Loading the player...
Information
CoNavigating the Future: How Copilot is Transforming Legal Practice from Ordinary to Extraordinary
Original Program Date :
Step into the cockpit of legal innovation with this dynamic CLE session featuring a power duo of legal tech pioneers! Join us as we take flight through the exciting world of Microsoft Copilot for legal professionals—where AI meets Esq. in ways you never imagined.
Our presenters— Lydia Petrakis, Assistant General Counsel, Digital Strategist at Microsoft, and Whitney Stefko, Director and Senior Counsel, Policy and Legal Operations at Ford Motor Company—will guide you through this transformative technology with real-world examples that go beyond the hype. You'll discover how attorneys are already using Copilot to draft and analyze documents, prepare for trial, and manage workflows more efficiently. We'll demystify Copilot Agents, those specialized AI assistants that can be customized for specific legal tasks, and provide practical guidance on implementing these tools in firms and legal departments of any size. Whether you're a tech enthusiast or still clinging to your legal pads, this session offers something for every Arizona attorney looking to navigate the evolving legal landscape with confidence. Fasten your seatbelts—this isn't just about understanding a new technology; it's about reimagining your practice for the AI era!
Speakers:
Lydia Petrakis, Assistant General Counsel, Digital Strategist, Microsoft
Whitney Stefko, Director and Senior Counsel, Policy & Legal Operations, Ford Motor Company
Whitney Stefko
With 15+ years of experience in the legal, operations and technology spaces, Whitney Stefko has been fortunate to work across a variety of entities with varying levels of maturity: startups, mid-size and large corporations and law firms. This maturity spectrum has required both ground-up people, process and technology analysis and development as well as innovation and optimization in already existing functions.
Whitney has worked with Ford’s Office of General Counsel since 2018, first as an outside consultant, then as seconded counsel, and now in her full-time role co-leading the Policy and Legal Operations function. This team supports people, process and technology across the legal, government affairs, policy, privacy, physical security, and environmental safety and compliance skill teams at Ford. Whitney, alongside the Ford Policy Operations Team, has garnered multiple awards for her groundbreaking work in legal operations and AI integration.
Prior to Ford, Whitney started her legal career as a civil defense trial attorney before she took a few years away from the law to co-found and operate an e-commerce technology company, a crypto currency hedge fund, and a legal operations and technology consulting firm. Whitney is also an Adjunct Law Professor at ASU School of Law, where she lectures on Artificial Intelligence, legal operations, data, technology, and the evolution of all in the legal industry.
Whitney has worked with Ford’s Office of General Counsel since 2018, first as an outside consultant, then as seconded counsel, and now in her full-time role co-leading the Policy and Legal Operations function. This team supports people, process and technology across the legal, government affairs, policy, privacy, physical security, and environmental safety and compliance skill teams at Ford. Whitney, alongside the Ford Policy Operations Team, has garnered multiple awards for her groundbreaking work in legal operations and AI integration.
Prior to Ford, Whitney started her legal career as a civil defense trial attorney before she took a few years away from the law to co-found and operate an e-commerce technology company, a crypto currency hedge fund, and a legal operations and technology consulting firm. Whitney is also an Adjunct Law Professor at ASU School of Law, where she lectures on Artificial Intelligence, legal operations, data, technology, and the evolution of all in the legal industry.
Lydia Petrakis
Lydia Petrakis is Assistant General Counsel and Digital Strategist in Microsoft’s Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA) department on the AI for CELA team. Her role involves driving industry-leading innovation to shape the future of Microsoft’s legal practice and helping lead the department’s initiative to harness the power of AI to enhance the efficiency, quality, impact, and scale of their work. Lydia’s key responsibilities include serving as strategist, driver, change agent, storyteller, and ambassador. She focuses on culture, processes, technology, and external engagement to advance the AI transformation journey and is a recipient of Corporate Counsel’s 2024 Women, Influence and Power in Law Award for Innovative Leadership.
Prior to this role, Lydia served as a product attorney supporting Microsoft’s business and engineering teams responsible for Office 365 products and services and data use initiatives focusing on navigating a wide variety of complex and developing legal and business issues including in the areas of product development, licensing, competitive intelligence, AI and machine learning, and privacy, regulatory, and compliance matters. Lydia is skilled at driving results while working on complex cross-cutting issues with diverse matrixed global internal and external stakeholders. She has years of experience cultivating trusted strategic advisor and partner relationships with clients and colleagues leading to improved legal, privacy, security, and business posture and enabling innovative solutions to complex problems. Prior to joining Microsoft, Lydia was legal counsel for a global business intelligence, mobile software, and cloud-based services company, MicroStrategy.
Prior to this role, Lydia served as a product attorney supporting Microsoft’s business and engineering teams responsible for Office 365 products and services and data use initiatives focusing on navigating a wide variety of complex and developing legal and business issues including in the areas of product development, licensing, competitive intelligence, AI and machine learning, and privacy, regulatory, and compliance matters. Lydia is skilled at driving results while working on complex cross-cutting issues with diverse matrixed global internal and external stakeholders. She has years of experience cultivating trusted strategic advisor and partner relationships with clients and colleagues leading to improved legal, privacy, security, and business posture and enabling innovative solutions to complex problems. Prior to joining Microsoft, Lydia was legal counsel for a global business intelligence, mobile software, and cloud-based services company, MicroStrategy.
