside Dan Kayne, Natasha

Doulia, George Grammer-Taylor, Leila El Gharbi, Lynette Smith, and Sarah Clark.

But this wasn’t a discussion about titles or trajectories. It was about transformation.

Moving Beyond the “T-Shaped” Model

For years, the legal profession has valued depth—expertise in a specific domain, reinforced through years of practice.

The idea of the O-shaped lawyer challenges that model.

It expands the definition of legal capability to include:

• Collaboration across disciplines

• Emotional intelligence and empathy

• Adaptability in tech-driven environments

• Curiosity beyond traditional legal boundaries

  
  

In a world where legal work increasingly intersects with technology, business, and data, this shift is not aspirational—it is necessary.

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What the Conversation Revealed

The panel didn’t offer a checklist for becoming an O-shaped lawyer. Instead, it surfaced lived experiences.

There were stories of:

• Navigating non-linear career paths

• Leading teams through change and uncertainty

• Learning to communicate across functions, not just within legal silos

• Letting go of the idea that expertise alone is enough

  
  

What emerged was a more human view of legal careers—one where growth is defined not just by knowledge, but by mindset.

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The Bigger Shift: How We Work, Not Just What We Know

If there was one underlying theme, it was this:

The future of law is not just about technical excellence—it is about how legal professionals engage with the world around them.

Clients expect more than legal answers.Teams are no longer purely legal.Problems are rarely confined to a single domain.

In that context, being a good lawyer is no longer sufficient. Being an effective collaborator, communicator, and thinker becomes equally important.

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Looking Ahead

The idea of the O-shaped lawyer is not a trend—it is a reflection of where the profession is heading.

As legal work becomes more interconnected, the ability to operate across boundaries will define not just individual careers, but the evolution of the industry itself.

Because in the end, the question is no longer: What do you know?

It is: How do you work?