Practice
Here Come the Quantum Computers
February 24, 2018
If you thought super-computers like Watson were revolutionizing the workplace (and law practice in particular), you ain't seen nothing yet. Read this short piece from today's New York Times on "quantum computers" and their predicted impact on both education and the workplace. There's also a video below that explains quantum computing for the uninitiated. But first, here's a salient quote from the NYT article: [IBM’s C.E.O. Ginni Rometty says]: “Every job will require some...
February 24, 2018
If you thought super-computers like Watson were revolutionizing the workplace (and law practice in particular), you ain't seen nothing yet. Read this short piece from today's New York Times on "quantum computers" and their predicted impact on both education and the workplace. There's also a video below that explains quantum computing for the uninitiated. But first, here's a salient quote from the NYT article: [IBM’s C.E.O. Ginni Rometty says]: “Every job will require some...
Smart Contracts
February 23, 2018
Gabriel Jaccard (University of Geneva, Faculty of Law, Department of Private International Law) has posted Smart Contracts and the Role of Law on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This paper gives an overview on smart contracts and assess their legal relevance. The first part, explains the notion of smart contract and provides simple examples of it. In the second part, we propose a legal analysis of smart contract. First, we explore how smart contracts can be relevant in the eyes of the law. Then...
February 23, 2018
Gabriel Jaccard (University of Geneva, Faculty of Law, Department of Private International Law) has posted Smart Contracts and the Role of Law on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This paper gives an overview on smart contracts and assess their legal relevance. The first part, explains the notion of smart contract and provides simple examples of it. In the second part, we propose a legal analysis of smart contract. First, we explore how smart contracts can be relevant in the eyes of the law. Then...
Top 10 Claims Trends That Will Affect 2018
February 22, 2018
2017 will be remembered as the landmark year for digital transformation of claims processing within the property/casualty insurance industry. After all, it was the year we saw the use of drones for home roof inspections, auto appraisals via photos, customer video chat and bots used in claims processing. While many of these solutions have been topics of discussion in the industry for quite some time, insurers began to implement them in earnest through new technology during 2017. Here’s a deeper...
February 22, 2018
2017 will be remembered as the landmark year for digital transformation of claims processing within the property/casualty insurance industry. After all, it was the year we saw the use of drones for home roof inspections, auto appraisals via photos, customer video chat and bots used in claims processing. While many of these solutions have been topics of discussion in the industry for quite some time, insurers began to implement them in earnest through new technology during 2017. Here’s a deeper...
Robot Lawyers in 2018? Fantasy, Reality and the Bright Future of Legal Technology
February 22, 2018
Amid these 'smart' toolsets, lawyers will not disappear, but they will do better work in the months and years to come, and they will do it faster and more efficiently. In spite of what you may have heard, robots will not be infiltrating the legal profession any time soon. Artificial intelligence (AI) and related technologies like machine learning and natural language processing have attracted rapturous attention over the last year and indeed hold tremendous promise. In fact, many organizations that...
February 22, 2018
Amid these 'smart' toolsets, lawyers will not disappear, but they will do better work in the months and years to come, and they will do it faster and more efficiently. In spite of what you may have heard, robots will not be infiltrating the legal profession any time soon. Artificial intelligence (AI) and related technologies like machine learning and natural language processing have attracted rapturous attention over the last year and indeed hold tremendous promise. In fact, many organizations that...
AI Goes To Law School—In China
February 18, 2018
Legal educators helping future attorneys prepare for 21st century careers are certainly concerned with the influence of technology on the practice of law. But increasingly, legal technology education and research often comes from the United States and isn’t likely to help international law students keep pace. Peking University Law School is looking to change that. The elite Chinese law school will partner with cloud-based analytics platform Gridsum to introduce a new research center focused...
February 18, 2018
Legal educators helping future attorneys prepare for 21st century careers are certainly concerned with the influence of technology on the practice of law. But increasingly, legal technology education and research often comes from the United States and isn’t likely to help international law students keep pace. Peking University Law School is looking to change that. The elite Chinese law school will partner with cloud-based analytics platform Gridsum to introduce a new research center focused...
Assisted-DIY Divorce Site Launched
February 18, 2018
From Above The Law: For most ordinary folks, the prospect of hiring a lawyer who represents Hollywood A-listers in divorce proceedings is as much of a fantasy as a Hollywood’s movie version of real life. But with a little bit of techno-charged pixie dust, the dream of high-powered representation for run-of-the-mill divorce cases is now a reality. Last week, Los Angeles attorney Laura Wasser — whose clients have included Angelina Jolie, Ryan Reynolds, Heidi Klum, Ashton Kutcher, Christina...
