If you don’t already know, ABA TECHSHOW, held annually in Chicago, is the world’s premier legal technology CLE conference and Expo.  For three days in the spring,  hundreds of attendees get a choice of over 60 programs to attend spread out over multiple sessions, while over one hundred vendors display for us their latest products.

This year’s TECHSHOW, which wrapped up on April 4th, was filled with powerful tips, tricks, practical advice and everything else a lawyer or firm would want in learning how to make his or her practice more efficient and profitable.  The enitre weekend was Tweeted extensively and you can click here and enter #techshow for a complete recap, as well as finding out what others are still saying about the event.

I was fascinated by this year’s keynote speaker, Richard Susskind, who captivated the audience by discussing his latest book The End of Lawyers? Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services. Susskind is a technology advisor to legal practices worldwide and has written several books on the changing legal world. 

During his keynote, Susskind described that, while attorneys are experts at reacting to certain situations and clients’ demands, attorneys rarely focus on providing proactive legal services.  He describes that lawyering is moving away from terrestrial methods, and the legal profession will soon be under “one virtual roof,” driven by online collaborative tools.  For the less venturous attorney, the legal profession will soon have changed completely and left him or her behind.  For the progressive attorney willing to venture out to cyberspace, opportunities abound.

Throughout the year I will hope to focus on and review some of the products offered by the vendors.  While too numerous to mention here, I invite you to peruse the vendor list on the TECHSHOW website.  Contact them, as they will be more than willing to discuss your situation and determine of their products are right for your practice.  These are the tools to which was Susskind was referring in making us all “procative” attorneys.

We are clearly seeing a paradigm shift in the way law is practiced.  Susskind tells us that clients want more services for less money.  Attorneys need to convince their prospective clients that they can provide more value than the competitor. Attorneys need to display this value to their clients so their clients will pay promptly and in full.  When it comes to the delivery of quality legal services, we must embrace existing and emerging technologies and use them efficiently in order to not just succeed, but thrive.

The list of legal programs from TECHSHOW 2009 can be found here.  I presume that many of these sessions, as well as new and exciting ones, are already being considered for TECHSHOW 2010, scheduled for March 25-27, 2010.  Hope to see you there!

Tomorrow is going to be great. It’s my type of seminar.  I, along with many of my colleagues, will be presenting at tomorrow’s Legal Tech seminar at the Sheraton Framingham, just off of Exit 12 on the Mass Pike.  It’s my type of seminar because we’re giving this to you in 15 minute spurts, not hour-long talking head presentations.  On the menu?

Rodney Dowell will be speaking on naming conventions for your files.

I will be speaking on the best PDF tricks for lawyers. I’m throwing in scanning tips as well.

Jared Correia will be speaking on Outlook tricks. Think OHIO (Only Handle It Once)

Chris Perruzzi will be speaking about Dragon Naturally Speaking

Andrea Goldman and David Harlow will be speaking on social networking

Rodney, Jared and Mark Kupsc will be speaking about the new Data Privacy Act

Then LexisNexis is providing a free hour on search engine marketing.

There are going to be lots of vendors showcasing lots of cool toys and stuff.

The best part?  This is all free.

Come on down and say hello.  This is gonna rock.

And don’t forget to listen to WBZ 1030 AM on your way over.  You may hear a familiar voice discussing the Tech Fair during the business news portion of the news…

If you are at Techshow Boston tomorrow, or even if you’re not, get connected!  My friend, Jared Correia of LOMAP will be blogging live all day long.  Also, we will be Tweeting, so follow that as well by following www.twitter.com/TechshowBoston.  You can participate by adding the hashtag #techbos.  Or, go to www.search.twitter.com and enter the hashtag and you will see all posts regarding Techshow Boston.  Either way, stay connected and stay informed!

Having a fax machine to me is like having a combo TV/DVD player.  It just provides another opportunity to have an equipment meltdown.  With all of the eFax companies out there, why bother paying the money, connecting it to your server, and never having the right ink cartridge when it runs out?

But what to do with all the web-based fax services?  How do you know you’re getting the most value for your money? FaxCompare is a site which actually breaks down the different companies and provides an apples to apples comparison of thedifferent products.

I thank my friend and LPM guru Jim Calloway for the tip.

Every so often I get a call asking if I know any affordable and efficient laser all-in-one (AIO) printer/scanner/fax machines.  Brother recently introduced the monochrome MFC-7840W which lets you do all 3 functions rather seamlessly for about $300.00.  This unit will connect to your network via a standard ethernet cable or wirelessly via wi-fi, making it a good option for the small firm or sole practitioner.  PC Magazine recently gave this unit an Editors’ Choice award.

Making a hardware or software purchase for your practice can be time consuming.  Getting reviews for the product in question can be downright frustrating.  My friend Don Gage recently directed me to Litireviews, a site dedicated to legal and litigation software reviews.  I was pleased to see that some hardware is included as well.  There are 207 reviews posted in the year 2008, so it appears to be constantly updated.

I hope this site serves as a useful tool in your endeavors for the ultimate law practice.

The ABA has recently published its 2008 Solo and Small Firm Legal Technology Guide.  Think of it as the “Consumer Reports” for legal technology products.  The book provides recommendations on computers, servers, other hardware, software, security systems, and anything else a firm might need.  Sharon Nelson and John Simek, the authors of the book, provide clear explanations of difficult technologal ideas over the book’s 145 pages.  Certainly, the technological neophyte may feel overwhelmed by the depth of material, but I don’t know of a more practical publication.  Regardless, the book is certainly worthwhile for those of you seraching for assistance and advice regarding your technological needs.

Click here for ordering information.