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The Researching Paralegal

~ Articles and Research for Legal Professionals

The Researching Paralegal

Tag Archives: Legal Technology

Need to Turn Your iPad Into Second Monitor? There’s an App for That.

22 Monday Aug 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Technology, Time Management, Windows

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

LawSites Blog, Legal Technology, Robert Ambrogi

This App Turns Your iPad Into a Second Monitor, by Robert Ambrogi, LawSites Blog

http://www.lawsitesblog.com/2016/08/app-turns-ipad-second-monitor.html

When you start using two monitors, many of us are hooked. My favorite feature is the ability to drag documents and websites back and forth. Imagine having a spreadsheet or other document open on one screen, and the document or source of the information you need on the other screen. If you need to keep an eye on email or your docketing calendar, you can keep it up on one screen and work using the other. (If you do not have a second monitor, you can access your other open windows using Alt-Tab.)

I can understand why Mr. Ambrogi is excited about this app. -CCE

I am so dependent on a second monitor that I no longer feel productive without one. That can be a problem when I am away from my office. It is especially a problem when I travel and am hunkered down in a hotel room with important work to get done.

Then I discovered Duet Display, the app that turns your iPad into a monitor.

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Why Creating A Timeline Will Help Your Case.

04 Monday Jul 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Legal Technology, Litigation, Timelines, Trial Tips and Techniques

≈ Comments Off on Why Creating A Timeline Will Help Your Case.

Tags

Cogent Legal Blog, Legal Technology, Litigation, Morgan Smith, Timeline

How to Create a Timeline For Your Case: First Steps to Take and Choices to Make, by Morgan Smith, Cogent Legal Blog

http://cogentlegal.com/blog/2011/08/how-to-create-a-timeline-for-your-case/

In litigation, almost every case will benefit from a timeline that lays out key facts and circumstances in a chronological order. The process of making a timeline can help you, the attorney, organize and strengthen your argument, and the end result is a clear and compelling visual presentation that will help all parties involved better understand your case.

But, which program should you use to create it? This is one question where there is simply no single best answer, and a lot depends on the forum you intend to use the timeline in. This post covers some benefits and drawbacks to different timeline tools and formats so you can determine which to use. To see a variety of timeline samples, please our timeline and portfolio sections of our website.

Continue reading →

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More Extensions and Add-On’s To Make Your Day More Productive.

12 Tuesday Apr 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Extensions and Add-Ons, Legal Technology

≈ Comments Off on More Extensions and Add-On’s To Make Your Day More Productive.

Tags

Legal Productivity Blog, Legal Technology, Tim Baran

Productivity in Your Browser: Extensions and Add-Ons for Lawyers, by Tim Baran, Legal Productivity

http://www.legalproductivity.com/practice-management/browser-extensions-legal/

Do these things really make us more productive? For me, sometimes yes and sometimes no, but always worth checking out. -CCE

Extensions and add-ons increase productivity by adding new features and enhancing the functionality of web browsers and applications. Here are a few that lawyers will find useful.

Continue reading →

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More Ways To Use The Versatility of Evernote.

06 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Evernote, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Note Taking, Office Procedures, Technology

≈ Comments Off on More Ways To Use The Versatility of Evernote.

Tags

Evernote, Law Office Management, Legal Productivity, Legal Technology, Tim Baran

How Lawyers Use Evernote, by Tim Baran, Legal Productivity®

http://www.legalproductivity.com/practice-management/evernote-lawyers/

Evernote has so much potential. I have barely scratched the surface. This is a tool I definitely want to use and know more about. -CCE

Evernote is more than a note-taking application. We use it to store ideas, recordings, projects, tasks, images…The list is as comprehensive as we want it to be. Evernote allows us to offload our brain and organize our lives.

And how do lawyers use Evernote? I asked a few Evernote-loving lawyers. Here are their stories.

Continue reading →

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One-Click Microsoft Word Macros.

31 Monday Aug 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Legal Technology, Microsoft Office, Word

≈ Comments Off on One-Click Microsoft Word Macros.

Tags

J.D. Sartain, Legal Technology, Macros, Max Productivity, Microsoft Word, PC World, Tables

Word Macros: Three Examples To Automate Your Documents, by J.D. Sartain, Max Productivity, PC World

http://tinyurl.com/omvsjwl

Word macros are one-click wonders that let you program complex procedures to launch at your bidding. Here are a few examples to get you started. One creates your company letterhead; the second one inserts pre-formatted tables; and the third one defines and designs custom book formats. . . .

