ANOTHER LOOK AT PRECEDENT
MANAGEMENT
by Marybeth Corbett of Wilmer Cutler
Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP
ANOTHER
LOOK AT
PRECEDENT
MANAGEMENT
It seems at nearly every knowledge management
(KM) conference I have a moment of personal
dread. A panel is discussing some promising new
KM technology when someone makes a passing
reference to precedents. Silence envelops the
room and, seemingly in unison, the panelists nod
their heads with a "been there, done that" look.
The topic of precedents is quickly side-stepped,
apparently either as a challenge fully conquered
long ago or an antiquated notion lacking any
continuing value in the KM 2.0 world. Hoping to go
unnoticed, I slink low in my seat, assuming I'm the
last knowledge worker still struggling to satisfy the
practice's need for good precedents. Could it be I
am not as alone as I thought?
Long before legal knowledge management gained
recognition as a formal discipline, generations
of lawyers used precedent documents to avoid
reinventing the wheel. Particularly for transactional
practices, a good drafting starting point is
imperative to efficient and effective client service.
A comprehensive collection of usable precedents
may score low in a "cool tech tools" competition,
but earns high marks among lawyers as a critical
knowledge resource.