The New Legal AI Career Path Is Being Built Right Now

Live from ILTACON | Sponsored by Steno What if the next path for a lawyer isn't the traditional path to partnership? Live from ILTACON, David Cowen sits down with Megan McMillin, Legal Innovation Partner at Harvey, to explore one of the most important shifts happening in legal: the emergence of an entirely new career ladder around Legal AI. From Forward Deployed Legal Engineers to Legal Innovation Partners, firms and technology companies are building roles that combine legal expertise, workflow knowledge, technology and client value. The challenge? There is no established playbook yet. In this episode: Why Forward Deployed Legal Engineers are becoming an important new role Why firms need internal experts working alongside vendor engineers The power of combining legal workflow expertise with technical expertise Why successful AI implementation requires understanding the "why," not just the tool What it really means to embed AI talent inside a law firm How Forward Deployed Engineers could progress from building to managing, leading and setting strategy Why Legal AI could create a second career path for lawyers Why firms need to stop treating these roles as "off track" What law schools and firms need to rethink about developing future lawyers Why intellectual curiosity may be one of lawyers' greatest advantages in the AI era Chapters 00:10 | From Cleary to Legal Innovation Partner at Harvey 01:23 | The Rise of the Forward Deployed Legal Engineer 02:10 | Why Firms Need Their Own Embedded AI Expertise 03:18 | Pairing Vendor Engineers With Firm Experts 03:46 | Understanding the Tool, the Workflow and the Why 04:17 | Moving From AI Use Cases to Client Value 05:15 | Why Legal AI Isn't "Choose Your Own Journey" 06:04 | What Embedded AI Talent Really Means 07:09 | Building With the Customer, Not Just for Them 08:21 | The Five-Year Career Path for Forward Deployed Engineers 09:20 | Could Legal AI Become a Second Path to Partnership? 10:16 | Why New Legal AI Roles Command New Compensation 10:46 | There Is No Clear Career Path Yet 11:51 | Stop Trying to Fit New Roles Into Old Structures 12:37 | What Law Schools Need to Rethink 13:41 | The Lawyer's Superpower in the AI Era 14:36 | Why Intellectual Curiosity Matters More Than Ever The Career Signal There is no clear path. It's white space. It's a green field. That's exactly what makes this moment so important. The Legal AI career ladder is being built in real time. You can enter as a builder. Then manage. Then lead. Then set strategy and vision. For lawyers who don't see themselves following the traditional route to partnership, these roles may represent something much bigger than an alternative career. They may be the beginning of an entirely new path. And as Megan puts it, when lawyers and engineers bring their respective expertise together: "The best is yet to come. And we're building it together." Follow SOLID for more conversations with the leaders shaping what comes next in legal: https://solid.legal/ 🎧 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Share this episode and take your career from now to next! Never eat alone!