Lawyers Must Know Technology

As we head into 2017 you must acknowledge technology is not an option in your law practice. It is also not optional that you know technology as a practicing lawyer. Think about it for a minute... How can you create an effective discovery plan in your divorces cases if you don't know about online banking and online finance programs like Quickbooks? How can you effectively adjudicate all the issues n your case if you don't know how to find all the facts? How can you cost effectively deliver legal services if you are not computer savvy? How are you going to communicate with your clients if you don't use email?

If you think you don't need to know technology, then you don't know about practicing law. nowadays. Technology wisdom is no longer on the horizon. It is under our feet, on our desks, in our heads. It has been here since yesterday, and you need to embrace it and know it now!

If you don't believe me, then pay attention to the state bars. They are compelling you to know technology. The State Bar of Florida has amended its CLE rules so that they now require three hours per cycle of technology training. Given how pervasive tech it is in our world, it is only a matter of time before all state bars with have similar rules.

Also pay attention to your malpractice carriers. Those risk management brochures they send you are now filled with warnings compelling us to learn about and implement technology. Malpractice applications now include technology questions.

In your divorce practice do you request data from the opposing parties computer? Are you researching social media use by the opposing party? Do your requests for job search logs include data from job websites? No. Why not? Here is my suggestion for your list of 2017 resolutions:  Start thinking about, using, and investigating technology in your practice. It is not just about word processing anymore...

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

#technology #CLE #Harding&AssociatesFamilyLaw #californiafamilylaw #divorce #family law #superlawyers #americanacademyofmatrimoniallawyers #Pleasantondivorce #AlamedaCountyDivorce #ContraCostaCountyDivorce #lawyers

The Hytech Lawyer

The Hytech Lawyer is a nice blog published by Columbia, South Carolina trial lawyer Bill Latham. According to Bill the blog/website is:

Generally focused on technology and its implications for  the practice of law.   The subject matter of the blog runs the gamut from cutting edge law practice technology, to the impact of technology on the legal profession.  Finally, we address data security, data breach and privacy issues.   In a nutshell– the intersection of law and technology.

Take a look. You will find hardware and software review, tips fore making better use of software, Bill's thoughts on legal tech, and excellent articles on data security.

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law

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The New Mac Book Pro

I carry an iPad Pro for most of my mobile work. It gives me internet access, and I can download client files and take them to court with me. The Apple Pen also also lets me to take notes. However, when I anticipate a need for heavy duty computing, or when I know that I will be needing Windows software programs, I go with my 15 inch Mac Book Pro.

My Mac is my favorite computing platform. The retina display gives a large, clear, crisp view. There is no shortage of horsepower. I have Parallels installed on it so that I can run Windows programs (like DissoMaster). It just plains works!

Well, for all you Mac fans the big day is here. For the first time in four years Apple has put the Mac Book through a major redesign. It is now thinner, lighter and more powerful. It has a bigger touchpad. The screen is redesigned. The speakers are redesigned. The battery life is longer. There is now a small touch pad screen above th keyboard, that replaces function keys. This is a major upgrade and it looks like a great machine. TechCruch.com has a nice preview.

Of course, you get what you pay for. And the superior Apple product comes with the usual exhorbinant Apple price tag. The 15" version starts at $2399!

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

#Apple #macbookpro #Harding&AssociatesFamilyLaw #californiafamilylaw #divorce #family law #superlawyers #americanacademyofmatrimoniallawyers #Pleasantondivorce #AlamedaCountyDivorce #ContraCostaCountyDivorce #lawyers

A High Tech Hotel Desk

I am sure many of you road warriors can commiserate with my blah when it comes to working from a hotel room. The physical space is usually nice enough. Alas it's not home, and it's not the office... It is never just right. It is what it is though, and we must make do with what we've got.

I found myself in an East Coast hotel room recently, desperately needing to get some work done. The hotel I was staying in was an absolutely beautiful historic building just restored to the tune of about $60,000,000. What was interesting was that my room had no desk in it. That was going to be a challenge when I went about setting up my mobile office.

What to do? What to do? As the saying goes, necessity is the mother of all invention. After some MacGyver like thinking I came up with a solution, and I am now thrilled to introduce to you the high tech, height adjustable, folding road warrior inspired Iron Desk:

The Iron Desk

Tell me that isn't cutting edge.  Stable. Comfortable. And you can iron your shirts while getting your law work done.  The Iron Desk is available at a hotel near you!

