The Digital Edge

68-73% of lawyers use iPhones and those aren’t the only Apple products pervading the legal industry. The use of iPads for law has also become more and more common. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Brett Burney about the latest Apple products and how they can serve lawyers. From face ID to the benefits of iOS 11, they share which Apple tools will sav...

Because they are unfamiliar with the technology, many lawyers are nervous about the growing popularity of artificial and augmented intelligence. However, others are welcoming the changes this technology will bring to the practice of law. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Brian Kuhn, global co-leader for the IBM Watson legal practice, about why lawyer...

Introducing technology to legal education could be the key to inspiring innovation in the legal industry. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Darin Fox about how he sees technology functioning in legal education. They discuss the program Darin oversees at the University of Oklahoma, how the recession affected the use of legal technology, and potential...

As a lawyer, managing research, marketing, and even organizing your thoughts can potentially result in chaos. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Heidi Alexander about Evernote and how it can help lawyers stay organized. They discuss what Evernote is, what sets it apart from other note-taking programs, and examples of how lawyers are currently using it...

It’s no secret that access to justice is a significant issue within the legal industry, but when did lawyers first recognize the problem and how are they working to solve it? In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway discuss low bono legal services with Shantelle Argyle, executive director of Open Legal Services. Their discussion includes the unintended consequences...

The legal industry has operated as a seller’s market for so long that some lawyers don’t know how to handle the recent trend towards accommodating clients. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Jordan Furlong about what has driven the shift to a consumer-focused market, the new players that are breaking onto the scene as a result, and how law firms, both...

A number of lawyers are nervous about artificial intelligence (AI) replacing their jobs in the near future, but most don’t understand AI. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to Mark Tamminga who defines artificial intelligence and what its growing popularity means for lawyers. Their discussion includes the big players in the AI industry, the future of tec...

You don’t actually need to worry about a robot taking your job. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Jim Calloway and Sharon Nelson talk to Andrew Arruda, CEO of ROSS Intelligence, about how artificial intelligence assists lawyers, not replaces them. Their conversation includes what ROSS is, the biggest misconceptions surrounding AI, and the biggest challenges facing legal technology adoptio...

Does quality writing really make you a better lawyer? On this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway discuss legal writing with Gary Kinder, founder of the editing program WordRake. Together, they explore lawyers’ biggest writing errors, why this is important in the courtroom, and how writing well can help build a positive reputation for a firm. In their conclusion of th...

While 600 alternative business structure (ABS) licenses have been granted in the U.K., American law firms hesitate to pick up the strategy. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk to David Beech, CEO of Knights, a professional services firm with a successful ABS. In his discussion he expands on common fears associated with ABS, how community makes ABS thrive,...

Struggling to find the perfect gadget for that tech savvy attorney in your life? Perhaps you’re trying to figure out exactly what to get a very special lawyer who seemingly has everything? In this edition of The Digital Edge, Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway share all of their top tech toys and gifting goodies to help you spice up the law firm this holiday season. Special thanks to our sponsors, Ser...

Starting, or running, a law firm requires legal know how and business acumen. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk with Oregon State Bar Professional Liability Fund Practice Management Advisor Sheila Blackford about her advice for attorneys seeking to better manage their client trust accounts. Sheila Blackford is an attorney and practice management advisor...

Many lawyers are familiar with the varied services and resources that the American Bar Association provides to their members around the country. In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk with Vandenack Williams LLC. founder Mary Vandenack about the American Bar Association Future of Legal Services commission, the data found in that study, and how those findings...

As the demographics that make up our society continue to shift, the question of diversity in the legal profession continues to grow in prominence. How would an increase in diversity benefit law firms and what can attorneys do to promote that change within the profession? In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk with KM Advisors, LLC Managing Director John Mitc...

In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk with PayneGroup CEO Donna Payne about ways attorneys can better handle their metadata. Donna reminisces about starting her company in 1998, the client experience that inspired the creation of her Metadata Assistant software, and The Wall Street Journal’s front page article mention that resulted in 150,000 downloads. She...

In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway speak with Legal Technology Consultant Andrew Adkins about his time as chief information officer for the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. Andy reflects on his 23 years as a technology consultant and gives a brief breakdown of the variables that led to his move to West Virginia and employment with Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. T...

As the legal marketplace becomes more globalized, many lawyers are venturing out and starting their own law firms. However, many attorneys also establish law firms without creating a company-wide strategic business plan to help guide future growth and company development. How do attorneys create a strategic business plan for their firm and what are the best ways to implement that plan? In this epi...

The large volume of data that many law firms handle makes utilizing cloud computing services a very enticing prospect. What ethical standards should lawyers expect these companies to abide by? What should lawyers look for in a cloud computing provider? In this episode of The Digital Edge, hosts Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway speak with Clio founder and CEO Jack Newton and Rocket Matter founder and...

Over the past 100 years technology has made enormous leaps toward improving the ease of everyday living for the average citizen. This progress has also been reflected in the legal profession as tech becomes more integrated into the working lives of lawyers. However, in what ways has technology improved the profession and how can technological advancements aid us in the future? In this special cent...

Recently, the legal publishing company Fastcase received a takedown notice from the parent company of another publishing company, Casemaker, claiming they had exclusive rights to distribute, for commercial use, the Georgia Administrative Rules and Regulations. Fastcase CEO Ed Walters was surprised by this demand, because public law is not copyrightable. As a response, Ed decided to initiate litiga...

In 2009, the American Bar Association created the Commission on Ethics 20/20 to examine in depth how changes in technology affect the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. The commission made many recommendations and, most notably, the ABA modified Rule 1.1 regarding lawyer competence. In the new version, Rule 1.1 Comment 8 reads “To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a lawyer should k...

30 years ago, the legal community began to see the value in the intersection between technology and the law. Lawyers are now using new software and tech devices more than ever in their practices and the courtroom, making the ABA TECHSHOW’s 30th anniversary valuable to anyone working in the legal field. So what’s going on this year? In this episode of The Digital Edge, Sharon Nelson and Jim Callowa...

“The question is not can a machine exhibit empathy or judgement but instead for what problems are empathy, judgement, or creativity the solution?” -Richard Susskind After years of writing and thinking about the future of the legal profession, Richard Susskind began to run into legal professionals whose careers are being affected by technology. In addition to lawyers, those in the medical, architec...

With the data breaches and ransomware that has plagued law firms (and other companies) of all sizes recently, clients and firm managers alike are seeking more advanced data security. Certifications like the ISO 27001 provide guidelines and standards for how to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the information your firm holds. But what does implementing the high level of c...

How do people find lawyers these days? Although many attorneys believe they are discovered through a Google or Bing search, legal service consumers are actually still taking recommendations from people they know and trust. But technology has added a multitude of new ways that people perform research and journey to find lawyers. Potential clients will likely search for the lawyer or law firm’s webs...