The document discusses the future of online legal services and their potential impact on the legal profession. It notes that while the ABA has encouraged lawyers to utilize the internet to serve clients, the profession has been slow to adopt online legal services. Non-lawyer companies have emerged offering more cost-effective online legal forms and information. This includes sites like LegalZoom, which has processed over 50,000 online divorces. If the legal profession does not innovate online, these alternative models may continue to draw clients and revenues.
This was a two-part CLE for the North Carolina Bar Association about how to set up and operate a virtual law practice. It covers both the tech and ethics issues as well as the practical how-tos.
This is a presentation I gave to the South Carolina Law Review Symposium entitled: On Task?: Expanding the Boundaries of Legal Education, February 28, 2014.
ONLINE LEGAL SERVICE: THE PRESENT AND FUTUREijcsit
To find a lawyer becomes a headache for business organization or general people. Sometimes people face many difficulties to find proper lawyer as their requirements, because of information gap. In addition, it is also difficult to find experienced lawyer. Usually, in order to hire a lawyer people need to meet him physically which is time-consuming and expensive. The delivery of legal services remains largely fragmented, outdated, and inefficient.The main purpose of this paper is to do empirical research about how the Internet is currently failing laypeople who are searching online for the legal help to their life problems and what a future agenda of user-centered standards and practices for better legal help on the Internet could be. It initially looks at the existing literature about how the Internet can best be used as legal asset and the situation quo of lawful help websites. Then it metering and looks at negative client reports and Investigates of legal help websites. Finally, it presents the primary study of how people search for resources to solve a legal problem, how they scorn and counts legal aid services online, and their recompose on which existing lawful help websites they consider to be the most usable, the most faithful, and the most valued. This data is necessary to propose new best exercises about how these tech-based services can best serve people, in terms of usability, characteristic of service, and safeguard of the users' interests. It also ensures the importance of the Internet as a lawful help service and highlights the need for more experiment and development on better online legal service help websites that fit general people needs and preferences.
To find a lawyer becomes a headache for business organization or general people. Sometimes people face many difficulties to find proper lawyer as their requirements, because of information gap. In addition, it is also difficult to find experienced lawyer. Usually, in order to hire a lawyer people need to meet him physically which is time-consuming and expensive. The delivery of legal services remains largely fragmented, outdated, and inefficient.The main purpose of this paper is to do empirical research about how the Internet is currently failing laypeople who are searching online for the legal help to their life problems and what a future agenda of user-centered standards and practices for better legal help on the Internet could be. It initially looks at the existing literature about how the Internet can best be used as legal asset and the situation quo of lawful help websites. Then it metering and looks at negative client reports and Investigates of legal help websites. Finally, it presents the primary study of how people search for resources to solve a legal problem, how they scorn and counts legal aid services online, and their recompose on which existing lawful help websites they consider to be the most usable, the most faithful, and the most valued. This data is necessary to propose new best exercises about how these tech-based services can best serve people, in terms of usability, characteristic of service, and safeguard of the users' interests. It also ensures the importance of the Internet as a lawful help service and highlights the need for more experiment and development on better online legal service help websites that fit general people needs and preferences
This was a two-part CLE for the North Carolina Bar Association about how to set up and operate a virtual law practice. It covers both the tech and ethics issues as well as the practical how-tos.
This is a presentation I gave to the South Carolina Law Review Symposium entitled: On Task?: Expanding the Boundaries of Legal Education, February 28, 2014.
ONLINE LEGAL SERVICE: THE PRESENT AND FUTUREijcsit
To find a lawyer becomes a headache for business organization or general people. Sometimes people face many difficulties to find proper lawyer as their requirements, because of information gap. In addition, it is also difficult to find experienced lawyer. Usually, in order to hire a lawyer people need to meet him physically which is time-consuming and expensive. The delivery of legal services remains largely fragmented, outdated, and inefficient.The main purpose of this paper is to do empirical research about how the Internet is currently failing laypeople who are searching online for the legal help to their life problems and what a future agenda of user-centered standards and practices for better legal help on the Internet could be. It initially looks at the existing literature about how the Internet can best be used as legal asset and the situation quo of lawful help websites. Then it metering and looks at negative client reports and Investigates of legal help websites. Finally, it presents the primary study of how people search for resources to solve a legal problem, how they scorn and counts legal aid services online, and their recompose on which existing lawful help websites they consider to be the most usable, the most faithful, and the most valued. This data is necessary to propose new best exercises about how these tech-based services can best serve people, in terms of usability, characteristic of service, and safeguard of the users' interests. It also ensures the importance of the Internet as a lawful help service and highlights the need for more experiment and development on better online legal service help websites that fit general people needs and preferences.
