2021 has been a chaotic year for many of us, to say the least.

The world continued to battle the continuously raging COVID-19 pandemic, causing ripple effects that affected almost every facet of our shared personal and professional lives.

Against this backdrop of professional disruption and personal upheaval, it may seem churlish to share the resoundingly positive story of Johnson Hana’s growth over the year. But transparency is one of our core values and we, as a company, felt that we shouldn’t shy away from our successes.

(Although, as a heads up, if you don’t want to read about how good a year we’ve had, stop now.)

Building on good foundations

Firstly, it’s important to highlight that the successes of 2021 were not achieved in isolation. They were the result of, and built upon, much hard work in recent years.

The end of 2020 saw Johnson Hana raise €3.5 million to bolster our expansion plans, and those funds have been put to good use, fuelling a rapid yet scalable increase in our client base.

Even though that was only a year ago, the landscape has changed dramatically since, as Alternative Legal Solutions Providers (ALSPs) have become more widely accepted in Ireland, and internationally have become almost universally adopted.

Key hires strengthen the Johnson Hana team

2020 also saw Johnson Hana greatly expand our head office team, enabling us to offer a greater range of services to our quickly growing client base.

That expansion has continued further in 2021 with several prominent and high-profile subject matter experts joining Johnson Hana in both core team roles and in advisory capacities.

These included a mix of rising stars and established talent in legal solutions and delivery, project management, and sales and marketing.

Jason Nagle

Jason Nagle joined Johnson Hana at the end of 2020 as a Strategic Advisor. As a senior technology leader, Jason had worked as Google’s former Global Head of Procurement, and is currently working in Google’s Global HQ as Director of Buying Systems & Operations alongside his advisory duties to Johnson Hana.

Alan Dalton

Alan Dalton joined Johnson Hana in April 2021 as Commercial Director. In his role, Alan has been working to deliver cost effective legal solutions to clients from a range of industries, but with a particular focus on the banking, property and financial services sectors.

Sinead Garnett

Sinead Garnett joined Johnson Hana in May 2021 as Director of Legal Operations and Solutions. Sinead’s appointment has been a major boost for Johnson Hana’s clients, who have been able to utilise her wealth of experience. Prior to joining Johnson Hana, Sinead worked in private practice for a decade with Maples before moving into the legal technology sector.

Barry Quinn

Barry Quinn joined Johnson Hana in August 2021 as senior advisor. As a former executive at Axiom (a U.K. based ALSP) Barry has brought with him a range of insights and experience that supports our international expansion.

And others across the business

Johnson Hana made several other key hires over the course of 2021, to strengthen areas across the business.

These included a mix of rising stars and established talent in legal solutions and delivery, project management, and sales and marketing.

The team is set to continue its growth in 2022 as we have made, and are in the process of making, a number of further hires across the business.

Johnson Hana broadens our service lines

As our team expanded over 2021, so did the services we offer to clients.

Most notably, our regulatory compliance service expanded considerably. This isn’t necessarily surprising – speak to any general counsel and you will soon hear of the trials and tribulations of a constantly evolving regulatory environment.

The pandemic spurred increasing globalisation of many businesses, and operating in multiple jurisdictions and markets can lead to difficulties in keeping up with complex regulatory requirements.

Therefore our solutions, which comprise automated contract review and analysis, production of amended and new contracts, negotiation with counterparties (subject to agreed playbooks and defined approval workflows), legal project management, and subject matter expertise, have offered welcome reprieve to our increasing client base.

Expanding the range of sectors we serve

As we expanded our client base over the course of 2021, the range of industries our clients are from increased correspondingly, as can be seen below.

Client industry breakdown 2020 v 2021

2020
2021

This broadening of our client base has been a direct result of a both the quality of work we have delivered to date, and the expertise in our expanding team, as well as increasing adoption of ALSPs both in Ireland and across the globe.

Appointed to several key public sector frameworks and contracts

As is a matter of public record, 2021 saw Johnson Hana appointed to several multi-year government frameworks and contracts, including RTÉErvia, and Coillte.

While the proportion of our public sector client revenue has stayed broadly in line with our 2020 figures, the quantum of billings has increased considerably. And we believe this is testament to the quality and scope of work we have delivered for our public sector clients, and the reduction we have helped them achieve in their legal costs.

“We are delighted with the progress made to date and can rest assured that the Johnson Hana team will deliver on time, in budget and to a high standard. We would recommend Johnson Hana to any legal team looking to outsource a complex, volume-heavy project of this nature, while maintaining control over output, quality and costs at every step.”

Deirdre Coleman, Conveyancing & Legal Manager, Coillte

We are particularly proud of our appointment to these government frameworks, especially considering the stringency of their selection processes, and feel their success is a reflection of the dedication of our client management teams.

What’s next for Johnson Hana in 2022?

As 2020 was a solid foundation for our successes in 2021, so we believe this year shall be for the next.

We’ve also got a key deadline in 2022 as a result of Schrems ii judgement, with the 27 December 2022 being the final date for all standard contractual clauses to meet the new requirements. This will mean a significant repapering exercise for many companies. (For more information, you can read our whitepaper on what this will entail.)

Our team is also continuing to grow, so keep your eyes peeled for announcements welcoming our new hires. (Also, if you’re considering joining Johnson Hana, we’ll be advertising a range of new vacancies in the new year, or feel free to reach out to us directly!)

Finally, and arguably most importantly, in 2022 we’re looking forward to speaking to you!

Whether you’re an existing client looking to discuss what more we can do for you, or if you want to find out more before engaging us for the first time, we welcome the opportunity to discuss how we can help.

So, from all of us at Johnson Hana, we’d like to wish you a Happy Christmas, and look forward to speaking to you in the new year!