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4/19/2012

ABA TECHSHOW draws a crowd of legal professionals from different cities, states, and countries every year. Extensive travel arrangements are made, buckets of regular coffee are consumed and note-taking Apps are downloaded in preparation to hear the best speakers in legal technology. We hear from attendees; “it’s all about the great speakers”, or “the buzzing EXPO Hall is why I attend”. We love hearing both. This year we heard something different from attendees. “It’s all about the people.” – Tweeted using the #ABATECHSHOW hashtag after the Conference ended.

The #ABATECHSHOW trend is still in full swing. Speakers, exhibitors, attendees, and people not in attendance are still joining in the discussion. It has become a communal hot spot to share insight and learn something new in legal technology. Mac lawyers, Brett Burney (@MacsInLaw) and Ben Stevens (@TheMacLawyer) played an active role tweeting during the Conference and continue to share useful Mac-related technology tools. Exhibitors were announcing their new products and services at the Conference and are still using the #ABATECHSHOW trend to reach their target audience. Attendees from the 60 Sites in 60 Minutes session are still tweeting about the useful and funny sites they learned about. And just last Friday; #ABATECHSHOW was the subject of discussion during #LegalChat, a lively discussion on Twitter that occurs every Friday at 11:00 a.m. ET.

If you had the opportunity to follow the #ABATECHSHOW trend during the Conference, you were surely going to learn something new and gain a few more followers. If you only watched the trend, you probably had a few laughs from attendees quoting Ben Stein’s Keynote. If you missed it completely, ABA TECHSHOW attendee and LPM Section member, Andrea Cannavina (@LegalTypist), prepared the #ABATECHSHOW tweets from before and during the Conference:

Four days of non-stop Conference tweeting shows why ABA TECHSHOW is all about the people. Start following the #ABATECHSHOW trend and learn from this group of tweeters about legal technology tools, tips, best practices and more. See what’s really “trending” in legal technology.

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3/26/2012

10 Tips for Using Mobile Safari on an iPad

When Apple first introduced the iPad, they described the web-surfing experience as like "holding the Internet in your hands." Not only were you literally holding the Internet browser in your hands, you simply touched a link with your finger instead of clicking it with your mouse (although curiously, watch what happens to your mouse cursor when you hover over a link in Internet Explorer or Firefox).

Apple's web browser for Macs and PCs is called Safari www.apple.com/safari/. On the iPad and iPhone, Apple still calls the built-in browser Safari, although most people differentiate the iOS version by calling it "Mobile Safari."

With iOS 5 www.apple.com/ios/, Apple significantly upgraded Mobile Safari, offering an even better browsing experience than before. So as long as you have the iOS 5.0 upgrade on your iPad, these tips will help you get the most out Mobile Safari:

Tabbed Browsing - every modern Internet browser offers tabs today, and Mobile Safari now does as well. Simply tap a tab to switch to it, and close it by tapping the small "x" on the left side of the tab. To create a new tab, tap the "+" sign to the far right.

Re-Open a Recently Close Tab - if you close a tab too quick and want to recover it, you can tap and hold the "+" sign on the far right. This will pop up a list of "Recently Closed Tabs."

Open Links in the Background - by default, a link opens in the same tab that you're currently viewing. But if you go to the into the iPad Settings and select Safari on the left, you can turn on the option to "Open New Tabs in Background." Now back in Safari, you can tap and hold a link to access the option "Open in New Tab" which will open and load the link in a new tab while leaving you on your current tab.

Quick Access to Back History - the back arrow on the far left side of Mobile Safari will take you back one page. But if you tap and hold the back button, you'll get a pop-up list of all the sites you've visited.

Reader - when you visit a site that that you want to read, but are completely distracted by all the ads and boxes that surround the text, look in the URL bar of Mobile Safari and tap the "Reader" button. This brings up an overlay window that beautifully presents just the text from the article, minus all the other junk. When you're done, simply tap the Reader button again to go back to normal.

