♫ So you can see
We’re friends in need
And friends in need
Are friends indeed
We’ll keep you safe
In the jungle forevermore
That’s what friends are for! ♫

Music and lyrics by George Bruns, from Disney’s “The Jungle Book”.

We all know that it is a jungle out there.  Accordingly, this is the first in a series of posts in advance of the The Pacific Legal Technology Conference to be held in Vancouver, BC on Friday, Oct. 2, 2009 (www.pacificlegaltech.com) under  the category “30 Questions for Busy Lawyers who use Technology”.  They are to illustrate how all types of lawyers, from all types of practices, from urban, suburban and rural geographical locations, from the largest firms to solos, who range from newly called lawyers all the way to senior lawyers, with different backgrounds and experiences, have embraced technology, brought it into their firms and their practices and made it work for them. More importantly, they illustrate the theme of the conference which is lawyers and other legal professionals reachng out and helping others.

They use PCs with Windows (and in rare cases, Linux) and Macs with OSX or a combo of these.  They use off-the-shelf software and custom-designed applications.  They use electronic filing, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Access, Word, Excel, Outlook, Amicus Attorney, TimeMatters, LawStream, Google and Firefox among other applications.  They have set up secure intranets, extranets and collaborative spaces using such products as Microsoft’s SharePoint. They have gone paperless, use Dragon’s voice recognition, desktops, laptops, netbooks, MacBooks, smartphones and iPhones and Blackberrys.  Some are past and present speakers at ABA TECHSHOW, The Pacific Legal Technology Conference and other legal CLEs. But the common thread running through each of their stories is how their strong vision for where they wanted technology to take them, their perseverance in searching for answers and their determination in continually striving for further efficiency and effectiveness gains resulted in strong benefits for their clients, their staff and their practices.

Their message is that if they can do it, there is a way for the rest of us to follow their lead and do it too.  Their stories indicate that ‘one size definitely does not fit all’, for their solutions are all unique, varied and interesting.  I have enjoyed meeting with each of them and I hope the posts accurately reflect their passion for, and the depth of, their desire to not just accept the ‘status quo’.  Of course, any inaccuracies are wholly those of the writer.

This first interview is with Thomas Spraggs, Jr. of  Spraggs & Associates of Coquitlam British Columbia, who is one of the speakers at the 2009 Pacific Legal Technology Conference.  Here is his story:

1.    Could you briefly describe your firm (number of lawyers, staff, areas of practice etc):

Tom: The firm is, by definition, a small firm.  We currently have seven lawyers and approximately 23 full time staff.  We also have very close relationships with a number of consultants in the area of communications, advertising, investigations, information technology, and business consulting.  Our practice is currently restricted to assisting plaintiffs in motor vehicle accident cases.  Occasionally, we will also assist current clients with small criminal matters and the occasional business transaction.

2.    When was your firm established?

Tom: The firm was established in 1971 with Thomas L. Spraggs Sr.

3.    Where do you practice (one office, multiple offices, virtual offices, regional, national, international)?

Tom: Our office location has been in Coquitlam since 1971.  Since 2000 the firm has established a presence in Edmonton Alberta where there is collaboration with another Edmonton law firm to assist clients with Alberta and Yukon injury claims.  We also use the features that Microsoft small business server provides to login remotely to desktops from home and when traveling.

Robert M. Spraggs, (Thomas L. Spraggs brother) is a solicitor in Australia, and is working on becoming a foreign legal consultant to Spraggs & Co. for the purposes of better assisting clientele. The firm has had several clients who reside in Australia. Read the rest of this entry »

♫ Tell me, who can you trust or not
The ones that be trying’ to get what you got
Just listen to these words whatever you do…♫

Words and Lyrics by Keri Lewis, recorded by Mint Condition.

This is  a fraud alert from LawPro in Ontario on new fraud attempts on lawyers and law firms:

LAWPRO E-Alert: Fraudsters using counterfeit bank drafts, ID of major banks on mortgage deals

Ontario real estate lawyers are warned to be on the lookout for a new fraud scheme targeting them. For the first time LAWPRO is seeing a counterfeit bank draft fraud scheme that targets real estate lawyers on mortgage deals. Furthermore, the new scenario may include the supposed fraudster using the identity of a major national financial institution as the actual lender in the transaction.

