Tech of law: fast-changing technology meets slow-changing profession

Kevin Caster recalls the plaintiff who was determined to use the federal E-Discovery rules that took effect in 2006 to require his client, a small architectural firm, to produce electronic records from more than a decade ago.

“They thought there had to be a smoking gun in those records, if they could find it,” recalled Castor, a senior lawyer specializing in business litigation at Shuttleworth & Ingersoll in Cedar Rapids.

Caster had to produce the technical specifications of his client's systems - the architecture of its computer network and the software that ran on it - so the plaintiff's experts could search for the records.

The request added drama to the case, but didn't change the outcome. Caster's client during the years in question had an unsophisticated computer setup that since had been scrapped, leaving only a handful of emails that had been migrated over newer systems.

But Caster sees more such requests these days and expects them to accelerate in the future.

It was just another sign of the changing technology landscape in the legal profession, traditionally one that's resisted the bleeding edge of new technologies.

Law libraries have gone online, as legal information companies such as Westlaw and LexisNexis offered their services through Web-based portals.

“The size of our law library has gotten a lot smaller, but our subscription bills (for online research) have gone up quite a bit,” Caster said.

Caster and most other lawyers now lean heavily on their smartphones to stay in constant touch with clients and legal associates. Most of the lawyers at Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman, a 65-attorney law firm in Cedar Rapids, rely on smartphones, said Jeffrey McGinness, a young trial lawyer who has a reputation as one of the firm's more technology-oriented partners.

About 20 use the Apple iPhone, McGinness said, and share information about useful apps and how to apply them.

“The ability to respond quickly to clients is invaluable,” McGinness said. He has adopted the rule passed on to him by a mentor that “an email should never last more than 12 hours” before it's dispatched with an answer.

Some of the flashier technology McGinness uses is reserved for showing judges and juries. He employs a trial presentation software called TrialDirector from inData to present documents, photos and other exhibits on video screens at trial - the system allows him to highlight text in documents.

“It's an easy way to organize a case,” McGinness said.

On medical malpractice cases, the firm sometimes brings in outside consultants who specialize in medical graphics. The consultants can prepare three-dimensional images showing the process of a medical procedure. Although McGinness believes too much technology could detract from the argument at trial, “They always say a picture is worth 1,000 words,” he noted.

McGinness tries to scan as many paper documents as possible into digital form so he can access them remotely from his desktop or laptop computer. The firm uses two wireless networks - one public and one highly secure private network.

Caster relies on his iPad when taking depositions from witnesses.

“You can carry the tablet instead of 10 bankers' boxes of documents,” he said. “You can store a tremendous amount of documents in there.”

One of McGinness's favorite technologies is the Dragon NaturallySpeaking voice recognition system from Nuance. Many lawyers dictate the first draft of a legal document or correspondence for secretaries to craft into a final document.

McGinness even has a voice recognition application app for his iPhone, which allows him to create draft emails while he is driving.

Some of the most important new technologies that lawyers rely on are the most mundane as the vast majority of the work they perform involves creating or reviewing documents. Time spent tracking down the correct document or filing it is time they, secretaries and paralegals would rather spend on more productive tasks.

Simmons Perrine installed a new electronic document management system last month that McGinness believes will improve productivity.

Before joining the firm in 1997, he had been at a big Chicago firm with such a specialized document management system. He'd become comfortable with the luxury of easily searching legal work other lawyers in the firm had done if he wanted ideas on how to handle a legal issue or a specific kind of motion.

The new system will allow similar flexibility at Simmons Perrine, where documents had previously been filed in systems distinct to each lawyer. Documents will be filed under the case number, McGinness said.

Emails will have reference numbers, so that reply emails will be attached automatically.

Caster recently worked on a redesign of Shuttleworth & Ingersoll's website that included better graphics and images of the firm's lawyers and a better description of its services. He'd eventually like to see the website upgraded to provide a secure portal that clients can use to view their case documents.

Some lawyers are being selective as to the tech they employ, however. After 41 years of practicing estate, agriculture and tax law at Simmons Perrine, Darrel Morf said you won't see him using videoconferences, for example. He believes valued clients expect a more personal interaction.

Even email, Morf says, is a mixed bag.

“It allows you to respond to things more quickly, but it really takes away from the time you have for reflection,” he said.

On screen, with a latte

Cedar Rapids-based Enlighten Technologies is one of the area's few suppliers of legal technology. The company supplies videoconferencing services that targets the specialized requirements of the legal profession, such as handling depositions and remote court appearances.

Vince Pundt, Enlighten co-founder and executive vice president, said demand for video conferencing services is growing as law firms attempt to reduce travel costs.

The company's latest product, introduced this month, will hit a broader market at a lower price point than previous devices, Pundt said. Called simply Legal Conference, it is a Web-based videoconferencing system that avoids the need for law firms with relatively standard, current bandwidth availability and web browsers to invest anything extra in hardware, software or bandwidth.

“People are emailing, chatting and social networking through the Internet,” Pundt said. “So it seems more logical for them to do their conferencing over it.”

The system would allow an attorney to hold a conference on their webcam-equipped laptop computer from the neighborhood coffee shop's Wi-Fi system, Pundt said.