Reading List - while everyone knows how to create Bookmarks, Apple introduced a similar feature called "Reading List." You can add a webpage to your Bookmarks or Reading List in the same way - tap the Share/Open In button (the one that looks like a rectangle with an arrow coming out of it) and tap "Add to Reading List." As long as you have iCloud set up across your devices (Mac, iPhone, iPad, etc.), your Reading List will automatically be synched to each device.

Tweet a Link - with iOS 5, Apple also integrated the use of Twitter in apps like Mobile Safari. So when you want to share a webpage, you can simply tap the Share/Open In button and hit "Tweet."

Change your Default Search Engine - next to the URL bar at the top of Mobile Safari, you'll see the search box that probably displays a grayed out "Google." Most of us are happy using Google, but if you go into the iPad Settings and select Safari, you can change this default search engine to either Yahoo! or Bing.

Add to Home Screen - since the first iPad, we've always the option of creating a "shortcut" to a webpage by adding an icon to the home screen of the iPad. To do so, tap the Share/Open In button and select "Add to Home Screen." A small pop-up will show you what the icon will look like on your home screen, and you can name the page whatever you like.

AutoFill Contact Info - if you find yourself regularly typing in your name and contact info to webpages in Mobile Safari, you can save yourself some frustration by having the info auto-fill. You can turn on this option in the iPad Settings under Safari by tapping AutoFill. There you can turn on the option "Use Contact Info" and then underneath tap "My Info." This brings up your iPad's address book where you can select a contact (presumably your own information) that can get automatically filled in on a webpage.

BONUS TIP: Convert a Webpage to PDF on the iPad - this can't be done within Mobile Safari - you'll need to purchase another app to do this. But I've found it to be an excellent way to save a page or article and mark it up right from the iPad. My preferred app for this is PDF PROvider from Dar-Soft Solutions (www.dar-soft.com). When I want to convert a webpage to PDF, I tap in the URL bar of Mobile Safari and copy the entire URL. Then I switch over to PDF PROvider and select the built-in web browser where I paste in the URL. PDF PROvider then converts the page into a PDF that I can use in GoodReader or iAnnotate to markup, annotate, and then e-mail to a co-worker.

If you're looking for more great tips on using iPads and iPhones in your practice, then you won't want to miss these great sessions at the ABA TECHSHOW:

Tablet Wars (Thurs., March 29, at 10:30am - Josh Barrett & Nerino Petro)

iWin: iPads for Litigators (Thurs., March 29 at 4:00pm - Paul Unger & Tom Mighell)

60 iOS Apps for Lawyers in 60 Minutes (Sat., March 31 at 9:45am - Brett Burney, Josh Barrett & Jeff Richardson)

-Brett Burney

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3/21/2012

Seven Tips for Building up Your LinkedIn Network

Lawyers sometimes seem to forget that LinkedIn is a site for professional networking. In case you’d forgotten, “networking” is a process of meeting new people in a business or social context. Networking requires action on your part. Just as you would mingle at a cocktail party and hope to make new contacts, you need to mingle on LinkedIn. You just do it a bit differently. Here are seven tips for getting started.

1. Fill out your profile. Make sure your profile is filled out completely, listing and describing your current and former positions and education. Include links to your professional website, your blog and your Twitter feed.

2. Connect your profile to your firm. If your law firm has a LinkedIn company page, be sure to link your individual profile to your company page. This helps build connections among both your colleagues at the firm and visitors to its LinkedIn page. To do this, as you edit your profile and begin to type your firm name, you should see a drop-down menu with your firm’s name. Simply select it. (If your firm does not already have a company page, you won’t see it here.)

3. Import your contacts. LinkedIn lets you upload your contacts and see which of them are on LinkedIn. That lets you connect on LinkedIn with the people who are already in your professional network. You can upload from desktop applications such as Outlook, ACT! Or Mac Address, and from webmail applications such as Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo!.

4. Connect with colleagues and classmates. When logged in to LinkedIn, select “Contacts > Add Connections” from the top menu. From there, click on the “Colleagues” tab to find people you’ve worked with who are on LinkedIn. Click the “Alumni” tab to find classmates from law school or college. While you’re there, click the “People You May Know” tab to see LinkedIn’s suggestions of people you may know (based on your work history and interests).

