Interview with: Mehmet Ali Köksal, Managing Partner
KOKSAL & PARTNERS
Managing Partner Mehmet Ali Köksal shares his thoughts on the current and future state of legal profession in Turkey and his firm’s projections.
What do you see as the main points that differentiate KOKSAL & PARTNERS from your competitors?
I believe that understanding our clients’ business processes and providing tailored solutions for their needs set us apart from our competitors. Instead of just listing the possibilities, we always take the extra step and steer our clients to the right solution.
Which practises do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that?
In the upcoming 12 months, the field of data protection will continue to expand. Fintech will also become a major business area. Robotics and Big Data’s legal aspects will gain importance but it will probably take some time before they become established legal areas.
What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm that will benefit clients?
Simply put, it’s to evolve and stay up to date. We are doing our best to provide our services in line with modern technology. In this sense, our latest innovation was to go beyond the “remote access” and achieve the “remote working” principle. It turns out that such work routine a huge source of motivation for our team.
Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?
We truly and deeply take advantage of technology in our business. This is how we manage to let our team come up with genuine and disruptive ideas and to turn our focus to new ideas, without sacrificing our corporate identity.
Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business?
Before it was even a conversation piece in our country, we have presented a detailed report to our client, Notaries Union of Turkey (“Union”), stating that secure/registered e-mail services (known as
KEP in Turkey) will trigger a massive change and that the Union must get ready for this shift. As part of our guiding efforts, we have helped our client establish a solution provider company named TNB-Technology.
Are clients looking for stability and strategic direction from their law firms? – where do you see the firm in three years time?
Clients are looking for two things from their law firms: Stability and special attention to their business. Besides, clients expect that we exceed their level in terms of development.
In three to five years, we are aiming to rank among the top 3 law firms in Turkey.