Innovation Solutions Engineer

Chapman and Cutler LLP is seeking to hire an Innovation Solutions Engineer to join the Practice Innovations Department. The Innovation Solutions Engineer advances how the Firm's attorneys deliver competitive client services through AI, automation, and other emerging technologies. The role's primary responsibility is serving as a subject-matter lead for generative AI and Practice Innovations tools, including developing and executing the Firm's adoption strategy, with an initial emphasis on Harvey and the Firm's proprietary legal AI platforms. The role also designs and leads the Firm's workflow and document automation efforts, determining where and how automation can improve drafting quality, consistency, and efficiency across practice groups. As a subject-matter expert and advisor to attorneys and Firm leadership, the Engineer partners with Practice Innovations, Information Services, and Firm attorneys to advance and help shape the Firm's "working smarter" strategic initiative. The role operates under the general direction of the Innovation Solutions Manager, and has the ability to set priorities, define project approaches, and make recommendations. The position requires an in-office presence but includes flexibility for some remote work.

The responsibilities of the Innovation Solutions Engineer include:

• Serve as a subject-matter lead for generative AI and Practice Innovations tools, with responsibility for developing and executing the Firm's adoption strategy for Harvey and proprietary legal AI platforms.
• Evaluate, design, and recommend technology solutions that shape how attorneys and legal professionals deliver legal services, and advise attorneys, practice group leaders, and Firm management on the appropriate use of these tools.
• Analyze attorney and practice-group requirements to determine functional specifications, and independently design, configure, and test AI workflows and solutions within AI platforms, selecting approaches, prompt structures, data sources, and quality controls based on the nature of the legal work and the Firm's risk tolerance.
• Consult with attorneys and practice group leaders to analyze existing processes, identify and prioritize high-value opportunities for AI assistance or automation, and recommend whether and how Firm technology should be applied, including when a tool is not appropriate for a given task due to accuracy, confidentiality, or ethical considerations.
• Evaluate proposed legal technology pilots; develop business cases; define scope, timelines, participant criteria, and success metrics; lead pilot execution; and make recommendations to Practice Innovations leadership regarding broader rollout, modification, or discontinuation.
• Design, build, test, and deploy document drafting and automation tools, including determining template logic, conditional rules, and data structures based on attorney requirements, and assessing when automations are ready for production use.
• Develop the Firm's training strategy and curriculum for AI tools, determining content, format, and audience based on adoption data and the needs of practice groups and operational departments; author guidance, best-practice materials, and communications that interpret tool capabilities and Firm policies for relevant audiences.
• Provide expert consultation to attorneys, individually and in groups, on applying AI tools to substantive legal tasks, including advising on workflow design, output verification, and appropriate use.
• Stay current on tool roadmaps; test new features of vendor-developed and internally developed tools against Firm needs; provide feedback to better align them with Firm requirements; and recommend to Practice Innovations leadership whether new features or tools should be launched, deferred, or restricted, considering accuracy, security, workflow impact, and alignment with Firm priorities.
• Contribute to planning Practice Innovations' short- and long-term objectives, including identifying emerging technologies and recommending investment priorities.
• Represent the Firm in meetings with technology vendors; assess and prioritize feature requests, defects, and enhancements based on Firm impact; advocate for Firm requirements in vendor product roadmaps; and escalate issues and drive them to resolution.
• Analyze program adoption, usage, timesavings, and impact data to evaluate program effectiveness and return on investment; draw conclusions and make recommendations regarding resource allocation, training priorities, and tool strategy; and present findings to Practice Innovations leadership.
• Model and promote responsible use of AI across the Firm, including advising on output verification, confidentiality safeguards, and adherence to Firm AI policies.
• Lead and contribute to other Practice Innovations initiatives consistent with the responsibilities above.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

The ideal candidate will have a Bachelor's degree (a law degree is highly preferred) or extensive experience working in a law firm or legal department, along with four to six years of relevant experience in technology, innovation, knowledge management, legal operations, or a related technology or consulting role, preferably in a legal solutions or law firm environment.

• Interest in how AI and emerging technologies can improve legal practice for practitioners and their clients
• Hands-on experience using and configuring generative AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot) in a professional setting, including designing prompts, workflows, or custom solutions
• Strong working knowledge of legal-specific AI platforms such as Harvey, Legora, CoCounsel, or comparable tools (strongly preferred)
• Proficiency with agentic AI systems and multi-step AI workflows, including how AI agents plan tasks, use tools, and act on documents and data with varying degrees of autonomy; experience designing, configuring, or evaluating agent-based solutions, including defining appropriate human-review checkpoints and guardrails for legal work, is strongly preferred
• Demonstrated experience designing and building document assembly solutions (e.g., Contract Express, Gavel, PatternBuilder) or no-code/low-code applications (e.g., Neota Logic, Bryter, Autologyx, Power Automate), including requirement gathering and testing
• Strong project management skills, with the ability to plan, prioritize, and independently manage multiple concurrent initiatives and work effectively amid ambiguity in a fast-changing environment
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for relevant audiences and present clearly to stakeholders at all levels
• Strong consultative and relationship-building skills, with the ability to earn the trust of attorneys and practice group leaders and influence how they adopt new technologies and ways of working
• Strong analytical skills and attention to detail, with a commitment to quality and continuous improvement
• Flexibility to accommodate project deadlines, launches, and attorney needs, including occasional work outside regular business hours
• Committed to continuous learning and flexibility to adapt as tools, priorities, and Firm needs evolve
• Committed to following all Firm security protocols and maintaining information security

In accordance with the Illinois Pay Transparency Law, the expected salary range for this Illinois position is $110,000-$165,000. The benefits overview for this position is available for review at the below link.

Benefits Overview

Please submit a cover letter and resume. All applicants will be considered; however, the hiring decision will be made based on qualifications for the position.

Chapman and Cutler LLP is an Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V/SO.