Wednesday, 8 September 2021

What is the Importance Of Legal Technology in the Legal Profession?

Introduction

For legal professionals to understand the importance of technology in their legal careers, it is first imperative to understand what it means. Law is structured around specific forms of knowledge, flows of information, and networks of communication. Technology can be defined as “the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry.” Legal technology has developed rapidly in recent times because of increased investment and access to new technology. By new technology, I mean that legal knowledge has combined itself with machine learning, and when combined with legal books, it has a vast application across all legal sectors – be it corporate or government.

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What is the Purpose of Legal Technology?

The primary purpose of this type of technological development has been to increase the efficiency of legal offices and the productivity of clerical workers. The technology used to monitor the internal capacities of the organizations has enabled management to compare the performance of different departments and cost centers within an organization. This data is used to plan future organizational strategies. In this context, the introduction and use of information technology have significant implications for the organizational forms through which legal services and legal decision-making are mediated. Its importance can be traced in five different ways.

Importance of Legal Technology

Increased Global Outlook: As the law firms have grown in size and expanded the geographical reach of their services, computer-based systems have provided the mechanisms for coordinating and controlling their operations. Such types of firms have invested heavily in the development of their information and communication infrastructures and have adopted styles of practice that depend on the use of new technology. This helps lawyers deliver fast services to their clients. Thus, legal technology enhances the global outlook of legal practice and also plays an important role when it comes to firms positioning themselves in an international legal market.
Greater Transparency: In the new world, client demands are changing and at an accelerating rate. New technology is the key to enable firms to meet these changing demands and have a client-centric approach. Legal technology allows clients to know how much fees they have to pay and the day-to-day progress of the lawyer on their case. They also show clients information in a precise and concise manner. Furthermore, clients can judge the performance of their lawyers against various indicators provided by the practice management software. This ensures that they do not spend more on the case than they earn from it.
Efficient Use of Resources: There are a lot of financial constraints imposed on legal firms, agencies, etc. which have restricted their full use of resources. The development of legal technology spanning the entire legal sector delivers benefits on a much larger scale. In this context, legal firms’ use of technology could be used as a means to join new ventures, maintain alliances, procure clients, share information, and efficiently use the resources at their disposal. Furthermore, it reduces the problems of scarcity associated with print.
Time Management and Fast Processing of Information: There is no doubt that technology if used correctly, is fast and efficient – more than any human individual. This can prove to be of great assistance to any law firm. A high level of analysis can be done in a matter of minutes. The use of algorithms also enables calculations speedily and can easily rectify and errors in a few seconds. It reports functions that simplify the management and control of caseloads. This would previously take a large amount of time and was also quite a tedious clerical task that interested no one. Legal technology helps in managing a high turnover of cases.
Reduction in Chances of Errors: As now all documentation is online, and handled by an Artificial Intelligence (AI), the chances of errors are much lesser. Previously, human errors could have easily been overlooked because of the impossibility of detecting every error that crept up. But with the use of an artificial tracking system, documents can be tracked and analyzed in an infinite number of ways and promises close to no errors in the final document. This also helps in timely submission and works in favor of clients, thereby the law firms.
Read Also – What are the 5 main sources of law in India

Conclusion

Considering the fact that legal projects are increasing in their size, and some even involve a variety of actors and a plethora of paperwork, it has become very important to deliver such services to clients that are as low-cost, effective, and professional as possible. It is for this reason that the continuous development of legal technology in the present times becomes very significant.

The adoption of legal technology in law firms and legal agencies can go on a long way in improving their efficiency and also brings with it the promise of new clients. It creates flexible legal services, increases transparency, reduces the chance of errors in documentation, and also puts your firm on the global map! Legal technology is the way to go!

Monday, 6 September 2021

10 Legal Apps Every Lawyer Needs

In recent times the law profession is highly demanding and a large number of lawyers are expected to work remotely from their smartphones, tabs, laptops, or even PCs. In fact, they need these devices for communication, legal research, and a lot of other functions. Consequently, some mobile apps have become mandatory for lawyers if they want to carry out a hassle-free legal practice. For almost all the daily activities like collaborating with clients and colleagues, timekeeping, searching for information, and also for the management of their hectic schedule, mobile applications are their only savior. However, the good news is that there is an app for almost all the activities that the lawyers might engage in.

Don't have time to read? Watch this video instead: Top 10 Mobile Apps for Lawyers

Here are the top 10 Legal Apps for Lawyers

1. Legodesk

One of the best legal apps for lawyers to use is Legodesk. Especially catering to Indian lawyers, this legal app can act as your virtual legal assistant to aid in the sorting of case files, and related documents, sending important reminders, automated case management, and take care of billing the clients based on your suitability. It is one of the smart legal mobile applications for lawyers that lets them automate their legal practice. Android users can easily download it FREE from the Play Store.