February 18, 2018
From Above The Law: For most ordinary folks, the prospect of hiring a lawyer who represents Hollywood A-listers in divorce proceedings is as much of a fantasy as a Hollywood’s movie version of real life. But with a little bit of techno-charged pixie dust, the dream of high-powered representation for run-of-the-mill divorce cases is now a reality. Last week, Los Angeles attorney Laura Wasser — whose clients have included Angelina Jolie, Ryan Reynolds, Heidi Klum, Ashton Kutcher, Christina...
ROSS Unveils EVA, A Free AI Tool To Analyze Briefs, Check Cites and Find Similar Cases
February 13, 2018
The new product is called EVA. In a nutshell, it is a brief analyzer. But it is more than that. Most notably, it is also a tool for checking the subsequent history of cited cases and determining if they are still good law, in the vein of the LexisNexis Shepard’s and Thomson Reuters KeyCite. It also can be used to find other cases that are similar to a given case or to find cases that have similar language or that contain the same quotes. ROSS says EVA will supercharge a lawyer’s research....
February 13, 2018
The new product is called EVA. In a nutshell, it is a brief analyzer. But it is more than that. Most notably, it is also a tool for checking the subsequent history of cited cases and determining if they are still good law, in the vein of the LexisNexis Shepard’s and Thomson Reuters KeyCite. It also can be used to find other cases that are similar to a given case or to find cases that have similar language or that contain the same quotes. ROSS says EVA will supercharge a lawyer’s research....
Baylor Law to Offer Executive LL.M. in Litigation Management
February 12, 2018
Baylor Law School will offer an executive LL.M. in litigation management beginning in the fall 2018. The niche degree, open only to attorneys with at least three years of law practice, will focus on controlling rising litigation costs. Led by attorneys and judges, the online and in-person courses will include fundamentals of 21st century litigation management and strategy, proving and attacking damages, managing complex arbitration and ADR issues, data analytics and cybersecurity, managing e-discovery,...
February 12, 2018
Baylor Law School will offer an executive LL.M. in litigation management beginning in the fall 2018. The niche degree, open only to attorneys with at least three years of law practice, will focus on controlling rising litigation costs. Led by attorneys and judges, the online and in-person courses will include fundamentals of 21st century litigation management and strategy, proving and attacking damages, managing complex arbitration and ADR issues, data analytics and cybersecurity, managing e-discovery,...
Fastcase Acquires Docket Tracking and Analytics Company Docket Alarm
February 10, 2018
Fastcase today announced that it has acquired Docket Alarm, a company that mines federal and state court dockets to provide litigation alerts and case-prediction analytics. In announcing the acquisition, the company said: Docket Alarm’s advanced analytical capabilities, customizable real-time litigation alerts, case prediction indicators, and technology-driven research tools complement Fastcase’s quest to add unique, must-have content for its subscribers and provide leading legal analysis...
February 10, 2018
Fastcase today announced that it has acquired Docket Alarm, a company that mines federal and state court dockets to provide litigation alerts and case-prediction analytics. In announcing the acquisition, the company said: Docket Alarm’s advanced analytical capabilities, customizable real-time litigation alerts, case prediction indicators, and technology-driven research tools complement Fastcase’s quest to add unique, must-have content for its subscribers and provide leading legal analysis...
Socratic Artificial Intelligence Is Changing The Face Of Legal Knowledge
February 9, 2018
Christopher Columbus Langdell initiated both the case method and the Socratic method of teaching law in his Harvard Law class 150 years ago. Langdell’s goal was to induce the legal reasoning of actual cases through a series of specific questions (the Socratic method) that would expose the biases and preconceptions of the law student. In a common law system, this original source-first focus properly centralized the primacy of case law study over lecturing about a generalized legal subject, allowing...
February 9, 2018
Christopher Columbus Langdell initiated both the case method and the Socratic method of teaching law in his Harvard Law class 150 years ago. Langdell’s goal was to induce the legal reasoning of actual cases through a series of specific questions (the Socratic method) that would expose the biases and preconceptions of the law student. In a common law system, this original source-first focus properly centralized the primacy of case law study over lecturing about a generalized legal subject, allowing...
