ClioCon 2026: The speakers, the big ideas, and what to bring back to your firm
By John Avi Socha · October 15, 2026
6 min read
Already using Clio? Try Thyme free
Heading to Boston for ClioCon? So is the Thyme team, and there’s plenty to put on your calendar; The challenge will be deciding what deserves a place on your firm’s to-do list afterwards.
ClioCon 2026 is taking place on October 26–27 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, but there is virtual attendance also available if you can’t make it there in person. This year’s theme, “Go Beyond Limits”, is intended to bring together conversations about AI, the business of law, and the changing expectations of legal clients.
So, whether you’re looking for better ways to run your practice or more value from the technology you already use, here’s where to start.
Demos - Ask questions relevant to your firm’s reality
There are always people at ClioCon talking about new ideas, tools and apps; and many of them running demos to showcase how they work. It can be easy to be won over by a polished demonstration, but remember to ask yourself…
“How would this work during a normal Tuesday at our firm?”
Ask what your team would need to do, which existing tools would connect, and how you would know the change or new shiny tool was actually paying off.
One place to look for improvement:
your inbox
While you’re exploring what’s next for your firm, take a look at something already happening every day.
Your team reads client emails, answers questions, reviews updates, and moves matters forward. When that work is billable, does it reliably make it onto a timesheet?
If recording it depends on remembering every exchange later, there’s room for things to slip.
That’s where Thyme comes in...
Thyme connects with Clio and Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace to capture email activity, match emails to matters, and create Clio-ready time entries. It also flags items requiring review, keeping your team in control while reducing manual administration.
The aim is straightforward: help you capture more of the billable work you’re already doing.
Book a Demo
Book a Demo, and we can talk you through the platform, and how it could help you earn smarter, not harder.
Who’s speaking at ClioCon 2026?
There are loads of individual sessions worth a look, but the announced keynote lineup includes:
Malcolm Gladwell: A fresh look at how we think
Even if you haven’t read The Tipping Point, Blink, or Outliers, you’ve probably encountered the conversations they started. Bestselling author and journalist Malcolm Gladwell is known for exploring the often surprising factors behind how people think, make decisions, and achieve success. He also hosts the podcast Revisionist History, which revisits subjects that deserve a second look. It’s well worth a listen!
For law firm leaders, that perspective has an obvious appeal. Running a practice involves decisions about people, processes, and clients, frequently… and often under pressure. Gladwell’s work offers a reason to pause and question the assumptions behind why we make those decisions. His keynote could be a useful opportunity to step outside the everyday demands of legal work and look at familiar challenges differently. We’ll be there taking notes!
Ethan Mollick: Making sense of AI at work
If your firm is somewhere between experimenting with AI and wondering what to do next, Ethan Mollick is a name to know. An associate professor at Wharton and co-director of its Generative AI Labs, Mollick studies how AI affects work and education. He is also the author of Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI, which explores what it means to work alongside these tools.
His keynote is described as being ‘an exploration of AI and the future of work’. For legal teams, the practical question is how to turn growing interest in AI, and AI tools into useful everyday applications.
Where could AI reduce repetitive work? Where does human judgement remain essential?
Those are worthwhile questions to bring into the room and see if anything Ethan talks about strikes a chord and offers some insight.
Mechele Dickerson: Understanding the pressures clients face
Mechele Dickerson is a professor at the University of Texas School of Law whose research focuses on financial vulnerability, consumer debt, and housing affordability. Before moving into academia, she practised law in Washington, D.C. and Norfolk, Virginia. Her work examines the financial realities affecting households and the American middle class.
Her ClioCon keynote will be exploring economic pressure, access to justice, and changing needs within the legal system. It should bring an important client perspective to a conference about the future of law: improving legal services also means understanding the circumstances in which people actually need them.
For firms thinking about affordability, client communication, and how they deliver services, there should be plenty to consider here in Dickerson’s talk.
Jack Newton: Where Clio goes next
As Clio’s founder and CEO, Jack Newton has helped drive the adoption of cloud-based technology in legal practice.
At ClioCon 2026, Newton will share Clio’s product vision for 2027 and beyond. If your firm already uses Clio, this is a chance to understand the direction of a platform your team relies on, and consider how it could affect your own technology plans.
It would be a good idea to listen with your firm’s current frustrations in mind: what would help your team work more efficiently, serve clients better, or spend less time on administration?
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Malcolm
Gladwell
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Ethan
Mollick
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Mechele
Dickerson
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Jack
Newton
What should you put on your agenda?
Alongside the keynotes, ClioCon’s programme covers firm profitability, technology, client experience, and practical Clio workflows.
Having been to ClioCon several times, we would suggest that before you fill every available slot, think about the problem you most want to solve.
Are you spending too much time on administration? Struggling to get consistent time entries from your team? Paying for software you suspect you’re barely using?
Pick a priority, then use it to guide your sessions, conversations, and product demos. You’ll have a much easier time deciding which ideas are worth bringing home.
Explore the ClioCon agenda , and check the official programme for the latest session details and times.
Give yourself one less thing to catch up on
Coming back from a conference usually means a full inbox and a longer list of ideas.
You don’t have to wait until you’ve worked through both to explore better email time capture.
If your firm uses Clio, see how Thyme could fit into your everyday workflow, and help fewer billable emails fall through the cracks.
This preview is published by Thyme.
Visit the official ClioCon website for event registration and the latest programme updates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can solo lawyers improve time management?
Capture billable activity as it happens, reduce repetitive administration, and keep time entries connected to the right matters. Thyme automatically captures billable email work so you can focus on your clients.
Why do solo lawyers lose billable hours?
Small tasks, interruptions, and email exchanges are easy to forget when reconstructing a timesheet later. Capturing work while it happens helps prevent missed entries.
Is it better to record billable time immediately?
Yes. Recording billable work promptly makes it easier to keep an accurate record of what you did, which client it served, and how long it took.
What is the best way to track billable hours?
Use a consistent process that fits your practice. Automated email time capture alongside your practice management system helps record activity while keeping you in control of your time entries.
