Bringing ‘been there, built that’ to legal tech.
I am Mike Kennedy, and I have spent over a decade putting technology into legal work at a top 20 UK law firm.
From early days as a paralegal and trainee, I saw how much of the work technology could do better, and set about proving it in live matters. That work allowed me to carry out one of the first innovation-focused training contracts - I qualified as a solicitor while we grew the innovation function, and ended up heading research and development inside one of the best innovation teams in the market.
My experience spans everything that the legal technology market has to offer, with in-depth, hands-on experience across large-scale diligence, eDiscovery, product development, AI development and evaluations, detailed research into LLMs, vibe coding, AI governance, procurement and IT engagement, and much more. Along the way I got hands-on with hundreds of legal technology tools and sat through more vendor demos than potentially anyone else.
Vesta is the independent version of that job. I work with law firms, in-house legal teams, ALSPs, legal technology vendors and AI-native businesses on strategy, tool selection, implementation, training and governance - and if required, I can also build. If the answer to your problem is a working prototype, then you get the prototype.
The past couple of years have shown that GenAI has caused a real spark across the legal space. My belief is that you need genuine and intentional work to turn that spark into a resilient fire that burns across your organisation. There is still a huge gap between the promise of AI and the delivery, and my vision is to close that gap.
Been there. Built that.
Firmwide AI rollout
Delivered the rollout of GenAI at a top 20 UK firm - developing and launching an internally built firmwide AI assistant, and bringing in AI solutions through a buy-and-build hybrid strategy.
Due diligence
Direct delivery of large-scale AI due diligence projects from 2016 onwards, and worked closely with lawyers to re-design the M&A process.
R&D and procurement
Led tool assessment and procurement for an award-winning innovation team - hundreds of vendor evaluations and pilots.
AI governance
Supported the firm governance strategy from the start of the GenAI wave: policy, approval frameworks and safe self-service that held up in practice.
Research
In-depth studies and benchmarking on LLM performance in legal due diligence.
Hands-on builder
Prototypes, agent workflows and evaluation harnesses - can deploy working solutions, not just recommendations.
Vendor support
Engaged with legal tech vendors on roadmap, security considerations, advice on next steps and detailed product recommendations.
How I work
Independence is the product
No vendor partnerships, no referral fees, no platform to sell. When I recommend a tool, the key factor is whether it works for you.
Hands-on experience counts
I build prototypes, write prompts, design workflows and run training rooms. I believe that advice from people who can (and do) the job themselves delivers better results.
Realistic beats impressive
I would rather tell you what AI cannot do for you yet than sell you a vision that is unattainable. Setting honest expectations is important.
Culture over technology
The blocker to AI adoption is almost never the technology but rather wider people, culture and process change - focus on those, with technology as a lever.