KM Legal Research Lead

As a member of the KM and Innovation Department, the KM Legal Research Lead provides advanced, seasoned research and KM support, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) support, to attorneys, paralegals, business professionals, and clients. This position also includes direct SME support of legal research tools and resources, including best practices, cost-efficient research strategies, tool evaluation, and support for KM Innovation initiatives, including AI efforts. This position exercises professional judgment in evaluating research tools/resources, developing research procedures and guidelines, and serves as a SME on legal research processes, strategy, and tools on behalf of the Department, subject to the oversight of the Director of KM Legal Research. This position has no direct reports.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Research & KM Support

• Serves as subject matter expert in legal-related research for the KM Department, including performing complex research tasks; addressing attorney questions or requests; independently resolving significant research-related roadblocks referred by fellow analysts; and leading analyst training in conjunction with the KM Legal Research Manager.
• Assists attorneys, paralegals, business professionals, and clients by conducting timely, cost-effective research and locating needed materials in response to specific requests.
• Exercises legal research expertise and professional judgment to develop and recommend research templates and procedures/guidelines for legal-related research, in consultation with the KM Legal Research Manager, with authority to finalize such templates and procedures for department use.
• Assists with standard forms, current awareness, search, external resources/tools, and other KM tools and resources.
• Supports attorneys, paralegals, and business professionals in the use of AI tools, including developing and refining AI-enhanced workflows and identifying opportunities to integrate AI tools.
• Evaluates and analyzes KM and legal research tools under consideration for purchase and provides recommendations to the Director of KM Legal Research regarding tool selection and adoption.
• Monitors industry publications with regard to new and upcoming KM and legal research tools and best practices.
• Attends Department/Practice group meetings as needed.

Legal Research Tools & Resources Support

• Provides legal research support to attorneys, paralegals, and business professionals, including troubleshooting, guidance on effective use of legal research tools including AI features, and serving as a resource for legal research-related questions.
• Provides ongoing support to attorneys, paralegals, and business professionals adopting AI tools, including one-on-one consultations, answering questions, troubleshooting issues, and sharing emerging best practices for AI use in legal practice.
• Develops and maintains training materials for legal research resources, including user guides, practice-specific guides, and cost-effective best practices.
• Manages and curates the Research Center on the firm intranet, including organizing resources, updating links and content, and ensuring ease of navigation for users.
• Creates, updates, and maintains Practice Guides and videos for various legal practice areas, as well as tool-specific user guides and videos.
• Drafts internal announcements for new features in legal research platforms to ensure they are communicated to users.
• Monitors industry developments by tracking trends, emerging issues, regulatory changes, and best practices relevant to legal research, including reviewing legal publications, industry reports, and professional association updates.
• Maintains and regularly updates collection development matrices, including capturing nuance between legal research/AI tools and use cases, assessing the relevance and currency of existing materials, and aligning the matrices with evolving practice group needs.

ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS:

• Participates in special projects as assigned.
• Bills time for reference and research assistance in accordance with established methods and patterns.
• Substitutes for other staff members as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS (EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES):

Education:

• A Master of Library Science (MLS) and/or Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or equivalent work experience is required.

Experience:

• Four (4) to eight (8) years of research experience in the legal industry.
• Experience working in an Am Law 100 or Am Law 200 law firm preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:

• Expert-level proficiency with legal research best practices, strategies, and major legal research and legal AI platforms, including but not limited to Westlaw, Lexis+, and Bloomberg Law, as well as experience with AI platforms and features, including but not limited to Westlaw AI, Harvey, Copilot, and knowledge management systems and emerging legal technology tools
• Understands and documents nuance between tools, services, and offerings on the market and KM Innovation context.
• Strong critical thinking, problem-solving skills with data-driven decision-making and attention to detail.
• Comfort with shifting priorities, tight deadlines, and evolving client needs.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex findings to diverse audiences.
• Commitment to responsiveness, professionalism, and delivering high-quality work product. Working knowledge/understanding of how KM technology platforms can be utilized to enhance research offerings.
• Awareness and monitoring of legal industry trends in knowledge management and research services is highly valued.

WORK ENVIRONMENT & PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

This job operates in a clerical, office setting. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, and fax machines.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

Sedentary work: Exertion of physical strength to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects up to 10 pounds. Work involves sitting most of the time. Walking and standing is often necessary in carrying out job duties.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

The salary ranges for this position apply to the respective listed locations. The salary range reflects a variety of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions, including but not limited to experience, education, licensure and/or certifications, geographic location, market demands and other business and organizational needs. It is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for a position. Reasonable estimates of the current ranges for this position are:

• Atlantic City, Chicago, Minneapolis: $94,500 - $115,250
• Boston, Denver, Los Angeles, Morristown, Princeton, Seattle, Washington D.C.: $106,000 - $121,000

For information on Fox Rothschild's compensation and benefits visit: Compensation & Benefits (foxrothschild.com)

DISCLAIMER

Fox Rothschild LLP is under no obligation to provide sponsorship for this position. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis now and in the future.

The above is intended to describe the general content of and requirements for the performance of this job. It is not a contract or employment agreement and is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of all functions, responsibilities, or requirements the employee may be required to perform, and the employee may be required to perform additional duties. Additionally, management reserves the right to review and revise the job description at any time. Employment with the firm is at-will. Employees must be able to satisfactorily perform all the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodation. If an accommodation request would cause an undue hardship or a safety concern, the individual may not be eligible for the position.

Fox Rothschild LLP is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, breastfeeding, lactation, disability, or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local jurisdictions. Applicants who need any assistance applying for a position are encouraged to contact the Human Resources Department, hr@foxrothschild.com.