To find a lawyer becomes a headache for business organization or general people. Sometimes people face many difficulties to find proper lawyer as their requirements, because of information gap. In addition, it is also difficult to find experienced lawyer. Usually, in order to hire a lawyer people need to meet him physically which is time-consuming and expensive. The delivery of legal services remains largely fragmented, outdated, and inefficient.The main purpose of this paper is to do empirical research about how the Internet is currently failing laypeople who are searching online for the legal help to their life problems and what a future agenda of user-centered standards and practices for better legal help on the Internet could be. It initially looks at the existing literature about how the Internet can best be used as legal asset and the situation quo of lawful help websites. Then it metering and looks at negative client reports and Investigates of legal help websites. Finally, it presents the primary study of how people search for resources to solve a legal problem, how they scorn and counts legal aid services online, and their recompose on which existing lawful help websites they consider to be the most usable, the most faithful, and the most valued. This data is necessary to propose new best exercises about how these tech-based services can best serve people, in terms of usability, characteristic of service, and safeguard of the users' interests. It also ensures the importance of the Internet as a lawful help service and highlights the need for more experiment and development on better online legal service help websites that fit general people needs and preferences
The revolutionary progresses in information technology have a deep rooted impact in
global communication and that’s also having a great impact in the national as well as
the global business environment.
.Along with its growing importance it also has challenges due to technological issues
and their legal consequences.
In this study the key elements of e-contract (in light of the Indian Contract Act, 1872)
has been discussed. Its various issues related to Evidence Act, IT Act, Stamping laws,
consumer disputes has been covered.
E-contract is new phenomenon in modern business, so there are some ambiguities in
technical and legal issues but will be solved
Feb 2020 - Senate Submission Financial Technology and Regulatory TechnologyTimothy Holborn
submission to: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Financial_Technology_and_Regulatory_Technology/FinancialRegulatoryTech/Submissions
These are the slides from my presentation to the ABA Commission on the Future of Legal Services. I covered the basics of virtual law practice but also gamification, games, and online engagement for legal services. The video for this presentation is here: http://bcove.me/4tmkn2x1
This is the updated and revised edition of the ebook, Practicing Law Online. This revised edition focuses on the business models of virtual law firms that have emerged and goes beyond solos and small firms to apply the business model to larger firms and in-house legal departments. The ebook walks the reader through the process of choosing a virtual law firm business model and examines methods of online delivery that work best with the firm’s practice area and client base.
Unbundled legal services, also called limited scope representation or discrete task representation, may be used by a variety of law practices from solos to large law firms to serve an large market of unmet legal needs. Technology exists to assist the attorney in streamlining the unbundling process by using document automation and assembly programs that make unbundling legal services a cost-effective form of delivering legal services to the public. However, attorneys providing limited scope representation should be aware of certain ethics risks and best practices. Whether unbundling is handled in a traditional firm setting or through the use of technology, attorneys should be aware of the benefits and risks of this complementary method of delivering legal services to their clients.
From the FinTech Webinar Series. Explores:
1. Recent Federal Cybersecurity Developments: Executive Order, NIST Standards, Information-Sharing, Legislation
2. Privacy and Security Issues in Cloud Computing Contracts
3. International Privacy and Transferring Data Across Borders
4. Mobile Devices and Mobile Apps
5. Workplace and Corporate Governance Developments
6. The FTC’s New Rules Concerning Children’s Privacy
Disruption is a common theme among many tech evangelists. "Futurists” are predicting that robots and artificial intelligence will result in job losses for employees within professions. I'm not an evangelist or a futurist, but I think we can take it as a given that "Robots" will reshape all professions, including those in the legal field.
In this presentation I've tried to explore how our conceptions of "lawyering" might be changed by the introduction of "robots" into the legal profession. Technology has a habit of both substituting and complementing. Automation will raise output, but it also leads to higher demand for workers who can uniquely supply tasks that machines cannot supply.
Take a look at the range of information technologies of law that are assisting with raising output. The presentation will also offer glimpses of what legal professions can uniquely supply and robots cannot.
The revolutionary progresses in information technology have a deep rooted impact in
global communication and that’s also having a great impact in the national as well as
the global business environment.
.Along with its growing importance it also has challenges due to technological issues
and their legal consequences.
In this study the key elements of e-contract (in light of the Indian Contract Act, 1872)
has been discussed. Its various issues related to Evidence Act, IT Act, Stamping laws,
consumer disputes has been covered.
E-contract is new phenomenon in modern business, so there are some ambiguities in
technical and legal issues but will be solved
Feb 2020 - Senate Submission Financial Technology and Regulatory TechnologyTimothy Holborn
submission to: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Financial_Technology_and_Regulatory_Technology/FinancialRegulatoryTech/Submissions
These are the slides from my presentation to the ABA Commission on the Future of Legal Services. I covered the basics of virtual law practice but also gamification, games, and online engagement for legal services. The video for this presentation is here: http://bcove.me/4tmkn2x1
This is the updated and revised edition of the ebook, Practicing Law Online. This revised edition focuses on the business models of virtual law firms that have emerged and goes beyond solos and small firms to apply the business model to larger firms and in-house legal departments. The ebook walks the reader through the process of choosing a virtual law firm business model and examines methods of online delivery that work best with the firm’s practice area and client base.
Unbundled legal services, also called limited scope representation or discrete task representation, may be used by a variety of law practices from solos to large law firms to serve an large market of unmet legal needs. Technology exists to assist the attorney in streamlining the unbundling process by using document automation and assembly programs that make unbundling legal services a cost-effective form of delivering legal services to the public. However, attorneys providing limited scope representation should be aware of certain ethics risks and best practices. Whether unbundling is handled in a traditional firm setting or through the use of technology, attorneys should be aware of the benefits and risks of this complementary method of delivering legal services to their clients.
From the FinTech Webinar Series. Explores:
1. Recent Federal Cybersecurity Developments: Executive Order, NIST Standards, Information-Sharing, Legislation
2. Privacy and Security Issues in Cloud Computing Contracts
3. International Privacy and Transferring Data Across Borders
4. Mobile Devices and Mobile Apps
5. Workplace and Corporate Governance Developments
6. The FTC’s New Rules Concerning Children’s Privacy
Disruption is a common theme among many tech evangelists. "Futurists” are predicting that robots and artificial intelligence will result in job losses for employees within professions. I'm not an evangelist or a futurist, but I think we can take it as a given that "Robots" will reshape all professions, including those in the legal field.
In this presentation I've tried to explore how our conceptions of "lawyering" might be changed by the introduction of "robots" into the legal profession. Technology has a habit of both substituting and complementing. Automation will raise output, but it also leads to higher demand for workers who can uniquely supply tasks that machines cannot supply.
Take a look at the range of information technologies of law that are assisting with raising output. The presentation will also offer glimpses of what legal professions can uniquely supply and robots cannot.
Technology is changing the way lawyers win new business.
Learn about:
• How technology is changing the legal landscape
• Law firm management
• The future of winning new business in a legal space
• The ingredients to creating a winning pitch book
• The software that will assist you in creating winning pitch books quickly
For more information about how pitch management software can help your sales and marketing teams click here: http://www.qorusdocs.com/legal-management-software
Imprima is pleased to present How AI is changing legal due diligence, published in association with Mergermarket. With the introduction of artificial intelligence to the legal sector over the past few years, this technology has been gradually changing the way that legal due diligence is conducted.
Exploring these trends, Mergermarket, on behalf of Imprima, spoke with five experts from the fields of law and technology to share their insights on the day-to-day use of artificial intelligence in legal due diligence processes and how this might continue to develop.
Points of discussion include:
• Software solutions have allowed for greater efficiency in legal due diligence processes. Typical pain points associated with legal due diligence include the amount of time needed to both compile and review countless documents. AI can prove a useful tool to help streamline this process. However, there are limits to what current technologies can achieve.
• Emerging AI technology is met with increasing enthusiasm. Law firms are showing willingness to adopt AI processes into their practices. While this is not yet universal, some clients are beginning to expect law firms to use tech-enabled processes and be able to offer innovative solutions.
• Is AI causing permanent changes to the legal workforce? While the fears that AI technology would automate job roles, and lead to mass redundancies in legal firms proved unfounded, it is true that adoption of these technologies could lead to major changes in the legal sector. It is unlikely that the need for new lawyers will ever be fully eliminated – rather that the nature of their work may change, as AI technologies allow lawyers to shift their focus to higher-value work.
Imprima | How AI is Changing Legal Due DiligenceImprima
Fears that artificial intelligence technology would automate professional jobs and create mass redundancies swept through the legal sector a few years ago – as it did through many professional services industries. While those fears have proved unfounded, AI technology is beginning to change how legal due diligence is conducted.
Paper transforms startup legal into an intelligent and automated experience so founders can focus on growth. BigLaw-backed. No templates here. Get in touch: hello [at] get-paper [dot] com.
This presentation was given to students at Campbell Law School on February 11, 2010. For more detailed information regarding ethics and technology issues in virtual law practice as well as the setup and management of a virtual law practice, please see the Virtual Law Practice blog - www.virtuallawpractice.org.
Forrester Guidance on Digital Transaction Management in Legal DocuSign
This one-page brief highlights the most pertinent information for internal Legal Organizations from a 2015 Forrester Consulting Study.
The DocuSign-commissioned study explores the quickly emerging realm of Digital Transaction Management (DTM). Some 400 business leaders across the planet were surveyed about their own document-intensive processes and how they select and manage technologies. It also covers what they see as the biggest risks of not evolving.
To read the entire study “Digital Transforms The Game of Business: Digital Transaction Management Emerging as Key Solution.” go here: http://dtm.docusign.com/forrester?jumpid=slideshare-forrester-52015
4-Pager PDF, Confidential Executive Summary for our $3M Private Placement for Settle-Now. The document outlines the market, our products/services, competition, our differentiation and defines the opportunity for investment.
A Presentation at Reinvent Law Silicon Valley 2012 on Private Investment in the Legal Services Industry. An overview of companies operating in the legal services industry, how companies are getting around Professional Rule 5.4 which prohibits non-lawyer investment in law firms, and a warning that the US legal market is going to fall behind the UK legal market where law firms have access to capital and modern management methods. The US should consider deregulating the legal profession similar to the deregulation scheme in the United Kingdom to unleash innovation forces that can result in providing greater access to the legal system by moderate and income people.
