by Brian Focht | Jul 13, 2016 | Uncategorized
Download this Episode: Download Audio So, it’s been about a month since I posted anything here, and I’m sorry for anyone who missed me! What a crazy month! Aside from being busy at the office and giving a few presentations, the dishwasher in our house (a mere 3 years old – the house AND the dishwasher) decided that it would go ahead and leak. So… long story short – after about 6 weeks of living elsewhere, dealing with contractors, dealing with repairing the damage caused by the contractors, buying a new dishwasher, and dealing with insurance… I’m freaking exhausted! However, that’s not going to prevent me from telling you about some new apps. Here are the best new apps for lawyers released or updated in June 2016: Multi-Platform: Multi-platform apps begin at the (1:44) mark of the podcast. Dashlane by Dashlane, Inc., free (iOS, Android) (Update). As you all know by now, I’m a huge supporter of anything that will actually improve your internet security. It’s an even bigger plus if it also improves convenience. Password managers are on that list. This past month, the password manager Dashlane released some impressive updates to its password management system. The biggest improvements are in the area of navigation. One thing most password managers simply don’t do all that well is make it easy to navigate around their system. The new Quick Search function, along with a tabbed menu bar, will make it much easier to find your login information. Additionally, the ability to share your login information with a new “Contacts” view, and a “Recents” tab to access your most frequently used logins, all... read more
by Brian Focht | Jun 7, 2016 | Lawyers, Law Firms, Courts & Technology, Reviews
There may be no more clear example of when a lawyer truly needs to be mobile than a deposition. If you’re taking the deposition, you’re likely in hostile territory (opposing counsel’s office), asking questions of a party or witness who’s likely not on your side. Moreover, these days, cases are tried in deposition as opposed to a courtroom, so this isn’t something you can go into half-assed. You need to be ready. Thankfully, the world of mobile apps has kicked into high gear to make working away from your office possible – especially its advances over the past few years. All you need to do to confirm is to look at the post I wrote three years ago about essential deposition apps, and compare the lists. There might be some apps making a repeat appearance, but even those apps are largely unrecognizable from their earlier versions. So what do I bring with me to a deposition? 8 Deposition Apps for the Mobile Lawyer: 1) Microsoft OneNote Price: Free (w/ Office 365 subscription) Available On: iOS / Android I used to take most of my deposition notes directly on my deposition outline. My preferred tool was iAnnotate PDF, which has some amazing annotation tools. However, nothing in my experience serves a deposition’s note-taking needs better than Microsoft OneNote. I am able to open an entire notebook for each deposition. Then, on the first tab, I paste my deposition outline (which includes images of each exhibit I want to introduce, and where in the deposition). During the deposition, I’m able to add notes in different colors right next to the questions.... read more
by Brian Focht | Jun 1, 2016 | Best New Apps
Download this Episode: Download Audio Summer is nearly upon us! As Memorial Day passes into the rear-view, let’s take stock of what an amazing month May was for a lot of apps that will fit quite well into your law practice. Here are the best new apps for lawyers released or updated in May 2016: Multi-Platform: Multi-platform apps begin at the (4:19) mark of the podcast. Docs (iOS, Android), Sheets (iOS, Android) & Slides (iOS, Android) by Google, Inc., free (Update). To start things off, let’s look at some major updates to Google’s Holy Trinity of Free Productivity Systems: Docs, Sheets, and Slides. First, all users will now have their most recent entries for all three systems automatically saved for off-line viewing. Sure, you could do this on your own before, but just like auto-recover is almost always more recent than the last time you saved your file, always downloaded is better than available when you remembered to download. Users of Google Sheets, on both iOS and Android, will now be able to view images and drawings within the spreadsheets. For those giving presentations in the near future, Slides has a couple pretty awesome upgrades too. First, “Slides Q&A” is now available on mobile. Q&A allows the audience to post questions to you without interrupting your presentation, and then allows others attending the presentation to up- or down-vote the question. For iOS users, you’ll be happy to know that ALL THREE of the apps are now 3D Touch enabled, allowing you to open your recent files directly from the home screen. ProtonMail by Proton Technologies AG, free (iOS, Android) (Update). If you’re using ProtonMail, odds are... read more
