Operating System
Windows 10 is the primary operating system used by the largest percentage of respondents.
(71%, compared with 78% in 2022, 77% in 2021, and 78% in 2020), followed by Mac OS (11%), Windows 11 (6%), Windows 8 (3%), Windows 7 (1%), and Chrome OS (.2%).
Respondents from solo practitioners are the most likely to report that their primary operating system is Mac OS (16%, compared with 8% in 2022, 21% in 2021, and 16% in 2020), followed by firms of 2-9 attorneys (12%), firms of 100 or more attorneys (8%), and 10-49 attorneys (5%).
Multiple Monitors
The usage of multiple monitors in legal practice is my favorite “hack” and should be considered by every legal practitioner. It is an inexpensive addition and allows users to have multiple windows open at one time, thereby allowing a lawyer to work more efficiently. However, the survey responses do not indicate that this system is widely accepted among the solo and small firm community.
Fifty-one percent of respondents report having two monitors attached to their computer, down from 55% in 2022. Interestingly 48% of respondents from small firms reported using two monitors (up from 46%), while only 30% of solo attorneys surveyed reported using two monitors, down from 50% the prior year! While the numbers, especially for solo practitioners, look skewed, 7% of all attorneys surveyed responded that they did not have a separate monitor, and another 7% reported using three or more monitors!
Software
Remote Access Software
Based on the survey results, solo practitioners’ use of remote access software is steadily rising. In 2023, 61% of solo respondents reported having access to remote access software, up from 46% in 2020. The percentage of small firm practitioners having access to remote practice e software has remained fairly constant, from 80% in 2020 to 82% in 2023.
PDF Creation Software and Efax
The use of PDF creation software has steadily risen for both solo practitioners and attorneys in small firms. 92% of those solo attorneys surveyed reported using PDF creation software, up from 85% in 2019, and 94% of attorneys working in small firms reported using PDF creation software, up from 85% in 2019. The programs listed most often were Adobe, Corel Word Perfect, and Nuance PDF Creator.
Solo practitioners and small firm attorneys’ use of electronic fax software is not as encouraging. 42% of solo respondents reported using electronic fax software for law-related tasks (up from 33% in 2022) and 40% of respondents working in small firms reported using efax software. Studies have shown that the use of electronic fax versus a regular fax machine is faster, more cost-effective, and more efficient, as a lawyer has less downtime by not having to stop work to get up to go to a stand-up fax machine or search for an alternative solution if the physical fax machine stops working.
Practice Management Software
Of those surveyed, fifty-nine percent of the respondents reported the availability of case/practice management software at their firms, down from sixty-three percent the year before. This is the first time in four years that respondents reported that the availability of practice management software has declined. In terms of the use of case/practice management software, thirty-eight percent of solo practitioners reported using case management software, down from forty-five percent in 2022. As for attorneys practicing in small firms, the use has remained steady, 47% in 2023 compared to 46% in 2022.
Attorneys’ use of practice management software in small law firms has remained essentially steady since 2020 (45% in 2020, 46% in 2022, and 47% in 2023 with a spike of 61% in 2021). The spike in 2020 could very well have been a response to the COVID pandemic, although why attorneys did not continue using said software per the 2022 and 2023 survey results is worth examining.
The use of practice management software by solo practitioners remains low, although it has increased considerably since 2020, when only 29% of solo attorneys reported using practice management software. This could be due to the increasing costs of available software, lack of knowledge of how to use the software, or just the plain belief that a solo practitioner doesn’t need practice management software to effectively run their practice.
Web-Based Software & Cloud Computing
Sixty-nine percent of all attorneys who responded to the survey report using some form of cloud-based software, compared to seventy percent in 2022 and up from fifty-nine percent in 2020. Of those, sixty-six percent of lawyers in small firms’ report using cloud-based software, down from seventy-three percent in 2022. Sixty-two percent of solo attorneys report using this service, down from eighty-four percent in 2022, but up from fifty-two percent in 2021 and 2020.
Online Research Report
The availability of online research tools has increased significantly over the past decade. Lawyers have the option of choosing fee-based research tools as well as free platforms. Of course, there are lawyers who still choose to research using available print materials.
The Online Research Survey indicated that solo lawyers’ use of fee-based online research has remained stable over the past several years. Thirty-seven percent reported using fee-based services in 2023, thirty-seven percent reported using the same in 2020, and thirty-six percent in 2021. As for attorneys in small firms, fifty-eight percent reported using fee-based research software, consistent with sixty-one percent in 2020 and sixty-three percent in 2021. Again, there was a spike to seventy-seven percent in 2022.
As for free online legal research, seventy-three percent of solo practitioners reported using the service in 2023, relatively consistent with 2020 and 2021 (67%). However, only fifty-eight percent reported using free online research services in 2022. As for lawyers in small firms, fifty-seven percent reported using free online services in 2023, consistent with 2020 (54&) and 2021 (57%) Yet again, in 2022, only forty-five percent reported using free research tools in 2022.
Why was there an increase in lawyers’ fee-based online research in 2022 than a significant decrease in 2023, and a jump in free online internet research in 2023? Of course, the obvious answer is price, but one cannot rule out the possibility of the emergence of artificial intelligence as another reason. However, lawyers must be extremely careful with using this emerging tool for online research.
Conclusion - Technology Survey & Online Research
The survey results indicate that lawyers have not shied away from using existing and emerging technologies to run their practice. Of the technology resources indicated it appears as if only the use of electronic fax technologies has lagged. Are efax programs not marketing their services as efficiently as other legal technology tools such as case management software, client retention management software, etc…? Efax technology is cheaper, more efficient, and eliminates downtime if a fax machine breaks.
Also, lawyers need to be both vigilant and respectful of the use of artificial intelligence in their practices, especially with online research.
In 2012, the American Bar Association amended Comment 8 to the Model Rule of Professional Conduct 1.1. Comment 8 reads:
To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology, engage in continuing study and education, and comply with all continuing legal education requirements to which the lawyer is subject.
To date, over forty states have formally adopted the revised comment to Rule 1.1, and many have now implemented a mandatory CLE for technological competency. However, attorneys in states have not exactly embraced this rule. Attorney Steven Schwartz in New York learned the hard way when he sued Aviance Airlines on behalf of his client. He filed a brief using Chat GPT; the only issue was that the brief was filled with citations of cases that didn’t exist. Neither Attorney Schwartz nor his staff cite-checked the briefs. He was subsequently sanctioned by the judge hearing the case.
Life and Practice Survey Report
This survey focused on the use of technology in the legal profession. The survey report concentrated on issues relating to technology use, not product use. 512 attorneys responded to this survey. Of those, approximately 290 of the respondents were either solo practitioners or worked in a small firm of 2-9 attorneys.
Current Work Location
Respondents were asked which of the following best describes their primary workplace, both prior to and post-COVID-19.
Prior to COVID-19, the respondents’ answers were as follows: