The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/11430
What started out as an “out there” idea from LexThink founder and “innovational speaker” Matt Homann quickly turned into an exciting “build-it-and-they-will-come” event. Homann teamed up with InsideLegal.com and produced Ignite Law on the eve of this year’s ABA TECHSHOW, the ABA Law Practice Management Section’s annual technology conference. Thanks to lots of pre-show social media buzz, Ignite Law attracted the attention of legal professionals and industry thought leaders who were already convening in Chicago for TECHSHOW the week of March 22. The event’s rapid-fire presentation format and wide spectrum of topics interested many of them enough to apply for a presentation slot. The submitted topics were voted on, and 16 presentations were chosen. The speakers included legal journalists, BigLaw, SmallLaw, legal technology vendors, trial consultants and bloggers, each allotted six minutes and 20 slides to state his case for the future of the law business. Topics and presentation styles could not have been more diverse, and though 18 seconds per slide wasn’t much time to make their points, the speakers prepared themselves well in order to connect with the sold-out audience of 150. A few talks shared technology themes, including Ernie Svenson’s “Information Processing for Lawyers,” which advocated the paperless office and commonsense efficiencies powered by technology WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SEARCH FOR IGNITE LW: ERNIE SVENSON and Joy Heath Rush’s introduction of ILTA’s Law2020 initiative. WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SEARCH FOR IGNITE LW: JOY HEATH RUSH Others, including journalist and ABA Journal Editor-in- Chief Ed Adams, drew parallels between the future of law practice and legal journalism and how social media may have transformed reporting, while legal innovators and visionaries remain and continue to help define the future of the profession. WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SEARCH FOR IGNITE LW: ED ADAMS Tom Mighell, an accomplished legal technologist and longtime ABA Law Practice Management board member, delivered an impassioned plea for better practice management education starting at the law school level. According to Mighell, with only 61 out of 195 accredited universities offering practice management courses, the gap of tech-savvy lawyers versus those in denial about understanding and utilizing technology is still widening. WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SEARCH FOR IGNITE LW: TOM MIGHELL Finally, Doug Sorocco, an Oklahoma-based IP and technology lawyer, focused his insights on how agile and innovative thinking can help “slay the large firm beast,” the rigid and traditionalist mentality that many firms, regardless of size, have historically embraced. He encouraged the Ignite audience to explore some “dark places,” be fearless, and channel creativity when standing toe-to-toe with competitors (“You’ll fail, get over it and move on.”) WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SEARCH FOR IGNITE LW: DOUG SOROCCO All Ignite Law videos, as well as coverage of each presentation and photos, can be found at InsideLegal.com. Ignite Law was in part created to gauge our industry’s interest and willingness to define the next best thing in law practice, and to pool our collective resources and abilities to shape that “future of law practice” definition. Neither a guarantee of what will happen with the practice of law nor a blueprint for what path to take, it is a unique potpourri of opinions, ideas and questions about what could be next on the legal horizon. Sparks definitely flew that night in Chicago, and we hope other such future events –– and the Law2020 initiative –– will help “fan the creative flames” of our industry. ILTA JoAnna Forshee is the CEO of InsideLegal. com, an insider’s guide to doing business in legal technology, and has spent the last 12 years working with legal technologists, consultants, vendors and media –– spanning roles as legal industry event producer, legal industry advisor, social media guru and PR/ marketing agency founder (Envision Agency). InsideLegal has partnered with ILTA since 2004 to produce its vendor education program and administer the annual Technology Purchasing Survey. JoAnna can be reached at jf@InsideLegal.com and on twitter at @InsideLegal. Peer to Peer the quarterly magazine of ILTA 101