Self Help Legal Software and Unauthorized Practice of LawRichard S. Granat
Presentation by Richard Granat and Marc Lauritsen to Legal Services Corporation annual conference on legal technology. Topic is how UPL rules apply to legal selfhelp software.
A Webinar on Virtual Law Practice: Basic Concepts that was provided to the members of the eLawyering List Serv of the ABA/ Law Practice Management/eLawyering Task Force.
Presenters: Marc Lauritsen and Richard Granat, Task Force Co-Chairs, and Stephanie Kimbro, Member of the Task Force and Founder, Virtual Law Office Technology.
A briefing on what are "unbundled legal services", sometimes called "Limited Legal Services" and how this approach can serve consumer needs and the DIY consumer.
"Impact of front-end architecture on development cost", Viktor TurskyiFwdays
I have heard many times that architecture is not important for the front-end. Also, many times I have seen how developers implement features on the front-end just following the standard rules for a framework and think that this is enough to successfully launch the project, and then the project fails. How to prevent this and what approach to choose? I have launched dozens of complex projects and during the talk we will analyze which approaches have worked for me and which have not.
Smart TV Buyer Insights Survey 2024 by 91mobiles.pdf91mobiles
91mobiles recently conducted a Smart TV Buyer Insights Survey in which we asked over 3,000 respondents about the TV they own, aspects they look at on a new TV, and their TV buying preferences.
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
State of ICS and IoT Cyber Threat Landscape Report 2024 previewPrayukth K V
The IoT and OT threat landscape report has been prepared by the Threat Research Team at Sectrio using data from Sectrio, cyber threat intelligence farming facilities spread across over 85 cities around the world. In addition, Sectrio also runs AI-based advanced threat and payload engagement facilities that serve as sinks to attract and engage sophisticated threat actors, and newer malware including new variants and latent threats that are at an earlier stage of development.
The latest edition of the OT/ICS and IoT security Threat Landscape Report 2024 also covers:
State of global ICS asset and network exposure
Sectoral targets and attacks as well as the cost of ransom
Global APT activity, AI usage, actor and tactic profiles, and implications
Rise in volumes of AI-powered cyberattacks
Major cyber events in 2024
Malware and malicious payload trends
Cyberattack types and targets
Vulnerability exploit attempts on CVEs
Attacks on counties – USA
Expansion of bot farms – how, where, and why
In-depth analysis of the cyber threat landscape across North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East
Why are attacks on smart factories rising?
Cyber risk predictions
Axis of attacks – Europe
Systemic attacks in the Middle East
Download the full report from here:
https://sectrio.com/resources/ot-threat-landscape-reports/sectrio-releases-ot-ics-and-iot-security-threat-landscape-report-2024/
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Key Trends Shaping the Future of Infrastructure.pdfCheryl Hung
Keynote at DIGIT West Expo, Glasgow on 29 May 2024.
Cheryl Hung, ochery.com
Sr Director, Infrastructure Ecosystem, Arm.
The key trends across hardware, cloud and open-source; exploring how these areas are likely to mature and develop over the short and long-term, and then considering how organisations can position themselves to adapt and thrive.
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
JMeter webinar - integration with InfluxDB and GrafanaRTTS
Watch this recorded webinar about real-time monitoring of application performance. See how to integrate Apache JMeter, the open-source leader in performance testing, with InfluxDB, the open-source time-series database, and Grafana, the open-source analytics and visualization application.
In this webinar, we will review the benefits of leveraging InfluxDB and Grafana when executing load tests and demonstrate how these tools are used to visualize performance metrics.
Length: 30 minutes
Session Overview
-------------------------------------------
During this webinar, we will cover the following topics while demonstrating the integrations of JMeter, InfluxDB and Grafana:
- What out-of-the-box solutions are available for real-time monitoring JMeter tests?
- What are the benefits of integrating InfluxDB and Grafana into the load testing stack?
- Which features are provided by Grafana?
- Demonstration of InfluxDB and Grafana using a practice web application
To view the webinar recording, go to:
https://www.rttsweb.com/jmeter-integration-webinar
Neuro-symbolic is not enough, we need neuro-*semantic*Frank van Harmelen
Neuro-symbolic (NeSy) AI is on the rise. However, simply machine learning on just any symbolic structure is not sufficient to really harvest the gains of NeSy. These will only be gained when the symbolic structures have an actual semantics. I give an operational definition of semantics as “predictable inference”.
All of this illustrated with link prediction over knowledge graphs, but the argument is general.
6. You save $1,831.00 with LegalZoom!
“
A lawyer would charge you approximately $2,080.00 to obtain a divorce if you have
property but no minor children.‖
LegalZoom is a good example of a non-law provider that is going after the traditional market of solos and
small law firms without being constrained by the rules of professional conduct that govern the practices of
attorneys.
What are the Online Legal Services Offered by Law Firms?
Marc Lauritsen, co-chair of the eLawyering Task Force in an article in Law Practice Magazine in January-
February, 2004, p. 36, succinctly defined eLawyering as:
―all the ways in which lawyers can do their work using the Web and associated technologies.
