Google+ at 2 years old: Where are we?
July 13, 2013

Two years ago last Friday Google introduced its social network, Google+. Mashable’s Christina Warren (@film_girl) provides a good assessment ofGoogle+ at two years in saying it’s gone from “Facebook killer to ghost town to something else” Make no mistake, however, two years in, Google+ is most definitely a social network. There are more than 500 million Google+ users and reportedly more than 300 million of those users are active. No question the masses have been guilty of rushing to judgment...

Connecting a Mobile Game to Real World Legal Services
July 13, 2013

Here is an update on my game project. In my previous posts I’ve explained why I believe we can use the power of games to help us engage and empower the public to learn basic laws and legal issues. I’ve also explained the difference between gamification of the law and games that involve legal topics. The next step is to explain more specifically how a game like what I’m building with my team can increase access to real-world legal services as well as educate the public. According to my game...

Knowledge Automation Software is a Disruptive Technology That May Replace Lawyers
July 12, 2013

In a New York Times Op-Ed, Paul Krugman discusses a new report by the business consulting firm McKinsey & Company that describes several disruptive technologies and the likely impact they will have on the labor market.  One such technology is described generically as "automation of knowledge work." The McKinsey report describes this technology as sophisticated artificial intelligence software and "machine learning" which will be able to perform many "knowledge worker" tasks that had previously...

Google Books Defeats Copyright Infringement Class Action
July 12, 2013

On July 1, 2013 the Authors Guild lost its bid to certify a class of authors against Google Books. The lawsuit was filed...

Conducting “Traditional Relevance Analysis,” Court Denies Full Access to Plaintiff’s Social Networking
July 12, 2013

Giacchetto v. Patchogue-Medford Union Free School Dist., No. CV 11-6323(ADS)(AKT), 2013 WL 2897054 (E.D.N.Y. May 6, 2013) In...

The Women of Bitcoin
July 12, 2013

Money. We've used cowrie shells, playing cards, cigarettes, subway tokens, precious metals, paper backed by gold and by trust,...

Smartphone App for Bipolar Patients Wins $100K Prize
July 10, 2013

A smartphone app to assist people with bipolar disorder, conceived by Cornell researchers, has won the prestigious $100,000 Heritage Open mHealth Challenge. The app for iPhone and Android phones, called “MoodRhythm,” was developed by a team led by Tanzeem Choudhury, associate professor of computing and information science, and postdoctoral fellow Mark Matthews. It uses a phone’s microphone, light sensors and accelerometer to monitor sleep and social patterns and combines this information...

Make Litigation Timelines in PowerPoint with Free Add-On
July 9, 2013

Not long ago, I served as chairperson of a tripartite arbitration panel. Near the close of the complicated case, one of the arbitrators...

Innovation in the Legal Services Industry – The Future is Already Here, It is Just *Not* Evenly Distributed
July 9, 2013

Daniel Martin Katz is an Assistant Professor of Law at Michigan State University. He is also the Co-Founder & Co-Director...

Social Media and Jury Duty
July 9, 2013

For those of us who have ever served on a jury we know that our job is try to decide who is right and wrong, and assess damages...