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2. Black’s Law Dictionary

It offers the most widely cited law dictionary in the world. This mobile application has the facility to hyperlink for cross-references so that you can quickly relate to similar terms. Another advantage of this app is that it offers audio pronunciation of legal terminology.

3. Evernote Scannable

This app is simply superb. You will just have to point your camera at anything that is in writing and the app will capture the image. It also has the feature of automatically cropping it and rotating it and adjusting it accordingly. It can even remove creases from folders. You will be surprised when you see that the image looks so real. This app is really helpful for the lawyers because they have access to the files whenever they want. They will just have to capture the image in their camera for that.

4. Fast Case

It is an app that makes the American Law Library easily accessible to you. With this app, you will be able to search for statues and keywords with the use of keywords. Besides, you could also scroll through the collection of statutes to go through a particular statute. It becomes helpful for the lawyers because they can refer to other cases as well when they are researching for a particular case.

5. Chrome Remote Desktop

The ideal situation is uploading of documents in Cloud Storage in case you want to access it from a remote location. But sometimes due to a particular reason, it may not be possible for a lawyer to upload a file in a shared location and they might have to access the file from their home or office computer. With the help of this app in a Smartphone, the lawyers will easily have access to such files.

6. The ABA Journal Daily News App

With the help of this app, you will be able to keep a tab on the latest legal news. In fact, you can even share articles through your email or social media network. The app provides you with the option of bookmarking the content so that you can refer to it later on.

7. Workshare

As a lawyer are you hassled and harassed collaborating and comparing documents? Stop worrying and turn to Workshare. It is considered one of the most efficient mobile apps used by lawyers. With the help of this app, a lawyer will be able to collaborate and compare all documents on the mobile device itself. The good thing about this app is that all changes that have been made in the document are synced across all the documents. The result is that lawyers are able to work more efficiently and the review cycle is shortened.

8. Triplt

There is no denying the fact that travel is an integral part of the legal profession. But for a busy lawyer, it might be quite taxing to keep an account of all his travel details. In that case, the app to go for is Triplt. With the help of this app, you can have a super organized itinerary. It tracks, manages flights, cars, hotels, trains and other aspects of the travel with ease. The good thing about this app is that it automatically creates a travel schedule and syncs it with your Google calendar, Outlook calendar or Apple calendar and the result is that you can share all or part of your travel schedule with your colleagues.

9. Rocket Matter

Have you heard of this app? If not get it soon in your Smartphone. It will make things easy for your law firm. It is one of the most popular time and billing software systems available to small and mid-sized law firms. You can integrate this mobile app into time and billing systems without much effort and the result is the ease of business.

10. Any.do

If you are a lawyer you must know the importance of efficient task management software. All your problems will be solved with this particular mobile application. It acts as a reminder setter and the result is that you can carry out your work with ease. With the help of this app, it is very unlikely that a lawyer will miss an appointment, hearing date or filing of a case. Another feature of Any.do is that you can sync all tasks across devices. This way lawyers can concentrate more on their work instead of keeping a track of to-do lists and documents.

Anyone can design a mobile app, if anything there are multiple videos on how to make an app for beginners. But, it is not an easy task to come up with an app that appeals to one of the most formal professionals of the world- the lawyers. However, with all these apps the lives of lawyers have become far easier and they can focus more on their core business instead of putting in time and energy on associated services.

Sunday, 5 September 2021

Best Areas of Law for Work-Life Balance

Not many people wish to spend most of their time at work. As we age, we are faced with responsibilities such as family and other obligations. There are even social obligations that require more attention. It is definitely important to secure good employment, but it is equally important to balance the same with other areas that require attention. Law as a career would demand many work hours and slog from a fresh graduate. Most young or junior lawyers are faced with the same requirement.

From our generation onward, we can expect the average age of an undergraduate in law to be around 23-24. Other than the minimal social matters to attend to, there won’t be a lot more than life demands at this point in time. However, lawyers after marriage or those who start a family would face trials with respect to balancing life and work.

To be on the realistic side, compared to those in the medical profession, work as a lawyer would not be as demanding. Work, in the field of law, includes working extra hours at the office and carrying work back home as well. However, it does not include night shifts but rather along the lines of having to meet deadlines and dates.

The graph made above is as per data collected from lawyers working in each field, starting from the highest time demanding work, down to the least. We can see the lawyers in the Private Equity and Litigation fields spend more time at work.

1. Government employed lawyers/Public Policy

Those who work in the public sector or as a lawyer or public policymaker under the Government can expect a 9-5 job. Lawyers in Public Sector Undertakings are treated to fixed exit timing. The work requirement, though strenuous, would not be as time-consuming as other fields of work in law. Weekends would not be working days in most circumstances. As the Government/public sector is keen on motivating job security, the stress to be faced by lawyers in the field would be less.