These include new ways to communicate and collaborate with clients, prospective clients and
other lawyers, produce documents, settle disputes and manage legal knowledge. Think of a
lawyering verb—interview, investigate, counsel, draft, advocate, analyze, negotiate, manage and
so forth—and there are corresponding electronic tools and techniques.‖
This is a good start to understanding the concept of eLawyeri ng. The core of this business model is a law
firm web site that incorporates interactive and web-enabled applications that supports interaction between
lawyer and client along a number of dimensions.
Online legal services are legal services delivered over the Internet directly to clients through a password
protected and secure Web space where both the attorney and client may interact and legal services are
consumed by the client.
We would not consider a law firm that that has a first generation Web site, as defined above, as one that is
engaged in what we called in the delivery of online legal services. These sites do not have any interactive
applications and are little more than brochures in digital format. Often these sites are found within a larger
law firm directory [ such as http://www.findlaw.com or http://www.lawyers.com ] and the firm has no
control or access to the Web site itself in order to be able to add interactive applications. For these law
firms, the Internet is no more than another media channel for communicating about the law firm‗s
capabilities. They are not ―interactive service‖ sites. For these firms, law practice is business as usual.
On the other hand, a law firm Web site that is based on eLawyering concepts involves moving beyond a
law firm Web site that contains only legal content to one that helps clients collaborate with their lawyer and
to perform legal tasks over the Internet. The impact of these Web based, interactive applications is to save
lawyer time, and often increase lawyer productivity and profit margins, while providing a more satisfying
experience for the client.
Here is a brief summary of interactive law firm applications that online law firms are offering:
Client Extranets. A client extranet is a secure and private space for each client, where the client can
communicate with his or her attorney securely, documents can be archived, the client can check the status
of a case or matter, and legal fee billings can be presented and reviewed, if not actually paid
electronically. A client extranet permits personalization of the client experience; security of
communication; and convenience of having all of one's documents and transactions with the attorney
document and in a private and secure Web space. A client extranet can be costly to create if you program
the entire application yourself. Few lawyers will possess this level of programming skill. A more practical
alternative is to create
6
| www.granat.com | www.mdfamilylawyer.com | www.directlaw.com |
12. give up half a day of work and travel to a lawyer‗s office for advice at the lawyer‗s convenience, not the
consumer‗s.
The pressures to change the patterns of delivery of legal services for consumers will increase dramatically
in the next few years, as a ―connected generation‖ comes of age.
Whatever trends are now in place will accelerate over the coming years as ―the connected generation‖
comes of age and matures into the age where they need legal services. The ―connected generation‖ includes
those born since 1970. It is this generation that has grown up on the Internet and looks to the Internet first,
before checking the Yellow Pages, reaching for a telephone, or consulting with a professional face-to-face.
If the years 1970-1986 are used, as is common in market research, then the size of Generation Y in the
United States is approximately 76 million. Coming right behind this generation is the internet generation
which includes those born since the mid-to-late 1990s. The defining cultural-historical event to distinguish
this cohort is that they spent their formative years in an age of the birth and rise of the Internet. Thus, the
Internet Generation has no recourse to a memory of (or nostalgia for) a pre-Internet history, a factor which
greatly differentiates them from older generations, who had to learn to adapt to 'new' technologies. The
iGeneration simply takes the Internet for granted as 'natural,' with new sites that are launched past 1998
such as MySpace, YouTube, i Film, and the ever-growing use of Internet Forums, Wikipedia and Google as
part of its global cultural ecosystem.
Connected consumers value:
Innovation – the better way;
Immediacy- e.g., I want it now;
Authentication and Trust;
Interactivity defines the culture;
High customization: services and products that fit unique needs.
Consumer behaviors emphasize:
Looking to the Net as the first place to go for seeking information, alternatives, and options;
Comparison sites are a focus;
Consumers want to try before they buy;
Connected consumers look for communities of interest when opinions and information can be
exchanged;
Connected consumers look for digital spaces that are interactive;
Connected consumers would rather interact with a Web site before talking to a professional;
Eventually, consultation with a professional may occur, but only after this digital exploration.
The ―connected generation‖ wants to do business over the Internet with attorneys and intuitively
understand the idea of online legal services.
| www.granat.com | www.mdfamilylawyer.com | www.directlaw.com |
24. eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
Suggested Minimum Requirements for Law Firms Delivering Legal Services Online.
Background
On February 10, 2003, the American Bar Association House of Delegates approved a set of best
practices guidelines for legal information web sites that were developed jointly by the Elawyering
Task Force, ABA Law Practice Management Section and ABA Standing Committee On the
Delivery of Legal Services. The purpose of these guidelines was to improve the quality and
accuracy of legal information published both by law firm web sites and non -law firm legal
information web sites. These guidelines can be found here.
