Walker Morris hires innovation lead

Walker Morris has appointed Laura Pilkington as its new Innovation Lead, marking a first for the firm. This follows the recent appointment of Chief Information Officer Julia Elliot, reinforcing the firm's commitment to investing in people, innovation, and processes to enhance client experience.

Laura brings a strong background in legal and technological innovation, having qualified as a lawyer in 2011. With over nine years of experience at Pinsent Masons in the employment sector, she later joined Addleshaw Goddard as an employment lawyer before transitioning into innovation as Senior Manager in the firm’s Innovation and Legal Technology team.

Discussing her new role, Laura said the opportunity to join Walker Morris as its first Innovation Lead was compelling and that she was attracted by the firm’s engaging and progressive ethos and its clear commitment to drive innovation. She added that she will be working closely with lawyer and business services teams to embed an innovative culture and that her role will involve facilitating and driving transformative ideas and developing customised solutions for clients with a specific focus on generative AI.

Jeanette Burgess, Managing Partner at Walker Morris, welcomed Laura’s appointment and said Laura brings a wealth of experience and a passion for improvement through innovation and that under her stewardship, the firm aims to improve client services, increase lawyers' engagement with project teams, and maximise the benefits of its AI offering. She added that the appointment complements that of the firm’s first Chief Information Officer late last year and that both Laura and Julia are advancing Walker Morris’ ambitious growth strategy. She concluded by expressing confidence that these goals will be achieved with great people in post.