This new type of fraud works as follows:  A new and previously unknown client or lender contact allegedly from a major bank will ask you to act on mortgage matter. The source of the referral will be unknown to you (i.e. a person you don’t know or recognize). Shortly thereafter, you will receive mortgage instructions, and a legitimate looking bank draft drawn on a major bank. Loan amounts to date range from $640,000 to $685,000. Client will be in a rush to complete the deal.

Please be wary if you are handling a matter that appears the same or is similar to the one described above.  We encourage lawyers and their staff to be extra careful when handling mortgage deals. Remember that these are very sophisticated frauds. The letters and other documents provided by the client and bank drafts received from the lender will look legitimate - but turn out to be counterfeit.

Watch for the red flags on this type of fraud:
> Client and/or lender contact are new to your firm
> Source of referral is unknown or not recognized
> Very large mortgage be placed on mortgage free property
> Client is in a rush to complete the deal.

It appears that the people behind this fraud have stolen the identity of the property owner, and that the property owner is unaware that this has happened. Use the title search, telephone book, Internet and other sources to cross-check client and bank names, addresses, phone numbers and other information in the documentation provided to you.
 
Protect yourself when dealing with the bank. Don’t rely on oral confirmation from your bank at time of deposit that the bank draft is good. Don’t disburse funds immediately - even if your client is pushing! Wait until the second bank-to-bank verification before issuing funds from your trust account. For branches in major centres this often will take one or two banking days, and for branches in more remote locales as long a 8-10 calendar days. See the Show Me the Money article for more information on funds transfers (Summer 2008 LAWPRO Magazine at
http://www.practicepro.ca/LAWPROMag/LawproMagArchive.asp)

Please call LAWPRO if you are an Ontario lawyer at 1-800-410-1013 (416-598-5899) if you suspect you have completed or are acting on a matter that, based on this information, causes you concern. If you have or come into the possession of a fraudulent cheque or bank draft, please carefully place it in an envelope so that an attempt to recover fingerprints from it can be made.

Please read LAWPRO’s new Fraud Fact Sheet at http://www.practicepro.ca/practice/pdf/FraudInfoSheet.pdf to learn more about the red flags to look out for on matters that are frauds. Or see the practicePRO Fraud page at http://www.practicepro.ca/fraud for information on fraud and how to avoid it.

Hopefully by passing this information along we can stop those who are trying to get what you got and leave your trust account in mint condition.

♫ Well its time to change
when its time to change
…when its time to change you’ve got to rearrange
move your heart to what your gonna be…♫

Words and Music by: Raymond Bloodworth, Billy Meshel, Chris Welch, recorded by The Brady Bunch.

A lawyer friend of mine lamented recently about an experience he had in running an in-house education session for his partners on web 2.0, social media, blogs and their implications for marketing by lawyers.  One of his partners in the middle of the presentation asked how the teaching partner was recording his time spent learning about this stuff. My lawyer friend was expressing his frustration regarding this partner who not only was not connecting the dots, he wasn’t even seeing them.  Unfortunately, there seems to be an ever-increasing gulf between those lawyers who ‘get’ the positive implications of technology, who see the benefits of learning about them and who know that entering into a dialogue with their partners regarding how to best take advantage of these new developments will result in the betterment of all; and those that don’t.

Perhaps those who do not ‘get it’ do not want for clients or are satisfied with the state of their practice and see no reason to change. But that does not accord with what I am told daily by many many lawyers who are constantly looking for ways to improve their practices. There are shining examples of lawyers who do ‘get it’ and who have embraced technology and have seen huge changes in their practice as a result.  I will be shortly running interviews of select  lawyers in upcoming posts under the new category “30 Questions for Busy Lawyers who use Technology” in order to shed some light on real examples of lawyers who are leaders in their understanding, use and application of technology.

But to introduce these interviews, I thought I would look at one technology that is already built and available for lawyers in BC.  This is Dye & Durham’s Ecorp. For any solicitor who maintains corporate records, limited partnerships, proprietorships, partnerships and societies in BC or Federally, this is one incredible system.

From incorporating a new corporation from the precedent and form library, to maintaining the corporate records in an online library, to establishing a Trust or s. 85 or s. 86 transaction - the system is automated (and has built-in checks to ensure that you have dotted every “i” and crossed every “T”).  Existing corporations can be brought into the system. Historical searches are straightforward (imagine trying to read an older paper-based minute book and trace what happened to a particular share issue…).  The software maintains shareholder rights and restrictions - preventing you from inadvertently causing a problem.  The document assembly and document library allows for quick generation of forms and documents once the data is in the system - without any spelling or typo errors. All filings are done electronically  - and if you wish to also extraprovincially register the corporation in Alberta - that is also available.

