Legal Conferences & Events: TBD Law

June 6, 2017 Heather Holmes

For the third consecutive year, Lawyerist and Filament will team up to host a sort of summer camp for lawyers. Known as TBD Law, this unconventional conference/retreat/summit/workshop is an event designed for innovative solo and small firm legal practitioners who are serious about shaping the future of law. Generating fresh ideas and new approaches to improving the practice of law is the goal, and only those who demonstrate a commitment to engaging with big ideas will be invited to attend. Restricting the number of participants will allow for diversity of thought and ensure that all voices have a chance to be heard. To request an invitation, submit your application by July 14th. Fifty-five innovative, forward-thinking lawyers with a vision for improving the future of law office management, client relations, and law-firm business models will be selected to take part in this one-of-a-kind experience. Don't miss it!

Social Media Search Engines

May 22, 2017 Heather Holmes

Family, friends, neighbors, employers, and social media platforms are all good sources of actionable intelligence about an individual, but, for good reasons, people are typically not forthcoming with the information you wish to gather, and searching every social media platform is impractical and inefficient. That's where websites like SocialMention.com and Social-Searcher.com may be helpful.

Social Mention is a real-time social media search and analysis platform that "aggregates user generated content from across the universe into a single stream of information. It allows you to easily track and measure what people are saying about you, your company, a new product, or any topic across the web's social media landscape in real-time. Social Mention monitors 100+ social media properties directly including: Twitter, Facebook, FriendFeed, YouTube, Digg, Google etc."

Social Searcher is a free social media search engine. "It allows you to search for content in social networks in real-time and provides deep analytics data. Users can search without logging in for publicly posted information on Twitter, Google+, Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, Tumblr, Reddit, Flickr, Dailymotion and Vimeo. Free users can also save their searches and set up email alerts."

WannaCry and the Risks of Not Protecting Client Data

May 16, 2017 Heather Holmes

Friday's massive cyber attack exposed the fragility of our IT infrastructure and reminded us to aggressively fortify our digital vaults. The WannaCry ransomware that has taken down computers across the globe is causing perhaps the most prolific cyber attack to date, and it is expected to get worse.

Protecting your personal data is important, but securing the privileged information entrusted by clients is absolutely essential. From solo and small firm practitioners to large legal and business institutions, the need for data protection is a real concern. According to BakerHostetler's second annual Data Security Incident Response Report, phishing/hacking/malware accounted for 43% of all 2016 cybersecurity events at the more than 450 institutions they examined. Ransomware was the biggest development of last year accounting for 23% of all network intrusion incidents at the companies represented in the study, and the attacks show no sign of abating. Last week's WannaCry incursion is just one example of this growing threat.

Fortunately, the BakerHostetler report provides a broad range of lessons for identifying threats and mitigating risks. It advises firms to establish best practices for "compromise readiness."

Focus on the basics.
Develop education and awareness programs.
Implement data inventory and risk assessment procedures.
Share threat warnings with those in your firm.

Blockchain Revolution and the Evolution of Law

May 9, 2017 Heather Holmes

What is blockchain technology?

The blockchain is a decentralized network that facilitates the exchange of value and enables users to confidently manage and share data. Blockchain technology, which allows peers to transact business and exchange digital assets without the involvement of an intermediary started in 2009 with the development of a digital currency known as Bitcoin. The conceptional framework that makes Bitcoin possible is a digital payment network built on the blockchain.

A lot has been written lately on the impact that blockchain will have on the practice of law. Resources for learning more about blockchain technology are provided below so you can identify which aspects of blockchain are most important and relevant to lawyers. Learn about where the blockchain is going and how the legal profession can prepare for it. (Tip of the hat to Joe Hodnicki of Law Librarian Blog for linking to some of the items listed here.)

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