Andy Hitchon, Head of LEAP Estates, discusses driving smarter estate planning and private client law through legal expertise and technology.

With a strong background in private client law and years of experience as a Partner at a regional law firm, Andy Hitchon brings both strategic vision and real-world legal insight to his role as Head of Private Client Law and Head of LEAP Estates. His work sits at the intersection of probate law, estate planning and legal technology — helping firms adapt to rising client expectations, increasing regulation and the rapid pace of change driven by AI.

At LEAP, Andy plays a key role in shaping how private client law firms use cloud-based practice management and document automation to work more efficiently and deliver better outcomes for clients.

What is your role at LEAP, and what do you find most interesting about leading LEAP Estates?

Having been a Partner in Private Client law at a regional law firm, I am now Head of Private Client law at LEAP and head of LEAP Estates. LEAP offers comprehensive legal practice management and document automation solutions within a single, cloud-based platform. My role is to act as a strategic, influential, and collaborative leader, shaping and driving the Private Client law vertical while applying my private practice legal and technical knowledge to this exciting area.

Working alongside a team of skilled and passionate development technologists within LEAP, as well as our sales, content, implementation, marketing, support, and customer service teams, means no two days are ever the same, especially with how rapidly the world of legal software and AI is changing.

Moving at LEAP-speed is a well-known phrase within the business, and I’d certainly say it’s true!

What are the biggest challenges facing private client and probate law today, and how is LEAP helping firms overcome them?

Expectations of Private Client practitioners continue to increase, as does the administrative burden placed upon them, along with compliance and regulatory requirements.

As practitioners, we often find ourselves spinning numerous plates at any one time, so there is always a niggle in the back of your mind that something will be missed, or something needs to be done quicker.

My role at LEAP is to make legal technology impactful, enabling practitioners to regain time in their day and deliver more meaningful, considered legal advice. That makes legal practice more efficient and profitable, while allowing practitioners to maintain a healthier workload and a better work-life balance, ultimately resulting in more effective client care.

What are your key predictions for private client law, estate planning and legal technology in 2025 and beyond?

Lawyers won’t be replaced by Artificial Intelligence, but those who don’t use it will get left behind by those who do.

Companies across a variety of industries (think of telecoms, banking and finance, or logistics) are already investing heavily in product delivery managers, Heads of AI, and innovation experts to ensure they are at the forefront of legal tech changes. As society continues to become more digitally savvy, modern law firm clients expect the same level of technological advancement and flexibility from their legal services as they do when dealing with their banking systems, investment apps or indeed any other digital service available to them.

Legal technology has grown exponentially over the past decade, and AI is the next big thing, in my opinion, so it’s important that firms seize this as an opportunity to shine.

What career advice would you give to a young lawyer starting out in the legal profession?

Work hard and carry on being kind; kindness is not a weakness.

There will be times when you feel like you’ve worked very hard for little reward, and it’s important to hold fast on what you’re doing, keep your head down and carry on believing in yourself.

I have always tried to treat people as I would like to be treated, and I have always tried to manage my teams with the same approach, as I think this brings out the best in people and in myself.

One piece of advice I would give to a young lawyer is to do exactly that. In our area of law, clients often come to us during difficult times; it’s essential that we bear this in mind and find the kindness and compassion within ourselves to understand how we can make their lives easier through our legal care.

What inspired you to work in private client law and estate planning?

I have always wanted to pursue a career in the legal profession since I was in junior school. At that time, I thought I’d end up at one end of the courtroom trying to argue and score one up on my opposing number.

As a trainee solicitor, I deliberately trained in four different areas of law to gain a broad foundation and understand how different disciplines operate in practice. I qualified as a construction lawyer dealing with both contracts and dispute management, and in 2012, made the decision to retrain in Private Client law, as I realised this was the right path for me.

To me, private client work is about helping people at some of the most important and sensitive moments in their lives. Working in private client law has offered the opportunity to use my personal brand in my work — to be approachable, thoughtful and practical while delivering high-quality legal advice to my clients.

What has been your proudest professional achievement so far, both as a lawyer and at LEAP?

As a lawyer, I would say passing my last STEP exam – the Taxation of Trusts and Estates – has been my proudest achievement to date.

By this point, I had taken over the running of my department, had just made partner, and had a young family at home. I would use every spare minute at lunchtime or in the evenings after the kids went to bed to study. And I remember studying so incredibly hard and feeling like it just wasn’t going to sink in!

And I remember sitting in the exam hall and writing like I’d never written before, then leaving, not knowing if I had done enough. I still remember to this day the email confirming I completed the STEP Diploma and could qualify as a full STEP member. It’s a tiring process, but it’s worth it to gain the knowledge needed to further a career in Private Client law.

Since my time at LEAP, I have found great satisfaction in adding value from an expert legal perspective when meeting with our users. There is a reassurance I can give our users by being someone who has “walked the walk” before and understands the real-life impact of legal technology through scenarios I have personally experienced many times.

Lastly, I’m especially proud of the team I have around me and everything they bring to the table to help drive LEAP forward and remain at the forefront of legal tech – we’re only as good as our people!

The conversation continues: More private client insights coming soon

Andy Hitchon’s career reflects the evolving demands of private client law, probate and estate planning — where deep legal expertise must now be matched with smart, efficient use of technology. With leaders like Andy shaping the future of LEAP Estates, this conversation is just the beginning. Watch this space for more expert perspectives from LEAP.

About the author

With 10 years of experience in the communications industry, Dani Pisciottano is the Vertical Marketing Lead at LEAP Legal Software, responsible for shaping and delivering marketing strategies across key areas of law, including criminal, family, estates and personal injury.