No one can deny that technology is changing at a rapid pace and touches all aspects of the law. The changes in the ways attorneys practice are producing a restructuring in the delivery of legal services. Some of the factors contributing to the restructuring are routinization of many legal jobs, clients expecting immediate responses, alternative billing and the globalization of the practice of law. The driving force behind these changes and much of the restructuring is technology. The IT revolution is transformative—the traditional methods of delivering legal services are gone. This news can be exciting or scary, depending on one’s point of view. The status quo is no longer enough, and this is where the Law Practice Management Section (LPM) and the Legal Technology Resource Center (LTRC) can make all the difference.
LPM and LTRC are committed to helping lawyers to develop new models for their firms and keeping abreast of the new developments in technology and the delivery of legal services. LPM’s programming and resources continue to expand to fill this need, with LPM committees and boards habitually delivering top-quality resources that exceed expectations.
ABA TECHSHOW
LPM’s annual ABA TECHSHOW 2013 is a great program to attend and provides legal technology training second to none. It provides an opportunity for attendees to visit with dozens of technology vendors and get up to speed on the newest tools that might help to improve their technical skills as lawyers. This year ABA TECHSHOW is glad to have David Pogue, the New York Times technology columnist, as its keynote speaker. Pogue is a best-selling author on technology and an Emmy-award-winning CBS news correspondent.
LTRC
Staying current with technology isn’t just practical, it’s also an ethical necessity for today’s lawyers. According to recently amended comments to Model Rule of Professional Conduct 1.1, lawyers must stay abreast not just of changes to the law but also the “benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.” The newly revamped LTRC website can help lawyers do that with a wide variety of resources, including articles, video tutorials, topical guides, comparison charts and more. LTRC’s resources cover every technology topic from time and billing software to mobile apps to taking your practice paperless. The resources are backed by detailed statistics from the LTRC’s annual Legal Technology Survey Report, the most comprehensive survey of lawyers’ use of technology.
The LTRC also produces free monthly webinars for ABA members on popular legal technology topics and maintains Law Technology Today, a blog that brings together many of today’s leading voices on legal technology.
Network Media Partners
I want to send special thanks out in this issue to Suzie Smith of Network Media Partners for helping LPM with all of its advertising and sponsorship goals. Suzie has gone above and beyond in her efforts with Law Practice magazine, ABA TECHSHOW, Law Practice Today (LPM’s electronic newsletter) and LTRC. The Section is lucky to have her on our team—thanks, Suzie, from all of us! We want to connect with our members, so watch, follow, connect and “friend” the Section through social media.