You can upload your own share structures into Ecorp and have them available to you in future transactions.  Tracing affiliate references between corporations can be performed, allowing you to produce graphical organizational charts simply and easily.

The system is web-based; Dye & Durham has taken the US Patriot Act and its privacy concerns to heart as all its servers and data are hosted within Canada.  Within Ecorp, security access can be controlled via user management settings and the user administrative system.  The system uses digital certificates to encrypt communications.  Full backup of all data is performed real time and the system is further backed up onto tape throughout the day. Real customer support personnal situate in their New Westminster office are available during business hours to assist in any user issues.

Best of all, Dye & Durham has priced the system in a manner that is eminently suitable to lawyers starting up to established law firms.  There is no purchase of software required and Ecorp bills you $29/corporation/year (or less) at annual resolution time - allowing you to run the system without any upfront costs.

In my opinion, this system offers solicitors a very powerful, accurate and cost-effective way to build and maintain a corporate records practice, particularly those who are just starting out or in a solo or small firm and who may not have a great deal of financial resources. It allows lawyers to gain from the built-in forms, checks and balances in the system - it even does the math for you!

When it is time to change you’ve got to rearrange - and Ecorp is a great example of how technology can be acquired, applied and appreciated by lawyers who not only see the dots, they know how to connect them to their future.

♫ Hey! You! Get off of my cloud.
Don’t hang around ‘cause two’s a crowd…♫

Words and music by M. Jagger & K. Richards.

There is an expression: “A funny thing happened on the way to the Forum.” Well, despite all attempts to the contrary, a funny thing has happened to law: Change. In particular, rapid change, induced by technology.

The results of this change can be viewed either as a threat to the profession as we know it or they can be viewed as a golden opportunity. The latest wave or change to wash over us can be summarized by the phrase: “Web 2.0.” One way to view the most important themes of Web 2.0 is by looking at a Web 2.0 invention: the Tag Cloud:

While there are different types, in essence a tag cloud is a visual depiction of the aggregation of “tags” (or word counts) for all websites that reference the phrase in question; in our case it is the phrase: “Web 2.0.” The larger the font of any particular tag, the more often this phrase occurs on the Internet related to the reference phrase. (By the way, you could generate a similar word cloud for all the documents in a litigation case – the results may be more intuitive than other forms of case preparation. If you take it to the next level and tag phrases with issues/people/dates, the results may be even more surprising).

In the legal world, Web 2.0 offers the promise of a lawyer practising not a “bricks and mortar” practice but rather virtually – a “clicks and mortar” practice. Marketing, distribution, communication, brand identity, core competencies – all are built and maintained online.

The Yellow Pages are replaced by LinkedIn, Facebook and other social networking sites. Marketing takes place via blogs, Twitter “tweets” and other online networking. Supply networks are virtual since legal assistants, research and other services all can be contracted out and managed via the web. Work is separated from place since you can work from wherever you have an Internet connection. Relationships are fostered and encouraged via Web 2.0 collaboration software such as SharePoint. The office also goes paperless since all the documentation is now handled electronically. Most importantly in Canada, Web 2.0 allows any lawyer to establish a national practice in virtually any area of law courtesy of the Interjurisdictional Practice Protocol. Michael Porter’s work at Harvard Business School on focused differentiation (think “niche practice” as a strategic business strategy) is given life. The market for any law practice is no longer tied to geographic or residential concerns – distance becomes largely irrelevant.

Fantasy? Not at all. There are B.C. lawyers who are pioneers and have established their practices on the cloud.

For those lawyers willing to ride the updrafts, they may find that they have soared to the stratosphere courtesy of rethinking how they can practise law. The vistas up that high can be breathtaking. And the early adopters can say to the latecomers – hey you, get off of my cloud!

(this post is based on a column originally published in PracticeTalk in the Canadian Bar Association - BC Branch’s newsletter BarTalk)

♫ It’s just my job five days a week
A rocket man, a rocket man….♫

Lyrics by Bernie Taupin, music and recorded by Reginald Kenneth Dwight, aka Sir Elton Hercules John CBE.

