Inside Clio's AI-Driven Transformation: CPO John Foreman and CTO Jonathan Watson
Release Date: 12/10/2025
Law Democratized: Renee Knake Jefferson on Her Blueprint for Solving the Justice Crisis
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Martin Luther King famously said, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." My guest today quoted his words in her 2024 book, . But now, two years after that book's publication — at a moment when many see the rule of law under strain and speak openly of democratic backsliding — it is fair to ask: Are we still arcing toward justice? That is the question LawNext host Bob Ambrogi put to at the start of today’s conversation. Jefferson is a professor of law and the Joanne and Larry Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics at the University of Houston Law Center, and her work...
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Once upon a time, a legal tech vendor’s goal in getting seen by potential customers was to rank on the first page of Google search. But in the age of AI, that is no longer enough. Now, when a potential buyer asks ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini to recommend a vendor, what matters is whether the company shows up in the answer the AI generates. And that, increasingly, depends on who is quoting you, citing you, and treating you as the authority in your category. On this episode of LawNext, host Bob Ambrogi talks with two legal marketing and communications leaders who are seeking to help their...
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How AI Is Transforming the Way Law Firms Win Business, with Ikaun President Jason Noble
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We don’t usually say this, but for today's LawNext, you’re going to want to watch the video version, if you can. The audio will be good, but the video will be great. You can find it . Why? Because we’re going to be talking today about vibe coding, and you're going to want to see what our guests are showing today, not just hear them tell about it. Those guests are and . By day, Damien works on AI products at Clio and Mike is CEO of 273 Ventures, a company that provides AI strategy and services for law firms and legal professionals. But outside their day jobs, they are also founders...
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Learned Hand’s Shlomo Klapper on Why Courts Are the Next Frontier for Legal AI
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Are courts the next frontier for legal AI? , founder and CEO of the AI-driven judicial case-preparation platofrm , believes they are. A former litigator at Quinn Emanuel and law clerk for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Klapper is building what he calls a "reasoning engine" for judges — AI tools designed to help them manage crushing caseloads by organizing case materials, flagging when lawyers bend the truth, and drafting bench memos and orders. LawNext host Bob Ambrogi interviews Klapper on the heels of significant news: Learned Hand just announced a partnership with the Superior...
info_outlineFor legal technology company Clio, this was a particularly significant year, marked by major announcements – including its $1 billion acquisition of vLex – that many saw as transformative for the company. This was on full display at the company’s ClioCon conference in October, where CEO Jack Newton gave a keynote laying out the company’s vision for a new era of AI-driven legal work in which Clio becomes an “intelligent legal work platform” that serves not as a system of record, but as a system of action, powering lawyers through their workdays by automating much of what they do.
In today's episode, recorded live at ClioCon, host Bob Ambrogi sits down with the two key executives leading Clio's product and technology vision: John Foreman, who joined as chief product officer in May, bringing experience from major SaaS companies including MailChimp and Podium, and Jonathan Watson, the chief technology officer who's been with Clio for eight years.
They explore the company's ambitious vision to develop AI and expand into larger law firms, discuss how vertical software creates advantages for AI implementation, and explain why understanding the complete client journey enables more powerful automation. Foreman and Watson share insights on moving beyond simple chatbots to AI that can actually take action, the challenges and opportunities of expanding into the enterprise market, and what's next as they work to "finish drawing the owl.”
“We've started to draw the owl for folks,” Foreman says, “and we're going to finish drawing the owl, and it's going to be a beautiful owl.”
Note: As of this recording, Clio had not yet closed its acquisition of vLex. The deal did finally close on Nov. 10.
Thank You To Our Sponsors
This episode of LawNext is generously made possible by our sponsors. We appreciate their support and hope you will check them out.
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Paradigm, home to the practice management platforms PracticePanther, Bill4Time, MerusCase and LollyLaw; the e-payments platform Headnote; and the legal accounting software TrustBooks.
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Briefpoint, eliminating routine discovery response and request drafting tasks so you can focus on drafting what matters (or just make it home for dinner).
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Eve, taking care of the tasks that slow you down so you can operate at your highest potential
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