2. Solicitors

Solicitors are those who provide legal advice and opinions or assistance on matters of law. They are the first point of contact for any individual, organization, or company regarding a legal concern. Those who are solely in the profession as a solicitor would not find themselves trialed with litigation duties. A legal adviser’s job requirement would be limited to providing timely service of suggestions and options as to how to handle legal problems.

3. Intellectual Property Rights

It should be established that IPR, as a legal profession, was chosen for this category in contrast with other fields. It is a field with a set course, procedure, and exhaustive legislation. What can receive patent or copyright, etc. is based on legislation. Lawyers in the field will work on the application for registration as an IPR. They would also have to defend cases of infringement. Though it is a field that matures with years of experience and requires a good amount of knowledge, it would not usually be time demanding.

4. Real Estate Lawyers

Especially towards the transaction side. The main three parties to a real estate legal relationship would be the buyer/seller, agent, and lawyer. The work demands knowledge of the law relating to property, as well as real estate law. Closing contracts and filling forms with customers’ data amounts to a good proportion of the work. It offers a fair balance between work and life as it is not very time-consuming per day.

5. Research Scholar/Professor

Another 9 to 5 job. It requires certain educational qualifications and a good place of work would require years of experience as well. However, it is not too difficult for new entrants to this field to find good pay as well as free time. Professors in Universities or law schools would find it possible within their daily routine to spend a fair amount of time on their life outside of work.

6. International Law

Lawyers who mainly work in the field of international law. This would involve work as an attorney who focuses on international trade or business disputes, conflict of law matters, and other private international law. Work in this profession generally does not involve stringent deadlines nor consequences. Rather than knowledge as to the law, interpretations, and case law knowledge matters.

Read Also – Benefits of Becoming a Lawyer

It should be made to note that the fields mentioned earlier are in no way just “easy.” Rather, through a comparative analysis, the stress and lack of time available to lawyers in these fields would be in their favor.

Thursday, 2 September 2021

What is the Lady Lawyers Dress Code?

DRESS CODE OF A WOMEN LAWYER

As a woman, it is difficult enough to figure out how to dress without hearing other people’s opinions on the matter. Unfortunately, people have a lot of opinions! Dressing as a lady lawyer is one of the most talked-about topics when it comes to the dress code for women lawyers in general, and it’s worth discussing some of the dos and don’ts of the clothes women are wearing to their legal jobs.

In the legal industry, appearances matter. The way you dress can help you command respect, inspire trust and convey a polished, professional image. Your wardrobe is a tool to win the trust of supervisors, clients, opposing counsel, and judges.

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1. DO DRESS CONSERVATIVELY

Lady lawyers should make sure that their outfits cover them in such a way that their clothing does not distract from the point they are trying to make. Practicing the law is all about using your brain, so your intelligence should be your most prominent feature. Pantsuits and skirt suits are safe options here, along with moderately comfortable shoes

2. DO SHOW YOUR SENSE OF STYLE

There is nothing wrong with weaving some of your own styles into your business wardrobe. Do you have a favorite color? Wear that color shirt under your suit jacket. Do you like sparkly things? Include one accessory, as long as it’s not distracting. Just because you’re in a stuffy courtroom doesn’t mean that your style has to be stifled. Just remember the other people in the room should notice your intelligence before they notice what you wear.

3. DO FOLLOW ANY EXPLICIT DRES'S CODE

Does your firm or court have a specific and explicit dress code? Don’t even dream of not following it! That is the easiest way for you to go wrong with dressing like a lady lawyer. Dress codes are in place for a reason. Nothing says “unprofessional” like someone who blatantly disregards the dress code. If you want the freedom to start incorporating your own style into your wardrobe, start by making sure everything follows the dress code and build from there.

4. DON’T WEAR CLOTHES THAT DON’T FIT

While showing too much skin is definitely distracting, wearing ill-fitting clothes is also cause for alarm when it comes to wardrobe. One of the most important things to remember when choosing work clothing is to make sure you’re buying what fits you—feeling good in your clothes is half the battle.

5. DON’T GO OVERBOARD

You are free to include your fashion sense into your wardrobe, but don’t overdo it. Just because you like sequins doesn’t mean it’s appropriate to wear a bedazzled jacket in court. Find understated ways to show your personality, and you can’t go wrong.

6. DON’T TOLERATE PEOPLE TELLING YOU HOW TO DRESS

Aside from a written wardrobe policy, you shouldn’t have to tolerate others commenting on what you wear on a daily basis. This is a growing trend in the legal realm everyone from law school professors to judges seems to think they should have a say in what female lawyers wear to work.

