Predictive Analytics
Lola v. Skadden and the Automation of the Legal Profession
September 9, 2018
Technological innovation has accelerated at an exponential pace in the last few decades, ushering in an era of unprecedented advancements in algorithms and artificial intelligence technologies. Traditionally, the legal field has protected itself from technological disruptions by maintaining a professional monopoly over legal work and limiting the “practice of law” to only those who are licensed. This article analyzes the long-term impact of the Second Circuit’s opinion in Lola v. Skadden,...
September 9, 2018
Technological innovation has accelerated at an exponential pace in the last few decades, ushering in an era of unprecedented advancements in algorithms and artificial intelligence technologies. Traditionally, the legal field has protected itself from technological disruptions by maintaining a professional monopoly over legal work and limiting the “practice of law” to only those who are licensed. This article analyzes the long-term impact of the Second Circuit’s opinion in Lola v. Skadden,...
Finding Treasure With Litigation Data Analytics Software
September 8, 2018
There is a treasure trove of litigation data that for years was virtually inaccessible. While court rulings and filings were available and individual documents could be accessed and viewed, the technology needed to search and analyze the data and provide useful, actionable information simply did not exist. In 2018, that’s no longer the case. The recent maturation of the foundational technologies needed to support machine learning have made advanced data analytics and sophisticated language processing...
September 8, 2018
There is a treasure trove of litigation data that for years was virtually inaccessible. While court rulings and filings were available and individual documents could be accessed and viewed, the technology needed to search and analyze the data and provide useful, actionable information simply did not exist. In 2018, that’s no longer the case. The recent maturation of the foundational technologies needed to support machine learning have made advanced data analytics and sophisticated language processing...
A Rose by Any Other Name: Understanding Judicial Decisions that Do Not Cite Precedent
September 7, 2018
In common‐law countries, legal precedent serves as a foundation of judicial opinions. Judges cite precedent to explain their decision, and it is this use of precedent that threads one decision to another. The Supreme Court in India stands in contrast to its counterparts in other countries in that it annually decides not dozens, but thousands, of cases. Perhaps unsurprisingly, nearly half the Court's decisions do not cite any precedent at all. This article examines this phenomenon, specifically...
September 7, 2018
In common‐law countries, legal precedent serves as a foundation of judicial opinions. Judges cite precedent to explain their decision, and it is this use of precedent that threads one decision to another. The Supreme Court in India stands in contrast to its counterparts in other countries in that it annually decides not dozens, but thousands, of cases. Perhaps unsurprisingly, nearly half the Court's decisions do not cite any precedent at all. This article examines this phenomenon, specifically...
The Narrative Arc of Conflict
September 4, 2018
What’s going on here? Gawande’s puzzle is that we seem not to evaluate the experience – good or bad – but rather report on a recollection of the experience. In describing medical experiences – certainly those involving some pain – patients recall either the worst or the most recent moment. An accounting of the experience at the time tends to differ from a recall of the total experience afterwards. This is where Gawande turns to Kahneman who has researched and reported on research on this...
September 4, 2018
What’s going on here? Gawande’s puzzle is that we seem not to evaluate the experience – good or bad – but rather report on a recollection of the experience. In describing medical experiences – certainly those involving some pain – patients recall either the worst or the most recent moment. An accounting of the experience at the time tends to differ from a recall of the total experience afterwards. This is where Gawande turns to Kahneman who has researched and reported on research on this...
EY Buys Riverview Law
September 3, 2018
Recent developments include Big Four accounting firm EY’s acquisition of alternative legal service provider Riverview Law, a slew of legal technology-related activity at the International Legal Technology Association’s annual education conference in National Harbor, Maryland, and the launch of a new partnership between two law schools aimed at finding technology-based legal solutions to high eviction rates.
September 3, 2018
Recent developments include Big Four accounting firm EY’s acquisition of alternative legal service provider Riverview Law, a slew of legal technology-related activity at the International Legal Technology Association’s annual education conference in National Harbor, Maryland, and the launch of a new partnership between two law schools aimed at finding technology-based legal solutions to high eviction rates.
How Liability Insurers Protect Patients and Improve Safety
September 1, 2018
Forty years after the publication of the first systematic study of adverse medical events, there is greater access to information about adverse medical events and increasingly widespread acceptance of the view that patient safety requires more than vigilance by well-intentioned medical professionals. In this essay, we describe some of the ways that medical liability insurance organizations contributed to this transformation, and we catalog the roles that those organizations play in promoting patient...
September 1, 2018
Forty years after the publication of the first systematic study of adverse medical events, there is greater access to information about adverse medical events and increasingly widespread acceptance of the view that patient safety requires more than vigilance by well-intentioned medical professionals. In this essay, we describe some of the ways that medical liability insurance organizations contributed to this transformation, and we catalog the roles that those organizations play in promoting patient...
What’s Your Ideal Caffeine Fix? An Algorithm Can Tell You
September 1, 2018
If you need to wake up, caffeine can help. But for the optimal jolt, how much and when? The U.S. Army and the Department of Defense have developed an algorithm to answer that question. It’s of critical interest because soldiers may go for days without getting enough sleep or, in some cases, any sleep at all. A perfectly timed and ideal portion of caffeine can fend off fatigue that might otherwise jeopardize a mission or put lives at risk.
September 1, 2018
If you need to wake up, caffeine can help. But for the optimal jolt, how much and when? The U.S. Army and the Department of Defense have developed an algorithm to answer that question. It’s of critical interest because soldiers may go for days without getting enough sleep or, in some cases, any sleep at all. A perfectly timed and ideal portion of caffeine can fend off fatigue that might otherwise jeopardize a mission or put lives at risk.
Skating to Where the Puck Will Be: Exploring Settlement Counsel and Risk Analysis in the Negotiation of Business Disputes
August 30, 2018
The infusion of ADR into legal training has been shaped by its ‘alternative’ identity, bringing with it a tendency to reinforce schisms: rights or interests, adversarial or collaborative approaches, litigation or settlement. "Either-or thinking" served its purpose in the early years but falls short especially with large-scale business files, where litigation looms and sophisticated clients expect multiple-pronged protective strategies. This article explores ways that settlement-oriented lawyers...
August 30, 2018
The infusion of ADR into legal training has been shaped by its ‘alternative’ identity, bringing with it a tendency to reinforce schisms: rights or interests, adversarial or collaborative approaches, litigation or settlement. "Either-or thinking" served its purpose in the early years but falls short especially with large-scale business files, where litigation looms and sophisticated clients expect multiple-pronged protective strategies. This article explores ways that settlement-oriented lawyers...
Information about Arbitrators – An Empirical Assessment
August 29, 2018
There seems to be a general consensus in the arbitration community about the fact that users are in need for more—or, rather, for more easily accessible—information about arbitrators. What is more, this perceived lack of information seems to be on a lot of people’s minds as almost every other arbitration-related conference features a panel on the topic. As more than nine out of ten respondents to the Survey indicated that international arbitration continues to be the preferred method of resolving...
August 29, 2018
There seems to be a general consensus in the arbitration community about the fact that users are in need for more—or, rather, for more easily accessible—information about arbitrators. What is more, this perceived lack of information seems to be on a lot of people’s minds as almost every other arbitration-related conference features a panel on the topic. As more than nine out of ten respondents to the Survey indicated that international arbitration continues to be the preferred method of resolving...
Conflict-Averse Doesn’t Mean Negotiation-Averse
August 28, 2018
When I explained my struggles to Dr. Babcock, her immediate response was: “Why are you thinking of a negotiation as a conflict?” She added that a negotiation should be a conversation, not a confrontation. “If you see it as a conflict, and you’re conflict-averse and avoid it, that’s not going to serve you well,” she said. “Try seeing it as a conversation that needs to be managed.” Plus, unlike a true, every-person-for-themselves conflict, when done properly, both parties get what...
August 28, 2018
When I explained my struggles to Dr. Babcock, her immediate response was: “Why are you thinking of a negotiation as a conflict?” She added that a negotiation should be a conversation, not a confrontation. “If you see it as a conflict, and you’re conflict-averse and avoid it, that’s not going to serve you well,” she said. “Try seeing it as a conversation that needs to be managed.” Plus, unlike a true, every-person-for-themselves conflict, when done properly, both parties get what...
