For Kirk Dailly, head of the business services group at Blackadders LLP, football might well have been his first choice of profession. His brother Marcus played for Dundee then Exeter before becoming a teacher, while brother Christian had a career which ranged from Dundee United to West Ham Utd and Rangers and included 67 appearances for the Scottish national team.

“When I was growing up, I played football quite seriously myself and initially thought that might be my destiny,” he recalls. Following spells in his youth at clubs including Dundee, Dundee United and Manchester City, that didn’t ensue.

When someone in the family suggested he applied to study law, it hadn’t yet appeared on Kirk’s employment radar – but after gaining a first class honours degree at the University of Dundee and a diploma in legal practice, he joined Blackadders in the city as a trainee and has been there ever since, moving through the ranks of associate and senior solicitor before becoming a partner in the firm in 2013.

His areas of specialism now include expertise in technology, video games, healthcare and life sciences, advising on M&A, investment rounds, commercial contracts, IP and data privacy and he now also leads the firm’s AI and legal tech group.

“There are obviously a number of successful games companies in Dundee and throughout Scotland,” he says. “I was fortunate early in my career to work on the development agreement for 4J Studios Ltd’s console version of Minecraft, which became the world’s biggest selling game and one of the biggest entertainment products ever. That deal actually involved the use of DocuSign – in 2011!”

Since then, Kirk says, many of the early entrepreneurs in that field have gone on to invest not only in games companies but to acquire wider interests in technology, software and fintech. “They have invested in high growth companies that are scaling up and can offer not just financial backing but other expertise and strategic support.”

He says he spends his time dealing with client work and helping to drive the firm’s strategy as a member of its management board. 

Increasingly he works on projects requiring holistic advice across IP, data protection, regulatory matters and other emerging areas. “Data privacy is an area that has changed dramatically and with the advent of technology and the change in perceptions around the management and value of data there has been a major shift in practice.

“More recently we’ve also been supporting clients with the likes of influencer agreements, publishing arrangements, sports rights and image rights,” he says.

Kirk stresses that there is a focus on collaboration within the firm that informs its strategy. “It’s quite rare that any situation exists in isolation and we’re very much centred on that collaborative approach to the client’s needs.”

It’s an approach that has seen positive results. At the beginning of the year, Blackadders reported that profits had jumped 46 per cent to £6.76 million as the group (the law firm and Blackadders Wealth Management LLP) hit a £20 million combined turnover.

Ryan McKay, joint managing partner, while acknowledging the contribution of all the firm’s teams to the results, said: “The underlying strength of our private client team and the innovation shown by our Business Services Group have proved to be the engine from which our growth has come.”

Last year, the firm’s corporate team advised on over £250 million of M&A deals, and in recent years Kirk has spearheaded a number of international transactions, including the cross-border sales of leading mobile engagement company Kumulos Ltd to global tech giants Optimove, and of cloud computing specialists Cloudgine Ltd (led by Grand Theft Auto creator Dave Jones) to US giants Epic Games.

“One thing that has changed a lot during my career has been the international angle to our work. The Kumulos deal is an example of how things can evolve and how that international outlook can ultimately help the local economy.

“Kumulos originally spun out of another amazing Scottish tech company, Waracle – which itself started life at Abertay University – and since completion of that deal Optimove has more than doubled the number of people it employs in Scotland. It’s a fantastic story.”  

The team’s future success will be enormously influenced by the ferociously fast advances in AI.

Kirk believes it’s essential that firms are positioned to take advantage of developments in legal tech and generative AI while recognising that its successful implementation – in a way that truly benefits clients and staff – requires hard work, planning and data management.

He was in the first cohort to complete a new Law Society of Scotland certification designed to equip lawyers with greater knowledge of legal technology and the practical ways it can benefit firms and says that it is fascinating how technology is impacting all business sectors, not least the legal industry.

“Very early on in the GenAI boom we devised and rolled out specialist, sector-focused training for clients including accountants – who we frequently work with – and who were grappling with some of these issues.

“AI is an aspect of our work that is evolving extremely rapidly and I’m now regularly meeting with clients who have openly put queries into ChatGPT or whatever tool they’re using and come armed with comments and raising points in a way you wouldn’t have seen even 12 months ago. You need to be on your toes and evolve.”

Though no longer an active footballer, he’s still energetically coaching on the training pitch, with the youngsters including his sons Seth (11) and Parker (8). “A lot of my spare time revolves around football and tennis so most of my weekends and several evenings involve some form of sporting activity,” he says.

While that is a useful reset from work as a lawyer, he’s always anticipating the next challenge. “What I really enjoy is getting close to our clients’ businesses, understanding them to help them achieve their goals. Working with creative people is fulfilling – they’re creating products or services or doing positive deals, and I aim to help them achieve those positive outcomes. 

“I’m passionate about seeing Scotland succeed but that requires continual investment plus political and professional support. There’s also a need to continually upskill; for the industries that our clients work in to thrive, you need the wider, professional environment around them to thrive. And in the GenAI age, lawyers who really embrace their clients’ sectors and can offer strategic support will stand out.”