Continue reading →

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App Resources – Save Time and Plug In!

27 Thursday Aug 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Apps, Cell Phones, Emails, iPhones, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Time Management

≈ Comments Off on App Resources – Save Time and Plug In!

Tags

Belle Beth Cooper, Buffer Blog, iOS Apps, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, RSS, Shawn J. Roberts, Social media

The Beginner’s Guide to Putting the Internet to Work for You: How to Easily Save 60 Minutes Every Day, by Belle Beth Cooper, Buffer Blog (with hat tip to Shawn J. Roberts)

http://tinyurl.com/ncu683v

So many great ideas and useful apps, even if you are not tech savvy. This is stuff you can, and should, use right now. -CCE

One of the most fun and useful things I’ve been doing lately is automating small processes I do all the time. It took me a while to work up the courage to dive into automation, as it always seemed like a really difficult, technical thing to do, which should be left to programmers.

Luckily, there are lots of tools being created lately to make automation easier for those of us without a solid understanding of how our computers really work. . . .

Continue reading →

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OneNote 2007 — Technology Suitable For Your Next Trial Notebook?

23 Sunday Aug 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Legal Technology, OneNote, Trial Notebooks

≈ Comments Off on OneNote 2007 — Technology Suitable For Your Next Trial Notebook?

Tags

Bruce A. Olson, Legal Technology, LLC, OneNote 2007, ONLAW Trial Technologies, Trial Notebooks

The Trial Lawyer’s Electronic Notebook, by Bruce A. Olson, ONLAW Trial Technologies, LLC (Applies to Microsoft Office OneNote 2007)

http://tinyurl.com/p259x62

In my experience, it is rare to find two lawyers who prepare exactly the same way for trial. Some folks still adhere to tradition – banker’s boxes filled with pleadings, witness files, deposition transcriptions, etc. Others rely solely on technology, which is great as long as the judge’s courtroom has adequate resources and space. Others prefer a combination of the two.

Certainly, if your jury is filled with younger people, please use technology rather than cumbersome foam boards on easels for presentations to the jury. Otherwise, you will likely bore them to death and quickly lose their attention.

I found this example intriguing because it uses OneNote. Granted it is the 2007 version, but it still gives an excellent example of how to use this type of technology to organize a trial notebook. I am not saying this is the only type of technology that can be used in to prepare trial notebooks. Hopefully it will give you inspiration to try this method or another type of technology at trial. -CCE

My opposing counsel kept looking at me with obvious envy as I made my argument to the judge why certain key evidence should be excluded from the trial we were involved in. I could tell from the look on the attorney’s face that he was puzzled how I could refer to portions of the record, prior witness testimony, exhibits, case law, and a brief that I had previously submitted, all without a single piece of paper in front of me. The only thing I used was my laptop and a mouse. He sat at a table with loose papers piled haphazardly, manila folders strewn about, and a Bankers Box on the floor, stuffed to overflowing. . . .

Continue reading →

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Big Brother Pilot Program Comes To Watchell Lipton Rosen & Katz.

22 Saturday Aug 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Law Office Management, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Management, Office Procedures, Time Management

≈ Comments Off on Big Brother Pilot Program Comes To Watchell Lipton Rosen & Katz.

Tags

Big Brother, BNA Bloomberg Blog, Casey Sullivan, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz

Wachtell Lipton To Start Tracking Employee Work Status, by Casey Sullivan, BNA Bloomberg Blog

https://bol.bna.com/wachtell-lipton-to-start-tracking-employee-work-status/

This firm has a philosophy – treat its lawyers like grown ups with no billable hour requirement and other perks. Now they appear to have a problem finding their attorneys.

Who gets the job of tracking the attorneys? Their assistants, of course. Will this encourage a great working relationship between the assistants and their supervising attorneys? Probably not.

How long do you think this pilot program will last, and will other firms follow their example? -CCE

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz will start a pilot program next week, requiring its assistants to report the status and location of the firm’s attorneys each morning, according to an internal memo leaked to the legal blog Above the Law.

Still unknown: how Wachtell plans to use the information it gathers?

From the memo: ‘The lack of awareness of the status and/or location of our colleagues results in staffing and work-related complications and other concerns.’

It also explained the process. The assistants would have an icon on their computers that would include a variety of options, such as ‘working from home,’ ‘traveling on business,’ and ‘leave of absence,’ and they will be required to input the status and location of their assigned attorneys. . . .