Since then, innovative law firms have sought to deliver legal services directly to clients through
their web sites or to set up what some call - “virtual law offices.” Unlike a simple law firm site that
may have just a description of a firm’s practice, biographical information about the partners and
employees of the firm, and some legal information, a “virtual law firm” is characterized by access
by the firm’s clients to a password protected and secure web space where both the attorney and
client may interact and legal services consumed by the client. Some of these legal tasks may
include the delivery of online legal advice, legal review of documents that have been received by
the client from another party, discussions between the lawyer and the client, and the creation,
assembly, and review of legal documents and forms. Examples of law firms that are delivering
legal services online include: http://illionisdivorce.com; http://www.kimbrolaw.com; and
http://www.mdfamilylawyer.com. As more law firms become interested in adding a “virtual”
dimension to their practice, there is increasing interest in making sure that the “practice” meets
requirements for the delivery of legal services on-line directly to clients.
These minimum requirements are designed to help lawyers resolve these questions so that their
“virtual practices” comply with the applicable professional rules of conduct. Since every state
develops and enforces its own rules for the legal profession, these requirements will be advisory
only.
The following draft requirements provide a framework for further discussion and are likely to
evolve over time as more law firms move their practices online and encounter novel and unique
situations that are not anticipated by rules that were aimed at law firms purely operating in the
physical world.
Suggested Requirements
Law firms that wish to deliver legal services on-line should meet the following requirements:
1. Web Site Architecture: The basic structure of a law firm web site that offers legal
services online requires a secure client web space that is accessible only with a user
name and secure password. Without such a mechanism it is difficult or impossible to
comply with the rules of professional conduct that deal with UPL, client confidentiality,
establishing the lawyer/client relationship, and conflict of interest issues.
.
a. Ethics Issues: The Rules of Professional Responsibility are not revoked just
because you are delivering legal services online and through the law firm’s web
site. Mechanisms such as the following must be put in place:
b. Conflicts of Interest still must be checked.
c. The law firm must not violate UPL rules and must serve only clients who are
residents of the state where the firm is authorized to practice, or clients who have
a matter within the state where the law firm is authorized to practice. A procedure
must be in place to verify that the law firm is authorized to provide service to the
client.
1
Suggested Minimum Requirements for Law Firms Delivering Legal Services Online.
eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
October 15, 2009
25. eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
d. If the state has residency requirements, then the attorney will have to comply
with those by adding a statement to their site that informs the public that there is
no physical law office in that state or that the attorney resides in a state other
than the one in which he or she is offering services.
2. A disclaimer should be published on the site that makes UPL limitations clear.
3. A Terms and Conditions Statement should be published on the public section of the
site that describes precisely limitations on services, the requirements to establish a
lawyer-client relationship, and disclaimers related to the creation of the lawyer-client
relationship. It should make clear that any legal information that appears on the web site
is not legal advice, and that a lawyer/client relationship must be established before any
legal services are provided.
4. The client must accept and agree to a retainer agreement outlining the scope of legal
services at the time they become a client. The acceptance of the retainer agreement
establishes the lawyer/client relationship. The attorney should not provide legal services
until the lawyer/client relationship is established.
a. If the jurisdiction in which the law firm operates has “client-identification” rules,
these rules must be complied with even though the client is an ”on-line” client.
b. Retainer agreements may be handled in different formats online whether that is
through a traditional click-wrap agreement, sending a traditional engagement
letter for signature and then uploading it into the client’s online file, using a digital
signature service on a letter, or creating an online HTML form that requires the
client to click to accept each provision of an engagement letter that is then stored
in their file.
Marketing Rules: The law firm web site must comply with the marketing rules
incorporated into the state’s Rules of Professional Responsibility that apply to the law
firm. This usually requires a disclaimer that the public section of the web site is a form of
advertising. Usually a disclaimer must appear in the footer which indicates that the law
firm’s public web site (the “front-end”) is a form of advertising and information contained
herein should not be relied on for legal advice.
Note: A “best practice” would be adherence to the ABA’s Guidelines for Legal Information
web sites.
5. On-Line Payment of Legal Fees: Payment of legal fees on-line by credit card will have
to comply with the state rules that govern attorney trust accounts.
a. If the method of collecting online payments is such that the attorney is collecting
and storing credit card information on their virtual law practice, it must comply
with federal regulations, such as PCI Compliance.
6. Protecting Client Confidences:
a. All data that is transferred online between the law firm’s web site and the server
must be encrypted.
b. Third-party hosting providers should have policies and procedures in place for security
breaches, data theft, privacy and other concerns.
c. The contract with the hosting provider should make clear under what
circumstances the provider’s staff has access to client files and also make clear
that if the vendor’s staff is accessing client data for technical reasons, they are
functioning as agents of the law firm as if they were the law firm’s internal staff.
2
Suggested Minimum Requirements for Law Firms Delivering Legal Services Online.
eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
October 15, 2009
d. A procedure should be in place that guarantees the security of the firm’s client
26. eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
data, provides for redundant back-ups, and offers a procedure for exporting the
data on behalf of the law firm at the request of the law firm.
:
[There is another set of issues that a law firm must consider when selecting a
hosting provider for the provision of a “Software as a Service” This subject is
beyond the scope of this discussion of minimum requirements.]
:
7. The law firm should consider securing various certifications that confirm the security and
the privacy policy of the web sites, such as the Hacker safe NORTON Safe seal and the
Truste Certificate. These are examples. There are other alternatives which vary in cost.
