Today's Tech: Where Do We Go From Here?

Are you aware of any colleagues, whether lawyers, judges, or law professors, who are using technology in unusual or cutting edge ways?

Technology today's tech We’re just a few weeks into 2016. What better time to reflect and reassess, whether it’s relationships, career paths, or even a legal technology column? It’s also the perfect time to seek feedback and assistance from you, my faithful readers. More on that in a moment.

When I first started writing for Above the Law a year and a half ago in June 2014, my goal was to “examine lawyers’ use of 21st-century technologies by exploring how specific lawyers are incorporating emerging technologies into their practices.”

To that end, I’ve profiled assistant public defenders and other criminal defense lawyers, personal injury attorneys, business lawyers, appellate attorneys, estate law attorneys, law professors, and even judges. I’ve shared how these lawyers use mobile devices, legal software, non-legal software, wearable technology, and more in their law practices. I’ve discussed premise-based software and cloud-based software, software for both PCs and Mac, and Android, Windows, and Apple mobile devices.

I’ve also occasionally diverged from my primary goal and covered other events in the legal technology space, including legal technology conferences.

I like to think that my efforts have thus far been successful and that I accomplished what I’d set out to do. Namely, that each of my columns has helped to educate lawyers about technology, while providing them with useful information and actionable advice designed to make their law practices and day-to-day lives more efficient and, hopefully, more enjoyable.

I have every intention to sticking to my original goal in 2016, but in order to do so, I need your help. You see, my list of lawyers to write about is not nearly as long as it once was.

When I began writing this column, I had a lengthy list of lawyers I’d encountered who were using technology in interesting ways and there was no subject matter shortage for my bi-weekly columns. And, as I worked through my list, readers would occasionally reach out to me with the names of lawyers to write about and as a result, until very recently, I had a backlog of topics and lawyers to write about.

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But my list has grown much shorter and I could use new suggestions, dear readers. Are you aware of any colleagues, whether lawyers, judges, or law professors, who are using technology in unusual or cutting edge ways? If so, please drop me an email and let me know: niki.black@mycase.com. 

Keep in mind that my goal is to focus on how lawyers are using a specific type of technology rather than write about a specific type of software. I’m not looking for product pitches — other Above the Law legal technology journalists cover that type of subject matter. Instead, I want to showcase how lawyers are using technology in their practices and would greatly appreciate ideas for future columns.

I also welcome feedback regarding other topics you would like to read about. While I still plan to write about how lawyers are using technology, I’ll also be covering legal technology conferences and will occasionally write about other legal technology issues that interest me. Of course, at the end of the day, my goal is to write columns about topics that not only interest me, but that are also of interest to you.

To that end, please let me know what information would be most beneficial to you. In other venues I write about: 1) ethical issues lawyers encounter when using technology, 2) reviews of different technology products, 3) apps, browser extensions, and online tools that might be of use to lawyers, 4) commentary on and predictions about the intersection of technology with the practice of law, and 5) tips to help lawyers get started using different technology tools. If any of these sound interesting, let me know in the comments.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions. Similarly, thank you for your readership over the past year and a half and for your (often) thoughtful discussion in the comments. Looking forward to more of the same in 2016.

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Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York attorney and the Legal Technology Evangelist at MyCase, web-based law practice management software. She’s been blogging since 2005, has written a weekly column for the Daily Record since 2007, is the author of Cloud Computing for Lawyers, co-authors Social Media for Lawyers: the Next Frontier, and co-authors Criminal Law in New York. She’s easily distracted by the potential of bright and shiny tech gadgets, along with good food and wine. You can follow her on Twitter at@nikiblack and she can be reached at niki.black@mycase.com.

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