Continue reading →

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Regret Hitting Send or Hitting It Too Quickly? Finally, A Way To “Undo Send” In Gmail.

05 Sunday Jul 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Emails, Legal Technology

≈ Comments Off on Regret Hitting Send or Hitting It Too Quickly? Finally, A Way To “Undo Send” In Gmail.

Tags

cloudnine™, Doug Austin, eDiscoverydaily, Email, Gmail, Legal Technology

Think Before You Hit Send (Unless You’re On Gmail and are Really Fast): eDiscovery Trends. by Doug Austin, eDiscoverydaily, powered by cloudnine™

http://tinyurl.com/q8hmrvu

Let’s face it, people make mistakes. However, a new feature from Google may help people who make those mistakes avoid the consequences – if they’re quick to address them.

As covered on Fortune.com (Gmail now officially lets you ‘Undo Send’ those really embarrassing e-mails, by Kia Kokalitcheva), Gmail, Google’s e-mail service, has officially added its ‘Undo Send’ feature to the Web-based version of the service. . . .

Continue reading →

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More Goodies from iPhone J.D.

27 Saturday Jun 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Apps, Cell Phones, iPad, iPhones, Legal Technology, Passwords

≈ Comments Off on More Goodies from iPhone J.D.

Tags

Apple Watch, iOS9, iPhone Apps, iPhone J.D. Blog, Jeff Richardson, Legal Technology

In the news, by Jeff Richardson, iPhone J.D. Blog

http://www.iphonejd.com/iphone_jd/2015/06/in-the-news297.html

The latest and greatest from Jeff Richardson. Good discussion on ways to make text messages look good at trial. New iPhone apps. The sale on the password manager app is too good to pass up. I particularly like the idea of using the Apple Watch for map directions. As always, Mr. Richardson shares the good stuff. -CCE

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How Many Types of Metadata Can You Name?

27 Saturday Jun 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Diligence, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Metadata, Technology

≈ Comments Off on How Many Types of Metadata Can You Name?

Tags

Bow Tie Law Blog, Joshua Gilliland, Legal Technology, Metadata

Production of System Metadata, by Joshua Gilliland, Bow Tie Law Blog

https://bowtielaw.wordpress.com/2015/06/27/production-of-system-metadata/

Have you ever been bit because you ignored metadata? Hands?

The legal profession is embracing technology to the point where it is considered a lawyer’s duty to know it, understand it, and use it. Paralegals and other legal staff, I am talking to you too.

Do you know what metadata is or how many types there are? This post is a good illustration of why all types of metadata should be on your radar. -CCE

A New York state judge confronted the issue of producing system metadata in a medical malpractice case where the plaintiff had to have a foot amputated due to post surgical complications. Vargas v Lee (Sup.Ct.) 2015 NY Slip Op 31048(U), ¶¶ 3-5. The case is direct and thoughtful on the issue of system metadata. . . .

Continue reading →

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Let’s Think About Going Paperless.

19 Friday Jun 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Economics, File Naming Conventions, Law Office Management, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Office Procedures, Scanners, Technology, Technology, Time Management

≈ Comments Off on Let’s Think About Going Paperless.

Tags

Andrew Kucera, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Rocket Matter, Scanners, Tim Baran

How One Law Firm Went Paperless: An Interview with Andrew Kucera, by Tim Baran, Rocket Matter

http://tinyurl.com/noy2suz

For years, law firms have talked about going “paperless.” It took some time to catch on. Scanners were sometimes more trouble than they were worth. It took money and many hours to convert all the files to a paperless system. It sounded like a good idea, but not everyone was convinced.

Things have changed. These days, going paperless makes good sense and good economics. No more filing or indexing pleadings? I can live with that.

This post from Rocket Matter makes good sense. If you decide to go that route, do not start until you look into file naming conventions. Pick one that is logical and easy to understand. Now you are on your way. -CCE

While putting together the Paperless Law Office E-Book, we thought, who better to learn from than a firm who went through the process? So we interviewed Andrew Kucera who was instrumental in helping move six-person Cuttone & Kucera, PC (now, Cuttone & Associates), a real estate and business law firm in Fresno, California, to a paperless operation. . . .

Continue reading →

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Lawyers Have Ethical Duty To Ensure Password Security.