Simon Fodden, writing in Slaw.ca discussed the new Novatel MiFi - which is a cellular modem that does not need to be pushed into, slotted, USB’d or otherwise wired to your laptop to link you to a cellular-hosted internet service.  What is the MiFi?  It is a router and modem all combined, which allows you to create a portable WiFi cloud that can be shared by up to 5 people. There is *only* one problem with the MiFi - and that is, alike many other technological developments, it is not (yet) available in Canada. It operates in the USA on the Verizon network. The touted benefits of the MiFi is that it is always with you - there is no need to have internet service at home etc…

So what is a Canadian lawyer to do? Seek a typical Canadian compromise - a Roger’s Mobile Hi-Speed Rocket Internet Stick. This little device will allow you to connect to the internet wherever you can find a cellular signal.  It connects quickly and easily, the initial configuration is not difficult, it works for PCs as well as Macs and there are corporate data plans that are a bit easier on the pocket compared to the consumer plans (call Rogers and ask to speak to their corporate sales department).

OK, this is a compromise - so you have to connect the Rocket modem to your USB port for it to work (unlike the MiFi which can be inside your computer bag all the time).  You can’t automatically share the Rocket Stick’s internet (unless you can master the intracies of sharing an internet connection in Windows or OS X) as you can with the MiFi.

But similar to the MiFi - you can connect and work from virtually anywhere (well, not the Yukon since Rogers doesn’t have any coverage there…or indeed from anywhere else where Rogers doesn’t have service).  I have a Rocket Stick and absolutely love it - as I can grab my MacBook and work from almost anywhere and not have to worry about finding a Wi-Fi cloud.   Talk about convenient!  And I find that the benefit of being able to work here and there when I need to far offsets the $35-40/month that I find the Rocket Stick is costing me in terms of data use, fees and taxes. But I am not sure about this type of service replacing my home internet service - after all, on the Rocket Stick I still have to watch the amount of data being downloaded in order to keep the charges reasonable.

Since I think its going to be a long long time before we get around to finding the MiFi in Canada, the Rocket Stick is about as close as we are likely to get in Canada to carrying the internet around with you.

♫ Be not selfish in your doings:
Pass it on. (Pass it on, children)
Help your brothers (help them) in their needs:
Pass it on…♫

Lyrics and Music by Bunny Livingston (aka Bunny Wailer), recorded by The Wailers.

As a lawyer, I enjoy the study of law. As we all know, laws come in many forms. When studying laws, we are accustomed to dealing with a set of formal laws – being those duly considered and passed by a parliament, legislature, congress or other legislative body. In addition to these formal laws and associated regulations, at least in the common-law system, there is also precedent or judge-made law. However, experience tells us that outside these formal laws exists a parallel universe of unwritten laws. A good example of an unwritten law is the Pereto Principle: namely that in any business entity, 80% of the revenues arise from only 20% of the clients – or as it is usually restated, 80% of your time is occupied by 20% of your client base.

Read the rest of the post on Slaw.ca here.

♫ Thy magic reunites those
Whom stern custom has parted;
All men will become brothers
Under thy gentle wing…♫

Lyrics by Friedrich von Schiller; music by L. van Beethoven; Ode to Joy”.

When my trusty but basic cell phone died, it was time to look for a replacement.  I knew that it was time to stop my resistance as one of the last holdouts against the western phenomenon that has blown thru the business world, namely the Blackberry.  It was a difficult decision but ultimately driven by the need to carry my calendar around with me without carrying a paper printout.  I thought that these tiny black megaliths would soon start to have an influence over my life much as the black megalith slowly but surely changes the primitive ancestors of man in: “2001 A Space Odyssey“.   What I should have realized much sooner is that this influence could be both positive as well as possibly negative.  I also realized that as a self-confessed tecchy, I was failing to drink my own Kool-aid.

The rest of this blog post can be read at www.slaw.ca

♫ Get up, stand up: stand up for your rights!
Get up, stand up: don’t give up the fight! ♫

Music and Lyrics by Bob Marley and Peter Tosh, “Get Up, Stand Up!”

April 16 marks the kickoff of Law Week in Canada, a national event sponsored by The Canadian Bar Association. In BC, Law Week is marked by a number of events include Dial-A-Lawyer, mock trials, essay and public speaking contests for students, free law classes, citizenship ceremonies, courthouse tours, and a fun run and free public forum in Vancouver.  Events in British Columbia will be held in Cowichan Valley, Fort St John, Kamloops, Kelowna, Maple Ridge, Nanaimo, New Westminster, Prince George, Terrace, Tri-Cities, Vancouver and Victoria.

All this is to  mark the signing of the Canadian Declaration of Rights and Freedoms which guarantees certain rights and freedoms in Canada.  It is therefore appropriate that the theme of this year’s Law Week is Access to Justice.