7. ACCEPTABLE/UNACCEPTABLE CLOTHING

Acceptable clothing for women includes lightweight sweaters, including turtlenecks, crew, V-neck, and cardigans. Vests worn with short or long-sleeved shirts are also acceptable, as well as blouses knit tops, and collared polo shirts. Acceptable pants include khakis, linen blends, silk, twills or corduroy, and Capri pants that end close to the ankle. Acceptable shoes include thin to medium-sole leather shoes, loafers, pumps, or any updated style with a low or stacked heel, open-toed or dress sandals.

Unacceptable clothing for women includes tight, sheer, and low-cut clothing of any style, sweatshirts, T-shirts, denim of any type or color, spaghetti straps, open backs, midriff, tank tops, halter tops, stretch pants, stirrup pants, jogging or warm-up suits, jeans of any color or style, casual shorts, dress shorts, miniskirts and Capri pants that end close to the knee. Unacceptable shoes for women include athletic shoes, moccasins, flip-flops, and platform heels.

When you’re drafting your firm’s dress code, it’s important to consider your firm’s culture, as well as your geographic location – is your firm in a metropolitan area or is it a rural firm? It can also help you out if you’re new to the legal industry and need a few guidelines for a proper dress as you head out for job interviews or cross the threshold of your new firm for the first time.
Dressing as a female lawyer isn’t always easy—there is a fine line that must be carefully balanced upon, like a tight rope. The most important thing to remember is that you should be able to keep your own sense of style while still following all the dress codes applicable to the courtroom. Don’t let the myriad of voices bother you too much!

Wednesday, 1 September 2021

Advocates Act, 1961

Overview

The Advocate Act defines the legal provisions relating to the legal practitioners and also provides the provisions for the constitution of the Bar Councils and an All-India Bar. So basically, the said Act provides the procedure for registration in state-level bar councils and what kind of qualifications a person may require for registration to practice in a field of law. The supreme body is the Bar Council of India, which is the nodal agency that provides strict rules and regulations for registration. It also provides what kind of standard should be maintained by a law institution.

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Along with that, if you find out the question regarding the rights and duties of an Advocate or what are their duties towards clients or a court or judges or a what kind of duties a client has towards an advocate or court is describe in a very proper manner, so for findings of such kind of question you have to see the Advocates act, 1961.

Advocates Act, 1961 is the updated version of the Indian Bar Council Act, 1926, or we can say that the said act, i.e., Advocates Act, 1961 is replaced the Indian Bar Councils Act. An act is passed by the parliament of India with the objective or motive of providing the laws relating to the legal practitioner. Under the power mentioned in the act, the bar council of India made certain rules that can be termed as Bar Council of India rules which provides what kind of rules are there for practice or mandatory provisions for legal education and also emphasizing more on the part of professional misconduct.

Bar Council of India

The Bar Council of India is to be understood as a statutory body that regulates and represents the Indian bar association. Bar Council of India is constituted by Parliament under the Advocates Act, 1961. Basically Bar Council of India is a governing body for all the legal practitioners in the country that is why it has a very vital role to play as it provides the standards of professional conduct, what kind of etiquette a legal practitioner may have, and also exercises disciplinary jurisdiction over the bar. Along with that, the Bar Council of India also sets standards for legal education with the help of universities and colleges and grants recognition to Universities whose degree in law will serve as a qualification for candidates to enroll themselves as an advocate.

Bar Council of India Rules-

This statutory body (Bar Council of India) has been empowered under section 49 of the Advocates Act, 1961 to make rules. So by this power given under the act Bar Council of India made certain rules which were published in the year 1975 in the official gazette. Basically, all the rules are divided into chapters or parts which are as follows-

Parts I, II, and III dealing with the constitution or establishment of the Bar Council of India, bar councils of states, lawyers, and their respective roles.
Part IV of the rule is dealing with the rules of legal education comprises standards of legal education and recognition of degrees in law for the purpose of enrolment advocate along with that the same rule also allows inspection of the legal institution for recognizing its degree in the field of law.
Lastly, Parts V, VI, VII, VIII, and IX of the Bar Council of India Rules is dealing with some other aspects, including professional ethics, etiquette, or professional misconduct.

Right to practice-

The expression ‘right to practice, in the context of the legal profession, basically refers to the exclusive right of persons who are going to enroll themselves as advocates to start the practice of law before any courts and tribunals according to their choices. In the very landmark ruling, Re. Lily Isabel Thomas (1964CriLJ724 ) the Supreme Court, the apex court of the country, equated the “right to practice” with an “entitlement to practice.” And These rights enjoy protection at two different levels which are as follows-

General protection – Firstly, Article 19(1)(g) of the Indian Constitution protects the right of an individual to choose professions according to their choice.
Specific Protection – Secondly, Section 30 of the Advocates Act, 1961 confers on candidates whose name is enrolled in the registers of Bar Council of the States, the right to practice before any of the court or tribunal in India according to their state preferences or choice including the Apex Court, i.e., Supreme Court.