This would provide notice to the consumer that the law the secure portion of the law
firm’s web site complies with industry standards for security.
We are confident that as law firms respond to the needs of clients who want to deal with attorneys
on-line, they will adapt to delivering services in ways that are consistent with the legal profession
core professional values. Reactions to the draft requirements outlined above would be most
welcome. We also welcome participation in the eLawyering task force. If you are an ABA
member, you can sign up for our email discussion list by visiting
http://www.abanet.org/abanet/common/email/listserv/listcommands.cfm?parm=subscribe&listgrou
p=LPM-E LAW.
Appendix: (To be Completed).
1. Sample Retainer Agreements for On-Line Delivery of Legal Services.
2. Sample Disclaimers
27. eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
3
Suggested Minimum Requirements for Law Firms Delivering Legal Services Online.
eLawyering Task Force | Law Practice Management Section | American Bar Association
October 15, 2009
28. embr 20, 2002
k Force on the Model Definition
he Practice of Law
ei n Bar Assoi ati on
cago, IL 6061
Re Comment on the American Bar Asociation‘s Proposed Mode
r Members of the Task Force
d Stts Dte
C) um er pn T os tn r pu commens
arding its proposed Model Definition of the Practice of Law. The DOJ and the FTC
erstand the definition to be a proposed statute regulation, or court rule, and submit thes
mment spursuantto t
(s
wwftcgov/opp/ecommerce/a
29. geography
tain broad quaifiers For example, the Texas UPL statute states that ―the definition
ii t li nd d t d i t h j u
h this hpter and adjudicated cases to determine wh ether other services and acts not
5
e courts and bar agencies scant guidance when they att empt to apply UPL statutes to
ctice of law have come up with severa l different tests. For example
itionally performed 6 There are a number of exceptions to this test such s permitting
lr t fr iiti
professin or busness of the nonlawyer. Another exception to the commonly underst
allows lay people to provide services that are commonly understood o be the practice of
ong as those services do n
p p p
8 Aothr test ud t dfi th ti f l f n th iten f ttn
t2o
he Supreme Court
e.va.us/drs/upl/preface.htm
30. , ,
authid ti fl ttt t tt it c e i eyd i i b y
nts, bankers,
1
ordingly we urge the ABA not to adopt the current proposed Defin tion which in our
gment, is overbroad and could restrain competition between lawyers and nonlawyers to
vide similar services to American consumers. If adopted by state governments, the p
inition is likely to raise costs for consumers and limit their competitive choices. T
dence before the ABA of which we are aware that cons
posed Model Definiton be substantially narrowed or rejected
In doing so, we rge the Task Force to consider carefully wha specific harms the Mo
finition is designed to address, whether the Definition is appropriately tailored to addressi se
harms, and whether the elimination of any such harms would outweigh the reductio
yernonlawyer competition that could occur if any state adopted the proposed Model finition.
Neither the proposed Model Definition nor the Prsident‘s Challenge Statemen ompanies the
proposed Model Definition provides a clear articulation of the har
inition seeks to address. Com ent 1 of the proposed Model Definition notes only in
ms that ―The primary consideration in defining the practice of law is the protection of th
lic‖ The Challenge Statement in turn indicates that:
[T]here are an increasing number of situations where nonlawyers are providing servi
that are difficult to categorize under current statutes and case law as being, or not
the delivery of legal services This growing gray area may be partially
responsible fo spy p
ar bg (
g u a
em hasis added) an increa
y p snn b roae d npo l mr l t dt
i g um e f t n a tr be seae
delivery of services by nonlawyers
skill of
a
person trained i
rts to protect consumers in such situations. Nonetheless, while there ma y be le gitim
m elated to the delivery of certain legal services by nonlawyers, the DOJ and th
t consumers generally benefit from lawyer-non lawyer competition in the provi
vices This comment will address the agencies‘ interest in the proposed Definiti
its potential deleterous effect in the areas of real estate closing services and e -
W l nt id it f thr a i hh th d
rs We conclude that the proposed definition is not in the public interest be
es on consumers by limit ng competition are likely much greater than any
atit prevents
mfietitive Efforts to Restrict Comfiet tion on the Internet: Federal
ti
32. The Interest and Experience of the US Department
of Justice and the Fedral Trade Commii
Th DOJ and the FTC are entrusted with enforcing the federal antitrust laws
y The United States Supreme Court has observed that, ―ultimately, compettion w
t only lower prices but lso better goods and servics. ‗The heart of our natio
policy long has been faith in the value of competition. 12 Competition benefits
of both traditional manufacturing industries and services offered by the learned
13 Restraining competit
ether, the DOJ and the FTC have become increasingly concerned about efforts to
nlawyers from competing with at orneys in th
f U authorized Practice of Law opinions and laws by state bar agencies cou
n addressing these concerns, the DOJ and the FTC encourge competitio
letters such as this one The DOJ and the FTC have been concerned
attempts to restrict nonlawyer compeition in real estate closings, and have
Kentucky, Virg nia, Rhode Island, and North Carolina to reject such
gh letters to their State Bars (state agencies) and legislatures and through an
f filed with
in court attempts b y bar associations to restrain competiton from non
l Society of Professional Engineers v. United States, 435 US. 679, 695 (1978)
Oil Co v FTC , 34 0 US 231, 248 (1950)) accord Federal Trade Commissi
t T ri l Laers Associ ti o 4 9 3 US 4
v. Virginia State Bar, 421 U.S. 773, 787 (975); National Society of Professi
435 U.S
er from DO J and FTC to Speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatves
2002) Ltt fm DOJ ad FTC t Psdt of the Nrth oa t
) etter from DOJ and FTC to Ethics Committee of the North Carolina St
Brief Amicus Curiae of the United States of f
20KB (Ky filed Feb 29 200
oc to (un , eptr , 9); tt
of Virginia (Jan 3 1997) L f DO d TC Viii S
, 96). The Rhode slad, North Carona, and Virginia etters may be fou
ments web site at http//www.usdoj.gov//bi//
p
n at http://wwwusdoj gov/atr/publi/comments/comments.ht m ad e
reme Court at http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/f4400/4491.htm.