19 Friday Jun 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Cybersecurity, Legal Technology, Passwords

≈ Comments Off on Lawyers Have Ethical Duty To Ensure Password Security.

Tags

iPhone J.D., Jeff Richardson, Legal Technology, Password Managers, Passwords

Hackers Are Hacking; You Need A Password Manager, by Jeff Richardson, iPhone J.D.

http://tinyurl.com/ofet7ar

Password security has been in the news again this week, and I’m using this as an opportunity to remind all iPhone J.D. readers — especially all of us attorneys with a duty a protect confidential attorney-client information — that we ought to be using complex, different passwords. . . .

Continue reading →

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Excellent Argument About Technology and Citation Placement.

13 Saturday Jun 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Brief Writing, Citations, E-Briefs, E-Briefs, E-Filing, Footnotes, iPad, Laptop, Legal Technology, Legal Writing, Mac, Microsoft Office, PC Computers, Readability, Tablets

≈ Comments Off on Excellent Argument About Technology and Citation Placement.

Tags

Brian Garner, Brief Writing, Citing Legally Blog, E-Briefs, E-Filing, Legal Citations, Legal Technology, Legal Writing, Peter Martin

If the Judge Will Be Reading My Brief on a Screen, Where Should I Place My Citations? by Peter Martin, Jane M.G. Foster Professor of Law, Emeritus, Cornell Law School, Citing Legally Blog

http://citeblog.access-to-law.com/?p=149

 

As pointed out in this article, more courts require e-filing and are using tablets and other technology to read what you file. If you do not use technology, then you do not know how your document appears on the screen. It is quite different than reading something on a printed page.

So what to do? Keep writing as you always have and ignore changes brought about by technology or adjust? -CCE

A. Introduction

In a prior post I explored how the transformation of case law to linked electronic data undercut Brian Garner’s longstanding argument that judges should place their citations in footnotes. As that post promised, I’ll now turn to Garner’s position as it applies to writing that lawyers prepare for judicial readers. . . .

Continue reading →

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iPhone Weather App – Will It Help Me Dodge Tornados And Floods?

28 Thursday May 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Apps, iPad, iPhones, Legal Technology, Mac

≈ Comments Off on iPhone Weather App – Will It Help Me Dodge Tornados And Floods?

Tags

iPhone, iPhone App, J.D., Jeff Richardson, Legal Technology, Weather Line

Review: Weather Line — iPhone weather app, by Jeff Richardson, iPhone, J.D.

http://www.iphonejd.com/iphone_jd/2015/05/review-weather-line.html

You might have heard that folks here in Oklahoma and other states are having a spot of trouble with the weather. If it is not hail or tornados, it’s flooding.

Our weather channels are doing a great job, but I have not found my current weather app that useful. This one looks as if it might do the job. -CCE

There are a ridiculous number of iPhone apps that can tell you the weather.  I have purchased a whole bunch of them, partly because weather apps are inherently useful, but also because whenever I find one with an interface or a feature that I like, it is often not long before another one comes along that seems like it might be better.  But for quite a while now, I’ve stuck with just one Weather app on the home screen of my iPhone:  Weather Line, which is currently on sale for only $1.99.  Here’s why this has been my favorite weather app, and perhaps it will appeal to you as well. . . .

Continue reading →

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A New Way To Get The Latest Adobe Acrobat Software – Acrobat DC.

28 Thursday May 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Adobe Acrobat, Legal Technology

≈ Comments Off on A New Way To Get The Latest Adobe Acrobat Software – Acrobat DC.

Tags

Acrobat DC, Acrobat for Legal Professionals Blog, Adobe Acrobat, Legal Technology, Rick Borstein

A New Way To Buy Acrobat DC: Subscription, by Rick Borstein, Acrobat for Legal Professionals Blog

http://blogs.adobe.com/acrolaw/

Adobe Acrobat is one of sharpest tools used in a law office. It would definitely be on my list of indispensable technology. I keep hearing about Acrobat DC, but have not had the opportunity to run it through its paces. Which option is more practical? Buying the license or trying the subscription route?

For those of you who are interested in the many various ways you can use Adobe Acrobat – any version – look to your right at the website. You might see something you like. -CCE

Before going further, I need to make sure that you know that you certainly can continue to buy and upgrade Acrobat as you have in the past without buying a subscription.

Subscription is a new additional purchase option for Acrobat.

