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We can only imagine how hectic an average work day for a practicing lawyer can be. How can a lawyer effectively become an expert in legal technology with so little time to spare? To find out, we spoke to Bob Ambrogi, a practicing lawyer, writer and media consultant, who has written two books, a column and a newsletter about legal technology and the Internet. “I’ve always been a geek at heart,” explains Bob, “so tinkering with technology is fun to me. But what also drove me to learn about legal technology was simple practicality."
"I was looking for ways to be more productive and economical in my practice. Technology provided the tools I needed to be more effective as a lawyer.”
Bob’s practice focuses on media, new media and technology law, as well as arbitration and mediation. In addition, he maintains a non-legal consulting practice focused on media, social media and communications.
How to Learn More about Legal Technology
Learning the ropes of legal technology can be intimidating at first. Since technology is a broad field that covers a lot of ground, a lawyer will never be an expert on everything. Yet, for those who do want to learn useful information for their practice, Bob says the first step is to identify what you want to learn and why you want to learn it. Is your goal to take better control of your practice management? To cut costs to your clients? To better understand issues you encounter in your practice? Or perhaps all three and more.
Once you have an idea of what you want to learn, the next step is to begin exploring. For example, if you want to learn more about cloud computing, you can find an array of material online, from technical articles, to legal-ethics opinions, to reviews of specific cloud services. Bob cautions legal professionals to supplement their research with their own personal experience. “Don’t just read what others say,” advises Bob, “dive in and try these things yourself!” There are a number of cloud-based practice management applications out there and most, if not all, let you open a free trial account. Many other server-based software products offer free trials as well as demos and training videos to get up-to-speed quickly, though you may need to hire an IT consultant to help you with the installation. Experiment with several of these applications and you’ll learn more about how they work and also be able to determine what best suits you.
Of course, lack of time is always the greatest obstacle lawyers face when it comes to learning new things. Although, when it comes to learning about technology, a simple cost-benefit analysis tells you this is time well spent, Bob believes. “Time spent learning about technology is time spent becoming a more efficient and effective lawyer. That’s an investment that will pay dividends for years to come.”
Benefits to Becoming an Expert
There are many advantages to better understanding technology for lawyers and legal professionals. An immediate benefit is that technology enables you to function as a one-person show. “Give me my laptop and my iPhone and I’m good to go,” comments Bob, “I am highly mobile and able to be productive whenever and wherever I need to be.” Increasingly, this is what technology is doing for every lawyer, driven now by the ubiquity of mobile computing and the vast selection of powerful applications available directly from the web; you can easily take your work on the go. Having this ability at your fingertips will allow greater productivity to your practice.
If marketing is on your mind, web-based technology including social media also provides attractive options for zero or very little cost. Social networking tools, email blasts and blogging can help a lawyer build and maintain visibility and connections with current and prospective clients. The more you understand about those tools and the mechanics of how they work, the more effectively you will be able to use them.
“Frankly, given the pervasiveness of technology, I think every lawyer has a professional obligation to become knowledgeable about technology, the Internet and social media,” Bob says, summing up his perspective on technology. Technology is definitely an integral part of law practice, the more that you get comfortable using it, the more it will feel like second nature.
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