# Transaction engineers `kaal:entity:transaction-engineers` **Status.** derived This node is assembled mechanically from the 7 claims that carry the concept tag `transaction-engineers`. It is a roster of what the corpus says under this term. It is **not** an adjudicated definition: no single statement here has been ruled canonical, and no first-appearance call has been made. Read the claims and judge for yourself. ## Every claim under this term 7 claims across 1 works, 2018 to 2018. **2018** - [3227967-002](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-002) [mechanism/argued] -- Lawyers have historically been most effective and most socially useful when acting as transaction engineers who facilitate new business and social relationships, and the engineering of the near future will largely be code based. > Historically, lawyers have been at their most effective – and socially useful - when they operate as "transaction engineers," i.e., facilitating new forms of business and other social relationships.6 It seems obvious that the "engineering" of the near-future will, to a large extent, be code-based. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-006](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-006) [mechanism/evidenced] -- In early Silicon Valley the contractual mechanisms lawyers designed, together with the lawyer dominated market for reputation, reduced information asymmetries between entrepreneurs and investors and were necessary to bring the demand and supply sides of venture capital together effectively. > Finally, the contractual mechanisms and the lawyer-dominated market for reputation reduced the information asymmetries between the entrepreneurs and investors and, as such, were necessary to bring the demand-side and supply-side of "venture capital" together effectively. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-007](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-007) [definitional/argued] -- A transaction engineer is a crucial intermediary who brings together, in a safe environment, parties holding different but mutually compatible interests and expertise. > In this sense, we can see how lawyers functioned as "transaction engineers," i.e., crucial intermediaries that brought together in a "safe" environment various parties with different but mutually compatible interests and expertise. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-008](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-008) [failure/argued] *(failure mode)* -- Lawyers have often failed to perform the function of active transaction engineer and have instead become a hindrance or obstacle to transactions. > The problem, however, is that lawyers have often failed to perform this function of being active transaction engineers and have become a hindrance or obstacle to transactions. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-009](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-009) [mechanism/argued] *(failure mode)* -- The major cause of lawyers obstructing transactions is the tendency to standardize or proceduralize legal solutions and to use standard form templates, because fixed standardized solutions imposed on complex, dynamic transactions produce frustration and difficulties. > This can happen for many reasons but the tendency to standardize – or "proceduralize" - legal solutions and to employ standard form "templates" is one major factor. Fixed and standardized solutions are imposed on complex, dynamic transactions resulting in frustration and difficulties. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-012](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-012) [mechanism/argued] -- Since companies are increasingly managed by and run on software code, facilitating transactions, that is, acting as an active transaction engineer, now involves coding. > Since all companies are now increasingly managed by and run on software code, facilitating transactions – i.e., being an active transaction engineer - involves coding. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-015](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-015) [condition/argued] -- Contrary to commentators who predict the end of lawyers, the authors reject that claim but hold that lawyers of the future can only function as effective transaction engineers if they understand the power of code. > We certainly don't make this claim, but we do think that if the lawyers of the future are to function as effective transaction engineers, they are going to need to understand the power of code. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 ## Verify Every claim above resolves to a record carrying a verbatim source quote, the sha256 of the source PDF, and a preformatted citation. Nothing here asks to be taken on trust. curl -s https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/transaction-engineers.md | sha256sum **Canonical form.** This markdown file is the canonical hashed representation of this entity node. Its sha256 is the content hash.