Adobe has other software subscription offerings such as the Creative Cloud. The idea of subscription software is new to some folks, so I thought I would offer some background here and discuss some factors you might consider in making a decision of Buy versus Subscribe.

Note that purchase considerations will vary quite a bit between an individual or small firm and that of a large enterprise and that the opinions below are my own. . . .

Continue reading →

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Yes, Lawyers Have An Ethical Duty Of Technology Competence.

23 Saturday May 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Law Office Management, Legal Ethics, Rules of Professional Responsibility, Technology, Technology

≈ Comments Off on Yes, Lawyers Have An Ethical Duty Of Technology Competence.

Tags

Law Sites Blog, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Luddite, Model Rules of Professional Conduct, Robert Ambrogi, Technology Competence

13 States Have Adopted Ethical Duty of Technology Competence, by Robert Ambrogi, Law Sites Blog

http://www.lawsitesblog.com/2015/03/11-states-have-adopted-ethical-duty-of-technology-competence.html

If this standard has not yet hit your state, it is only a matter of time. If technology intimidates you, take a deep breath and jump in. I promise the water is nice and warm. As technology has evolved, it has become more intuitive, which makes it easier to learn.

Regardless of whatever excuse you use to avoid updating technology in your law office, you cannot avoid the requirement imposed by an ethical duty. It is not a question of whether your state’s bar association will adopt this standard – it’s when.

Paralegals and other legal support staff — same goes for us too. -CCE

[Update: It is now 14 states. See my 3/27/15 post on the rule’s adoption in Massachusetts.]

In 2012, something happened that I called a sea change in the legal profession: The American Bar Association formally approved a change to the Model Rules of Professional Conduct to make clear that lawyers have a duty to be competent not only in the law and its practice, but also in technology. . . .

Continue reading →

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Let’s Play With Apple’s Menu Bar.

23 Saturday May 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Legal Technology, Mac

≈ Comments Off on Let’s Play With Apple’s Menu Bar.

Tags

Apple, How To Geek, Legal Technology, Menu Bar

The HTG Guide to (Probably) Everything You Can Show on OS X’s Menu Bar, How To Geek Blog

http://www.howtogeek.com/217372/the-htg-guide-to-probably-everything-you-can-show-on-os-xs-menu-bar/

Apple’s operating system’s menu bar is truly old school; it’s been around for as long as there have been Macintoshes. The menu bar is extensible, though some users may not realize just how much, so we’ll show you the many ways you can add functionality to it.

If you have ever heard anyone use the phrase ‘the more things change, the more they stay the same’ then they could have been very well talking about Apple’s menu bar.

*     *     *

The menu bar can be extended with a wide array of clickable icons for quick access to system preferences.

Today, the menu bar lets you add all kinds of extra functionality to it. You can easily check your Mac’s energy status (particularly helpful if you’re using a laptop), or you can start Time Machine backups, or log into another account with fast user switching, etc.

In fact, many of the System Preferences have icons you can add, and many applications will also use the menu bar so users have convenient access to features and functions.

In this article, we’re going to show and talk about all the different things you can add to the menu bar using only what you’ll find in the system preferences. This includes not only the things we’ve already mentioned, but all the other preference menu bar items we could find. . . .

Continue reading →

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Teensy Change To Rule 41 Would Change Scope of Technology Search Warrants.

22 Sunday Feb 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Computer Forensics, Criminal Law, Cybersecurity, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Law Enforcement, Legal Technology, PC Computers, Rule 41, Search Warrants

≈ Comments Off on Teensy Change To Rule 41 Would Change Scope of Technology Search Warrants.

Tags

Advisory Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure, beSpacific Blog., Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Google, Law Enforcement, Legal Technology, Richard Salgado, Rule 41, Sabrina I. Pacifici, Search Warrant

Small Rule Change That Could Give the U.S. Government Sweeping New Warrant Power, posted by Richard Salgado, Legal Director, Law Enforcement and Information Security, by Sabrina I Pacifici, BeSpacific Blog

http://www.bespacific.com/small-rule-change-give-u-s-government-sweeping-new-warrant-power/