5. Search and join groups. LinkedIn Groups help you find and network with people who share common interests. Search groups for ones that relate to your areas of practice or geographic location. At a minimum, you should join your law school alumni group. Look also for non-legal groups that focus on businesses and industries related to your practice areas.

6. Post questions and answers. The Answers section of LinkedIn lets users ask and answer questions about virtually anything. You can search the questions people have asked by keywords and categories. By answering questions, you can build goodwill – and maybe new connections – while also demonstrating your knowledge. If you are wary of posting answers to legal questions online, consider posting a question. If you phrase it intelligently and articulately, even a question can position you as knowledgeable in your field.

7. Troll your connections. One way to identify people you should be connected to is to see who your connections are connected to that you aren’t. This is especially true for your connections who practice the same type of law as you or in the same city as you. Pick a connection of yours and explore that connection’s network.

While you’re at it, feel free to connect with me: http://www.linkedin.com/in/robertambrogi.

-Bob Ambrogi

www.lawsitesblog.com

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The Cloud is So Much More

Cloud computing refers to “everything out there,” that is, “stuff’s not on your computer.” Most lawyers are already using cloud computing but may not even realize it. With things like GoogleDocs, gmail, iTunes, and so many other products and programs, lawyers are accessing the cloud, but many are unaware of the risks and benefits of the cloud, including the ethical implications that arise when storing client information offsite. But the cloud is much more. Natalie Kelly and I will explain an attorney’s obligations, providing real-life example and solutions. We will also explain how to do your "due diligence" for cloud technology – from the ethical requirements to real-world practical considerations for securing and maintaining office and client information. As one of the primary authors of Pennsylvania’s comprehensive cloud computing ethics opinion, I have fielded virtually every imaginable question, and look forward to hearing some new ones from the always astute Techshow audience. Our program runs from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Friday, March 30^th. When we’re done, you should understand the cloud better and know how survive cloud attacks and breaches that could really cost you and your clients, both personally and professionally.

-Dan Siegel

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3/20/2012

Breached Law Firm Apparently Won't Tell Its Clients

This was a disturbing story. If your law firm is breached, you have an ethical duty to tell your clients. You also have a statutory duty since almost every state has a data breach notification law.

Yes, I'll back up. Here the gist of the story. A large New York law firm was advised by the FBI that it had suffered a data breach. Interesting that the FBI always seems to know while the law firms are blissfully ignorant. Off the record, the agents said the attack came from China. They showed the partners a listing of the files and it amounted to all client files.

All of this was disclosed to Alan Paller, the Director of Research for the SANS Institute. The managing partner and the IT partner wanted to know why the files were stolen, how they were likely to be used and how to prevent such attacks in the future. All logical enough.

As Paller pointed out, law firms are often less secure than their corporate clients, so the Chinese target the law firms. When asked if they had any clients doing business in China, one of the partners replied concisely: "Sh*t."

Here's the part that astonished and dismayed me:

"Paller: What are you planning to tell your clients?

Attorney: Are you crazy? Can you think of a better way to destroy their trust in us than letting them know we had lost every document they gave us under (attorney-client) privilege?"

Actually, I can. Let them know that their attorneys, in violation of their ethical duties and state law, will keep the data breach a secret. That ought to effectively destroy all trust forever. I hope the New York State Bar and New York's Attorney General have seen this story. It looks like they have some investigating to do.

ABA TECHSHOW 2012 will feature a great session on law firm information security taught by John Simek and Dave Ries – don’t miss it!

- Sharon Nelson -

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Easier Document Collaboration

If you are still emailing drafts back and forth when co-authoring a document, take a look at one of the increasingly sophisticated online document collaboration tools. Here are several that we use to make co-authoring much easier:

Google Docs – Upload files in one of several formats or create the document right in Google Docs. During an online session, everyone who has access can edit the same document at the same time depending upon who has been given edit access. You can also invite others to view only while you do the editing during a joint discussion. Last year alone, over 100 new features were added.
Microsoft Live SkyDrive – As its name suggests, this is a cloud ‘drive’ where you can store and work on files. Share your files with others who can view only or view and edit. Multiple users can access the same document at the same time.
Dropbox – Use a Dropbox account to store and share documents in folders that you create and share. Although Dropbox does not provide the ability to create or edit documents, it does provide dynamic document syncing. That is, when any changes are made to a document stored in Dropbox, your local copy and those of others that you’ve shared it with will also be updated automatically. We’ve found Dropbox especially useful for dealing with large files such as a PowerPoint file which is too big to send as an email attachment.

