Lawyers are so bound by precedent that they can be caught in a trap of becoming backward-looking, according to Stephen Gannon, the veteran general counsel and chief legal officer of Providence, Rhode Island-based Citizens Financial Group Inc.

Steve Gannon

“Our clients are completely focused on innovation, and particularly on what technology can do to help customers,” noted Gannon. “So much so that someone said, ‘We are becoming technology companies with banking licenses,’ and I think that’s true.”