s v. Allen County Indiana Bar Assn, the DOJ sued and obtained a jud
o
33. alnged antico mpetit ve restrictions on certain business practices of lawyer
ern hasled us to submit these comments
The Proposed Model Defin tion
edModel Definition woulddefine ―the practice of law‖as
[The application of legal principles and judgment with regard to the circumstances o
ectives of a person that require the knowledge and skill of a person trained in the
of th Dfiitin ― i m
(1) Giving advice or counsel to persons as to their lega rights or
respnsibilities or to those of others;
(2) Selecting, drafting, or completing legal documents or agreements that
(3) Represeng peo bere an jd
limited t i f i l i d u t s
34. (3) S litator; and
fessional Conduct.20
conduct also must be targeted towar
courts have he d that th
Definition further notes tha
and cr mina penalties
Comtition Between Lawyers and Nonlawyers for Many Services
from offering a number of service
and related matters; wills, trusts and estates; and numerous other reas. Many of thes
services, while not ―requir[ing] the knowledge and skill of a person trained in the law,‖ app
nonetheless to fall within the Model Def nition‘s list of four typ s of conduct that are pr
to be ―the prac ice of law‖
nce, and they provide a specific and fertile example of how the proposed Model
Defnition would result in significant consumer harm. The proposed Model Defin tion h
potential to prohibit or to limit the lay proision of real estate closing services. Under section
(c)(2) of the Definition, lay persons apparently would be practicing law if they selected, dra
or completed certain closing documents. Likewise, Section (c)(1) does not cearly def ne
meant by ―Giving advice or counsel ‖ as opposed, for example, to providing information
the proposed Model Definition, lay persons may not be permitted to answer certain questions
abou a purchaser‘s mortgage obligations and other related matters (or simply may be chilled
from
19As
authorized nonlawyer agent of the ntty in tho e jurisdictions that permit such representation.‖
Idc at Comment 2.
20 Idc at § (d).
2 Id
35. te these clauses during the purchase process. Realtors often explain what is required by
state law to obtn a smoke detector cert ficate, a termite certificate, and other certificates
required by law for the purchase and sale of a home. Under Section (c) of the proposed Model
Definition, all of these a tivities could be considered giving people advice about their legal rig
and responsibilities (Section (c)(1)), negotiating legal rights on behalf of people (Section (c)(4)),
or ―selecting, drafting or completing‖ legal documents or agreements affecting people's
(Section (c)(2)).
consumers use inexpensive electronic software to complete wills, trusts, and other leg
documents This software might be considered the practie of law under the proposed M
Definition because these applications assist in the ―selection‖ and ―drafting‖ of certain
documents, and provide lgal information and/or advice. Even though the software is prod
for a mass audience and the proposed Model Definition indicates that conduct ―must be targeted
toward the circumstances or objectives of a secific person‖ in order to be the practice of law, w
are concerned that a state agency or court could conceivably view the interactive nature of these
programs as rising to the level of legal practice.
Consumers also obtain information or assistance regarding wills and trusts from other
sources. Hospitals and other organizations essentially compete with lawyers by providing liv
will forms that prospective patients may complete. In some cases, these forms mi ght be
―selected‖ and ―drafted‖ by the hospital and given to the patient by their physician. This practice
arguably would be considered ―the practice of law‖ under the proposed Model Definition.
C Tenants‘ associations informing renters of landlords‘ and tenants‘ le
responsibilities, oft n in the con
C Experienced lay employes advising their employer about what their firm must do to
comply w th state labor laws or safety regulations;
C Income tax preparers and accountants inte preting f deral and state tax codes family law
code and general partnersh p laws and provding advice t their clients that incorporates
this legal informa ion; and
C Investment bankers and other business planner
includes information about various laws
The proposed M de Definition argu bl would over each of these pratices nd thu
could preclude or inhibit nonlawyers from continu
Model Definition were to be adopted by any state Moreover to the extent the Model Definition
is vague an mbiguous poilit y sts that st gencie co will proh