ABA TECHSHOW 2017: The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same
The speaker roster at ABA TECHSHOW 2017 was radically different from years past.
ABA TECHSHOW 2017 is now a wrap. After a whirlwind of activity (and just barely making it into Chicago before the bad weather hit), one of my favorite legal technology conferences is now behind us.
As my fellow Above the Law columnist, Bob Ambrogi, recently noted, this year’s conference was quite a departure from prior TECHSHOWs. The speaker roster was radically different from years past, as was the Keynote — which consisted of a panel discussion between the founders of Avvo, Rocket Lawyer, and Legal Zoom — instead of what we’d come to expect: a presentation from a single leading technology visionary or legal technology futurist.
This year’s TECHSHOW also broke with precedent by including a legal tech startup showdown between 12 different companies: ClariLegal, UniCourt, LegalClick, eBrevia, Ping, Paladin, TrustBooks, Aggregate Law, Court Buddy, Doxly, JustLegal, and Alt Legal. The competition occurred on Wednesday night, after which the audience voted on their favorites. The winner was Ping (who won free advertising here on Above the Law), followed by Doxly and UniCourt. After the event, the startups set up shop in the back corner of the Expo Hall where “startup alley” occupied a small footprint of the Hall and allowed each company to showcase their wares to attendees.
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Of course, not everything changed this year. For example, I once again interviewed leaders in the legal technology space about topics ranging from the benefits of mobile practices, law practice management tips, how to choose legal technology, ways to improve client communication, how artificial intelligence (AI) will impact lawyers, and much more.
The full interviews will be posted soon at the MyCase Blog, but for now you can watch the video below, where you’ll find a compilation of my interviews with:
- Bob Ambrogi, Blogger at LawSites and Above the Law;
- Carolyn Elefant, Blogger at My Shingle and Above the Law;
- Catherine Sanders Reach, Director, Law Practice Management and Technology for the Chicago Bar Association;
- Adam Camras, CEO, Legal Talk Network;
- Sam Glover, Blogger at Lawyerist;
- Kevin O’Keefe, CEO, Publisher, and Blogger, LexBlog;
- Charley Moore, Keynote speaker and Founder/CEO of Rocket Lawyer; and
- Mark Britton, Keynote speakers and Founder/CEO of Avvo.
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I also spent some time on the other side of the mic, when I was interviewed by Bob Ambrogi for a Legal Talk Network podcast, Behind the Scenes with Practice Management Software. Among other things, we discussed the benefits of using law practice management software and MyCase’s newly announced enhanced mobile app.
Of course, I wasn’t the only one interviewed for a podcast. Legal Talk Network recorded many other podcasts at ABA TECHSHOW and you can listen to all of them here. Topics run the gamut, from legal marketing and the importance of focus to the impact of AI on the legal industry.
So even if you couldn’t make TECHSHOW this year because of the inclement weather or otherwise, you’ll almost feel as if you were there between listening to the podcasts and watching the videos. And mark your calendars for next year! TECHSHOW will be held at the Hyatt in Chicago from March 7-10, 2018. Hope to see you there!
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 @nikiblack and she can be reached at niki.black@mycase.com.