Microsoft's legal department has awarded two teams of law firms a slot in its innovation accelerator after a monthslong competition among outside providers that was geared toward investing in technology and solving the tech giant's business challenges.

For three years, Microsoft's legal department, led by the corporate, legal and external affairs team, and now the newly formed Modern Legal Team, have challenged several of its outside providers to think differently about the provision of legal services, efficiency, technology, and just generally work to help Microsoft do more with less. This year, the focus was on digital transformation and the use of technology, and 13 firms (nine teams) competed for a chance for their idea to move into the accelerator program through which Microsoft would help bring the concept to fruition.

Microsoft's picks for the winning projects, along with the entire Legal Business Design Challenge, crystallize the ways in which clients are looking for outside providers to marshal varied skill sets, use technology, collaborate with other providers and do more than just pure legal work.