‘At the request of the Department of Justice, a little-known body — the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure — is proposing a significant change to procedural rules that could have profound implications for the privacy rights and security interests of everyone who uses the Internet. Last week, Google filed comments opposing this change. It starts with the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41, an arcane but important procedural rule on the issuance of search warrants. Today, Rule 41 prohibits a federal judge from issuing a search warrant outside of the judge’s district, with some exceptions. The Advisory Committee’s proposed change would significantly expand those exceptions in cases involving computers and networks. The proposed change would allow the U.S. government to obtain a warrant to conduct ‘remote access’ searches of electronic storage media if the physical location of the media is ‘concealed through technological means,’ or to facilitate botnet investigations in certain circumstances. The implications of this expansion of warrant power are significant, and are better addressed by Congress. First, in setting aside the traditional limits under Rule 41, the proposed amendment would likely end up being used by U.S. authorities to directly search computers and devices around the world. Even if the intent of the proposed change is to permit U.S. authorities to obtain a warrant to directly access and retrieve data only from computers and devices within the U.S., there is nothing in the proposed change to Rule 41 that would prevent access to computers and devices worldwide. The U.S. has many diplomatic arrangements in place with other countries to cooperate in investigations that cross national borders, including Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs). Google supports ongoing efforts to improve cooperation among governments, and we are concerned that the proposed change to Rule 41 could undermine those efforts. The significant foreign relations issues associated with the proposed change to Rule 41 should be addressed by Congress and the President, not the Advisory Committee.’

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Jim Calloway’s New Legal Technology Column – This Will Be A “Must Read!”

11 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Technology, Time Management

≈ Comments Off on Jim Calloway’s New Legal Technology Column – This Will Be A “Must Read!”

Tags

Jim Calloway, Jim Calloway's Law Practice Tips Blog, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Time Management

It’s Time To Love Technology, by Jim Calloway, Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog

http://www.lawpracticetipsblog.com/2015/01/ime-to-love-technology.html

Lawyers tend to have a love/hate relationship with technology. Of course, that’s often true for any of us who use today’s technology for our work. But for many lawyers, these feelings are quite pronounced and, without offering any amateur psychological diagnosis, I feel many members of the legal profession evidence a split personality when using technology.

So begins my column, It’s Time To Love Technology, in the January/February issue of Law Practice Magazine. I know that statement is easier for me to say, having an interest in technology rather than the very-typical lawyer aversion to technology. But it is time, past time actually, to be updating to technology-based digital work flows. It is time to embrace the fact that the tools of our trade are mainly technology-based tools. We would certainly judge others who did not know how to use the basic tools of their trade properly. It is time. I appreciate that you are too busy and think you don’t have the time.

But, as I noted in my column:

If you are billing a client for four hours to do something that could be done in 20 minutes, you are not doing right by your law practice or your client.

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The New and The Best Lawyer Apps for 2015.

07 Saturday Feb 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Android Phones, Apps, Cell Phones, iPad, iPhones, Law Office Management, Legal Technology, Management, Marketing, Trial Tips and Techniques

≈ Comments Off on The New and The Best Lawyer Apps for 2015.

Tags

Android Phone Apps, Brian Focht, Cell Phones, iPhone Apps, Lawyer Apps, Legal Technology, Management, Marketing, Styles Byrum & Horne LLP, thecyberadvocate.com, Windows Phone

Best New Apps for Lawyers from January 2015, by Brian Focht, Civil Litigation Attorney at Styles Byrum & Horne LLP

http://tinyurl.com/mdhprmo

Whether you’re looking to market your firm, increase your practice’s productivity, prepare and present information at trial, or increase your practice management capacity, there’s an app for you! Check out the best new apps for lawyers, for iOS, Android and Windows Phone, from January 2015!

And,

The Best New Apps for Lawyers – January 2015, thecyberadvocate.com

Whether you’re looking for marketing, practice management, or litigation strategy, here are the best new apps for lawyers from January 2015.

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Litigator Mac and iOS Resources, Websites, and Blogs.

27 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Apple, Apps, iPad, iPhones, Legal Technology, Mac

≈ Comments Off on Litigator Mac and iOS Resources, Websites, and Blogs.

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American Bar Association, Apps, iPads, iPhones, iTunes, Legal Technology, Macs, Podcasts, Solo Small Firm and General Practice Division, Victoria L. Herring

MAC USER: Mac/iOS Resources for Litigators, by Victoria L. Herring, Vol. 31 No. 5, Solo, Small Firm and General Practice Division, GP SOLO, American Bar Association

http://tinyurl.com/pv5ozal

Most litigators are good researchers. Or they should be. We could all use a little help, however, so I’m presenting here a collection of Mac/iOS-based resources I’d suggest to other litigators. Each is accompanied by a link so you can explore further on your own.