These are just a few of the exciting apps that are making online collaboration easier than ever before. For more tips and tricks to enhance your online collaborative efforts, join Catherine Sanders and me on Thursday, March 29 at 10:30 a.m. at TECHSHOW 2012 for our Online Collaboration Apps session.

-Donna Neff

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3/16/2012

Preparing to Litigate: The Latest Smart Litigation Management Tools

In this era of technology, I’m still amazed at how many lawyers aren’t taking full advantage of the resources out there that can help them prepare better and more efficiently for trial. They’re still using paper and creating relatively simple spreadsheets, rather than using easy and versatile software to do so. That’s why I’m so excited about my presentation, Preparing to Litigate: The Latest Smart Litigation Management Tools, with Martin Tully on Thursday morning, March 29^th at 8:30 a.m. We will discuss and demonstrate some of the products lawyers and their staff can use to take better advantage of technology, and provide practical tips that we have used and continue to use every day in our offices. For example, I beta-tested the newest version of CaseMap, and love it because it combines the features of many of the more traditional e-discovery tools, without the “bureaucracy.” We’ll cover this program and far more. Questions will be welcome.

-Dan Siegel

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3/13/2012

Make Your Website the Hub of Your Online Networking

At Techshow this year, Jeff Lantz of Esquire Interactive and I will present a program, Beyond the Basic Website: Proven Techniques to Expand Your Web Presence. I presented a similar program last year with Steve Matthews of Stem Legal.

In speaking about law firm websites, a key point I try to emphasize is that a website is not the end of your online marketing – it is only the beginning, a launching point. Think of your website as the hub of everything else you do online. Reach out and engage in a variety of online networks and use those other engagements to attract people back to your website.

If you have not already joined LinkedIn, you should. LinkedIn is the leading online directory and networking site for professionals in services, business and government. As of a month ago, it had more than 150 million members in over 200 countries and territories. Increasingly, professionals use it to search for services and contacts. LinkedIn listings also display prominently in search results on Google.

Make sure your LinkedIn profile links back to your website. You should also create a separate LinkedIn business page for your law firm, again making sure it links back to your website.

With Facebook now the most highly trafficked website in the world, you should also set up a profile there and perhaps also have a page for your firm. Again, in both instances, be sure to link back to your firm’s website.

Twitter is a tool many lawyers say they simply don’t get. In fact, Twitter is one of the most diverse tools out there, with a multiplicity of uses, from monitoring news and keeping informed to finding information and locating resources.

A side of Twitter many lawyers fail to appreciate is that it can be highly effective at helping to bring traffic to a website or blog. A mention on Twitter that gets picked up and retweeted by others can drive a significant number of hits.

If you have a blog, you should also have a Twitter feed. When you write a new post, mention it on Twitter. If it is worthy of note, others will pick up on it. Don’t send out the same tweet over and over again, but it is OK to have different tweets that point back to the same point, provided they take some different angle on it.

For example, here are two different tweets you could send, both related to the same post:

The Supreme Court's decision today could lead to a surge in new employment lawsuits. I explain why in this post: [link]

How can business owners protect themselves against employment lawsuits after today's Supreme Court ruling? See: [link]

Don’t limit your networking to LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Explore other social and professional networks that may be suited to your practice. Whatever you do, however, don’t wipe your hands and call your work done just because you’ve spruced up your website.

-Bog Ambrogi

www.lawsitesblog.com

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3/8/2012

So Who Cares About Social Media?

Litigators do. Or at least they should care about social media. An astounding number of people and companies are sharing important personal and business information on a variety of social media platforms, every day.