Coincidentally, the Globe and Mail just ran an article (April 15, 2009) entitled: “Afghan women among the most vulnerable in the world“.  The article states:

“Violence against women is widely practised and tolerated. Abusers are rarely prosecuted and the authorities seldom investigate complaints of violent attacks, rape, murder or suicide of women. Women who report rape face being locked up and accused of having committed crimes of zina (that is, laws that criminalize sexual relations outside marriage). Nonetheless, the recognized need to combat violence against women is gaining ground.”

In this context, where Canadian men and women are serving and unfortunately, dying, attempting to establish in Afghanistan an equivalent of the Canadian rule of law,  it is just  that we take a week and acknowledge those same Canadian rights and freedoms that we so take for granted here at home.

Those same Canadian troops in Afghanistan, I am sure, in a nod to the Rule of Law, would say in unison with the lawyers: “Get up, stand up: stand up for your rights!“

♫ Tell me something good
Tell me that you like it …
What I got to give will sho nuff do you good.. ♫

Lyrics and Music by Stevie Wonder, recorded by Rufus and Chaka Khan, “Tell me Something Good“.

While Simon Chester may be leading the discussion on the application of Twitter for lawyers, there is no question that Twitter has proven its value for legal technology conferences.

There were many new and exciting aspects about ABA TECHSHOW 2009 including Richard Susskind’s keynote address on the end of lawyers. But to me, in looking back at ABA TECHSHOW, it was the influence and power of Twitter that is leaving the biggest impression.

You can read the rest of this post on www.slaw.ca “Something to Twitter About“.

♫  Thunder and Lightning
I tell you it’s frightening
It’s thunder and lightning
And you’re in control… ♫

Lyrics and music by Chi Coltrane, “Thunder and Lightning”

A funny thing happened on the way to ABA TECHSHOW - perhaps it was the effect of the downswing in the economy - but a real emphasis at this year’s show was how technology can produce real returns for real lawyers.

One of the great themes was the power of Web 2.0 and how it can be levered to reach out to clients, to build dealrooms and reach out to clients in new ways.  Another theme was how social networking can be used to produce a great ROI for your marketing spend.  Richard Susskind, in his keynote, noted how the web is a disruptive technology.  The web can be equally viewed as a threat or it can be embraced as a way for lawyers to craft their own future. He challenged lawyers to exercise leadership and figure out how to break your legal service into discrete parts and send these parts out to contract suppliers to reduce the cost of the overall legal service.

One of the other important trends at the show was the extensive use of Twitter (www.twitter.com) and the continual posting of tweets by attendees.

There was a specific Twitter feed (#TECHSHOW) that allowed any twitterer to post and have their tweet seen by anyone who subscribed to the hash feed.  This resulted in a metric of sorts:  You could judge the most exciting presentations by the volume of tweets that referred to that session!

Furthermore, the bloggers were busy - aside from looking at attending the social event such as Beer for Bloggers sponsored by Kevin O’Keefe of Lexblog and the ABA Journal - they posted to their blogs during the show.  Examples were:

• Sharon Nelson: Ride the Lightning Blog post on MonetaMail.
• Kevin O’Keefe:  LexBlog (Real Lawyers have Blogs) interviewed a number of people at ABA TECHSHOW and posted the interviews as podcasts.
• Rex Gradeless: Social Media Law Student blog on All things ABA TECHSHOW - with his overview of the events at ABA TECHSHOW.
• Rick Borstein:  Rick’s slides from ABA TECHSHOW are posted on ACROBAT FOR LEGAL PROFESSIONALS blog.
• ABA TECHSHOW:  Techshow ran its own blog with great tips and ideas leading up to the show.
• Jim Calloway: Jim’s Law Practice Tips Blog featured the highlights of Richard Susskind’s keynote address.

and many many others.

It highlighted that if you add real content to your blog that provides value to your audience, they will keep coming back!  Furthermore, as a lawyer you can promote your value and expertise by blogging and indicating your interest in and awareness of current events and their implications for your clients.  After all, aren’t you trying to attract clients by demonstrating your insight into those changes that affect your clients?  A blog is an excellent way of doing so.  So as a lawyer - if you attend a CLE event - blog about it and the implications of the new developments for your clients.  You will show to your clients that you, too, are riding the lightning!

By the way, this blog post was written right at ABA TECHSHOW during the 60 Tips in 60 Minutes presentation by Dan Pinnington, Reid Trautz, Nancy Duhon and Ben Schoor.  Great Stuff!~