One caution: Websites, blogs, etc. on the Internet frequently ‘die’ or fail to be updated. When you follow these links, or conduct your own research on a search engine, try to limit your searches within the last one or two years. This is not to say that older resources aren’t useful or valuable—sometimes they are even better than the newer ones. But, particularly in the realm of technology, you need to use the most up-to-date resources possible.

First Stop: iTunes

Before I present my list, I should note that when I need to explore and find resources on any topic, I tend to start with Apple’s iTunes application (apple.com/itunes). iTunes, which can be used both on Macs and on Windows machines, is a store of free and paid items that can be quite useful. So, first off, I open iTunes on my computer (or iPad, although usually for this I’m sitting with my laptop or desktop Mac). In all the cases discussed below, I sometimes put the term ‘law, ‘constitution,’ ‘justice,’ ‘trial,’ and such in the search box to narrow the field. Skipping over the entertainment choices (Music, Movies, TV Shows), I head straight for iTunes U.

iTunes U is a collection of presentations, seminars, classes, and the like from universities and colleges, associations, and galleries all over the world—even from schools in the K-12 range. There are all sorts of categories, and one of them is ‘Law & Politics,’ with topics such as ‘Legal Writing,’ ‘Constitutional Law,’ etc. There’s a wealth of information there. It’s free (really!) and downloadable and playable on your iPad, iPhone, iPod, or computer.

After that, still searching in iTunes, I head to Podcasts. As with iTunes U, there are all sorts of providers of podcasts on a variety of topics—and they’re free. Not all are worth listening to, and there’s no similar topic breakdown, but there are podcasts on ‘Government & Organizations,’ ‘Business,; and, of course, ‘Technology’; you can search all topics if you want to see if there’s something more focused on trials and litigation.

There is also, of course, iTune’s App Store. There are loads of categories, and any number might include a relevant and helpful application for your iDevice related to trials and litigation. On my iPad are apps for the following general topics: reading (Kindle, Zinio, iBooks, Instapaper), messaging (Messages, Skype, Google Voice), access/storage (Files Pro, CrashPlan, USB Disk), writing (Pages, Penultimate, Notability), scanning (JotNotPro, AT&T Code Scanner, RedLaser), signing documents (SignEasy, SignNow, DocuSign), printing (Cloud Printer, Printer Pro), conversion (myConvert, Units, Ruler Plus, iHandy Level), and law (Fastcase, FedCtRecords, LawBox, Iowa Lawyer magazine). It seems everyone has an app these days, which is good, and they’re either free or inexpensive enough to test. And there are apps that follow the whole topic of applications and scout out other apps to try for a day or two, which is good to know.

Finally, the Books topic on iTunes includes many free books, mostly those long copyright-free, but a few that are recent and especially helpful (iPad at Work, business and finance topics, etc.). There are both e-books (readable on iOS devices or computers using iBooks) and some audiobooks (which tend to cost between $10 and $20, but that might be worth it for a long trip).

Now for That List

Over the years I’ve collected a list of numerous websites, blogs, and online articles that might provide helpful information for lawyers involved in trial work, particularly related to working with Macs and iOS devices. Here are the ones I’ve found most useful: . . . .

Continue reading →

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What Is A “Zero Knowledge” Cloud And Why You Should Care.

24 Wednesday Dec 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Clouds, Confidentiality, Document Retention, Law Office Management, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Malpractice, Technology, Technology

≈ Comments Off on What Is A “Zero Knowledge” Cloud And Why You Should Care.

Tags

Client Confidentiality, Clouds, Encryption, Legal Technology, SpiderOak, Steven Nelson, U.S. News & World Report, Zero Knowledge

‘Zero Knowledge’ Encrypted Cloud Service Sees Business Boom, by Steven Nelson, U.S. News & World Report

http://tinyurl.com/q9fj4l8

If you have been paying attention, you have heard about “zero knowledge” clouds — and you are thinking about changing from Drop Box or other clouds that can access the information you put in them. If you know nothing about zero knowledge clouds, don’t stop here. Read more about them, and decide whether it is time for your firm to change to a more secure cloud platform. -CCE

File-storing service SpiderOak says it’s experiencing a business boom – rapidly nearing one million users and doubling its site metrics in six months – amid a constant trickle of news reports revealing Internet surveillance by the government.