From employment to criminal cases, popular media coverage and court opinions have already demonstrated that social media may be relevant in a wide variety of litigations. And the value of social media as a tool in the evidence arsenal is becoming clearer to many litigants, counsel, judges, and even juries. But I still run across a fair number of attorneys who consider the topic interesting but totally irrelevant to the work they do. By telling real-life stories about social media during our presentation at the ABA TECHSHOW, Ernie Svenson and I intend to convince you that litigators shouldn’t (and can’t afford to) ignore social media evidence.

History is the best teacher. So we’ve decided to share stories of litigations, attorneys, and clients affected by inexperience, bad behavior, or simple carelessness involving social media. Some of these people weren’t savvy enough with social media and e-discovery to “cover their tracks.” Others exercised bad judgment with the information they posted for the world to read—and paid for it in litigation. Finally, we’ll share stories of litigation disputes and practices that are testing the bounds of the public/private information divide and ownership disputes over social media accounts. Social media plays a primary role in most of these cases.

So join us at ABA TECHSHOW, on March 29th, for our “Social Media for Litigators” presentation. We hope this presentation will be informative, and that it will inspire you to roll up your sleeves and continue to learn about this cutting-edge topic. We’ll also offer tips on collecting and managing social media in your own litigation practice.

-Antigone Peyton

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How to Use Branding and a Client-Centered Website to Turn Website Visitors into Firm Clients

Many law firms have attractive websites with detailed descriptions about the firm, the education and awards of its attorneys, and firm practice area descriptions. The firm and attorneys are positioned as being the best in the area. Sometimes these websites even include detailed explanations about applicable law concerning the firm’s practice areas.

While the website design and informational content may be very good, these same websites often fail to convert website visitors into new clients.

Why?

Because when it comes to websites, prospective clients don’t call the firm with the best design, the most content, or the most impressive lists of legal accomplishments. They call the firm whose website best resonates with them around how the firm will help them with their legal matter and any non-associated legal needs.

If your firm’s website is not delivering clients, come to our presentation on Friday, March 30 at 10 a.m. – “Beyond The Basic Website: Proven Techniques to Expand Your Web Presence.” This presentation will focus on areas such as branding and how to drive prospective clients to your firm’s website. You’ll learn:

What an effective brand is, and why developing effective branding is critical in differentiating your firm from competitors,
What the Client-Centered Website is, how it differs from the “traditional website approach,” and why firms interested in connecting with prospective clients need to embrace and use the principals of the client-centered website,
What prospective clients want to see on a law firm’s website,
How to create attorney profiles that connect with clients,
The difference between presenting information and creating resonation, and
How to drive prospective clients to your firm’s website.

Co-presenter Bob Ambrogi and I look forward to seeing you.

Creating Website Content that Will Get You Hired – Building Client-Friendly Websites Around the Content that Prospective Clients Want to See

There is often a tremendous discrepancy between what lawyers think prospective clients want to see on a law firm’s website and what these clients actually want to see. Law firms typically believe that if they demonstrate that they are the “best” law firm based upon awards, verdicts, speaking engagements, and educational achievements, clients will hire them. This is usually not the case.

Instead, clients want to know first and foremost how the firm will help them with their legal problem and any associated non-legal needs. Firm awards, speaking engagements, and accolades may matter very little in the selection of legal counsel.

To build a super-charged client-friendly website that will convert website visitors into clients, it’s important that law firms understand what information prospective clients are actively seeking, and then present this information in a way that will resonate with prospective clients. At the presentation on “Beyond the FAQ: Building Client-Friendly Websites” (Thursday, March 29 at 8:30 am) you’ll learn:

What personal injury clients want to see vs. what business clients want to see,
How to develop and present the information that your clients want to see based upon your practice areas,
How to distinguish between “high level” information (information that will be a key factor in a client’s decision as to which law firm to retain) and ancillary information, and how to ensure that high level information is prominently conveyed,
How to develop effective messages that resonate
How to create distributed publication of your messages using social media, blogging, and other content distribution.

Co-presenter Steve Matthews and I look forward to seeing you at the presentation!

-Jeff Lantz

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