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

#irondesk #Harding&AssociatesFamilyLaw #californiafamilylaw #divorce #family law #superlawyers #americanacademyofmatrimoniallawyers #Pleasantondivorce #AlamedaCountyDivorce #ContraCostaCountyDivorce #lawyers

Stand-Up Desks Are Now Smart Desks

I started to write about stand-up desks more than five years ago. I have been using a stand-up desk for around ten years. Here is my original. Just some laminate boards bolted to the wall.

The Uplift motorized

My how things have changed. It has been almost two years since I last wrote about stand-up desks. Their popularity continues to increase. I was recently in the chambers of a judge who was using a Varidesk!  Stand-ups have also become pretty high tech. Now they are not even called stand up desks. They are Smart Desks.  

Last week while visiting a colleague at his office I saw that he had changed his main workspace to an Uplift height adjustable desk. The lift level is adjustable on the Uplift, and it is motorized, which is pretty cool. Many other manufacturers also have motorized lifts, and desk that you can hand crank up and down.

Harman Kardon on the Evodesk

There are plenty of new choices in this growing area of office furniture. Evodesk lets you build your own, and you can even add a Harman Kardon sound system!

Autonomous is selling basic desk starting at $250.

Smartdesks have become a major industry! They are design pieces. They are incredibly high tech. Take a look at some of the stuff you can get:

UpDesk

UpDesk

UpDesk

Autonomous

Then again, for your old school folks there is still my grand Amish built stand-up desk.

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

#standupdesk #smartdesk #Harding&AssociatesFamilyLaw #californiafamilylaw #divorce #family law #superlawyers #americanacademyofmatrimoniallawyers #Pleasantondivorce #AlamedaCountyDivorce #ContraCostaCountyDivorce #lawyers

Interesting Stats on Referrals to the Blog

I was checking out the stats for the viewers that are coming to this blog.  I learned some interesting stuff.

44% of the visitors to this blog click through from Google. Not so surprising.

17% are clicking through from my Facebook posts. That is surprising in two way. It shows me that people are actually paying attention to my Facebook posts, and that Facebook is a legitimate generator of traffic for my blog. Good news for Facebook.

Zero traffic from Yahoo and Zero traffic from Bing. That surprised me, and really reinforced to me that Google really is the Dominant search engine.

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

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Live Chat on your Website

Over at Legal Productivity Michael Miceli has an article addressing the idea of including a live chat feature on your website. According to Michael:

Unlike calling in to your office or submitting a contact form on your home page, live chat offers the ability to interact in real time with a prospect. They’re happy because they’re in the hunt for your services, they want instant acknowledgement and you’re interested in booking that consultation appointment. When it comes to lead generation, there’s no time like the present to take action and engage. 

. . .

For those visitors that do not engage, live chat has been shown to reduce your bounce rate (rate of exit directly from the page) and it also helps boost the number of visitors who return to your site for another visit. A good rule of thumb is to engage someone who has been idle on a particular web page, for at least 15 seconds, with a pop-up chat window. These are often accompanied by audible sounds that alert the visitor as well.

I don't disagree with him. He provides more compelling reasons in support of live chat:

By getting the basic information of the visitor, the person fielding your firm’s chat inquires will be able to schedule a consultation, or at least take their information for a follow up call. Assuming your firm is organized and methodical in following up with leads, live chat will likely help boost your monthly total. How much? A study by Forrester Research indicated live chat increases website conversion by 20%.

These are all salient points. I take exception to none of them. I suppose it isn't any more burdensome than the current default of having a staffer screen new business phone calls? Still, questions arise. At what price do we family law lawyers chase new business? If we are engaging in advice chat, the chat portal will have to be staffed by a lawyer. Does a ten second chat create a privileged attorney-client relationship? How does one perform a conflict of interest check? What is the operating cost of having a lawyer man the chat portal? What is the operating cost of having a staffer man the chat portal? Does the solo lawyer want chat messages popping up at random times throughout the day? For chat to meet its purpose, it must be live and instantaneous. You won't be able to hit do not disturb like you do with your phone.

I love the idea of live chat. If I am a large national or regional family law firm sure I could see the value of chat. For a one or two person shop I question the cost/benefit ratio. I would love to receive some comments from folks that have actually implemented live chat. Write in!

Please click here to read Mr. Miceli's original article.

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information about Harding & Associates Family Law 

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