Files stored using SpiderOak are encrypted and their contents unknown – and unknowable – to the company. Sharing such files will soon be ‘zero knowledge,’ too, as the company prepares to roll out Crypton, its open source app-building framework, which will be publicly available within the next couple months.

‘Essentially what we did was we inverted the Internet,’ says CEO Ethan Oberman. ‘We created a world where the server is actually a big dumb machine. It only sees encrypted data blocks.’

A free version of the file-hosting service offers 2 GB of storage in exchange for a name, email address, username and password.

‘We don’t really fact check that information,’ Oberman says.

The company does know the IP address of users, he says, but IP-masking browsers – such as Tor – can conceal that information as well, making it possible to store files without disclosing any identifying information.

If the government were to come to the company with a valid legal demand for data, Oberman says, ‘We could turn over the data, but it is literally in encrypted data blocks and not decryptable by us. The only way it’s decryptable is if you have the key, which we do not maintain.’ . . .

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Using Location And Time To Exonerate Or Implicate.

26 Wednesday Nov 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Android Phones, Blackberry Phones, Cell Phones, Criminal Law, Evidence, Experts, Forensic Expert Witness, iPad, iPhones, Legal Technology, Trial Tips and Techniques

≈ Comments Off on Using Location And Time To Exonerate Or Implicate.

Tags

Ball In Your Court Blog, Cell Phones, Cell Towers, Craig Ball, Evidence, Geolocation Data, Legal Technology

Location. Location. Location., by Craig Ball, Ball In Your Court Blog

http://tinyurl.com/mq2u5zv

Okay, you have to admit that it’s pretty cool when a judge calls to pick your brain! – CCE 

I’m peripatetic. My stuff lives in Austin; but, I’m in a different city every few days. Lately looking for a new place for my stuff to await my return, I’m reminded of the first three rules of real estate investing: 1. Location; 2. Location and 3. Location.

Location has long been crucial in trial, too: ‘So, you claim you were at home alone on the night of November 25, 2014 when this heinous crime was committed! Is that what you expect this jury to believe?’ If you can pinpoint people’s locations at particular times, you can solve crimes. If you have precise geolocation data, you can calculate speed, turn up trysts, prove impairment and even show who had the green light. Location and time are powerful tools to implicate and exonerate.

A judge called today to inquire about ways in which cell phones track and store geolocation data. He wanted to know what information is recoverable from a seized phone.  I answered that, depending upon the model and its usage, a great deal of geolocation data may emerge, most of it not tied to making phone calls. Tons of geolocation data persist both within and without phones.

Cell phones have always been trackable by virtue of their essential communication with cell tower sites. . . .

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Basic Evidence Presentation Tips For Young Lawyers.

11 Tuesday Nov 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Admissibility, Authentication, Evidence, Exhibits, Legal Technology, Presentations, Trial Tips and Techniques, Video

≈ Comments Off on Basic Evidence Presentation Tips For Young Lawyers.

Tags

Evidence, Hon. E. Kenneth Wright Jr., Illinois State Bar Association™, Legal Technology, Trial Preparation, Trial Tips & Techniques, Young Lawyers

Letter To Young Lawyers—Basic Tips And Presentation Of Evidence, by Hon. E. Kenneth Wright Jr.,YLD News, Illinois State Bar Association™, Vol. 55, No. 1 (August 2010)

http://tinyurl.com/po9x3hc

Dear Attorney Jane Doe and Attorney John Doe:

As a young lawyer, you are in a place that I left some time ago. However, I have watched you step into jury courtrooms with a level of anticipation and excitement that is refreshing. While a few of you mask it well, I know there is also some anxiety lurking in the background. Don’t worry, because that anxiety strikes even the most seasoned litigators. Now I sit on the bench, and I sometimes wish I could call a time out during the trial to share with you some simple tips that will put you more at ease as you proceed with your case.

Being a member of the judiciary is an honor that comes with extraordinary powers and responsibilities. These powers do not include a coach’s ability to call for substitution of players, so in this note I want to briefly address some basic practical pointers to improve your overall practice as well as touch upon the specific issue of presentation of evidence to a jury. I hope by doing so I give you peace of mind and contribute, in a small way, to your growth as a fine attorney.

Basic Pointers

How quickly you acclimate yourself to courtroom practice depends in large part on you, your learning style, and how many opportunities you have to appear before the court. In the beginning, you may feel overwhelmed by the number of items you must remember, track and recall at a moment’s notice. In your haste, you may overlook a few very basic points that can actually help you. . . .

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