by Brian Focht | May 27, 2016 | Marketing the Law Firm, Social Media
In the event you don’t know, I’m a pretty big fan of Twitter. No, I wasn’t an “early adopter” of Twitter like I was with Facebook. In fact, my serious use of Twitter only really started after I started this blog around three years ago. However, since then, Twitter (and more specifically, TweetDeck) is where I go immediately after I read my daily news from Feedly. Even better, I just keep a browser window open there, because so much great stuff is regularly coming from the people I follow on my lists. While there are a great many people who don’t like Twitter, or are simply unwilling to take the time to learn it, one thing cannot be denied – it’s not exactly intuitive for the first-time user. The 140 character limit is really only the starting point in a collection of hidden, obtuse rules that limit your ability to share your thoughts even further. While power users have adapted, many of these barriers have prevented more casual users from getting the most out of the program. Until now… This week, in a part of a long-running campaign to make Twitter more accessible to new and less-experienced users, CEO Jack Dorsey announced a series of changes that will be put in place over the coming months (to give developers time to adjust). All of the changes, at least in part, are being implemented to make sure that users don’t have to shorten an already short message based on the content of the message. Here’s what’s changing: 1) Replies, Not Tweetstorms How it was: When you replied to a tweet,... read more
by Brian Focht | May 25, 2016 | Security
Special Guest: Joseph Marquette Download this Episode: Download Audio For lawyers and law firms, there’s no one standard for the adoption of technology. There are about one million. Unfortunately, this idiosyncratic approach has consequences in the realm of cyber security. Cyber Security in the Law Firm The means and art of practicing law has not historically been reliant on technology. As a result, many law firms have not made technology adoption a central element of their practice. Generally speaking, the rate and type of technology adoption in any one law firm is generally based on how that law firm’s decision makers see how effectively new technology can help their practice. Other firms, whether it’s about personalities or business practices, some just aren’t going to jump on the technology bandwagon. As far as cyber security goes, most law firms track this same idiosyncratic approach. Depending on whether the attorneys in the law firm have a fundamental understanding of the threats, any individual law firm may be significantly ahead of or behind the curve in responding to cyber threats. What are the biggest Cyber Security threats that law firms face? The best way to understand how law firms should address cyber security is to look at the potential threats. Unfortunately, there is an attitude problem: most lawyers want to talk about their obligations to protect against cyber security in light of their ethical obligations to protect confidential information. That is to say, lawyers tend to view cyber security ONLY as a tool to prevent data theft, ignoring the other motives behind cyber attacks. Unfortunately, the threats lawyers fear simply don’t match... read more
by Brian Focht | May 17, 2016 | Lawyers, Law Firms, Courts & Technology, Marketing the Law Firm
Special Guest: Michael Chasin Download this Episode: Download Audio How do you guide your prospective clients through your sales funnel, taking every opportunity to ensure that they’re satisfied with their experience and making it as easy as possible for them to hire you? Ok, better question to start with: do you have a sales funnel? Do you know what a “sales funnel” is? To be honest, if you’re already familiar with the concepts of your law firm’s sales funnel, you’re probably not in the market for a CRM system. You, more likely than not, already have one. You have a functioning system in place for guiding your prospective clients and managing your network of referral sources. You’re also, most likely, in a very small minority in the legal profession. Because most lawyers don’t. That’s what CRM systems are designed for – to help businesses who may not have the clearest idea how best to turn “prospective clients” into “actual clients.” That’s what Lexicata CRM is for law firms – a tool to guide client intake and for managing your relationships with your existing network. Is Lexicata – or even some other CRM platform – right for your law firm? Well let’s start from the beginning. What is a CRM System? CRM stands for Contact (or Client) Relationship Management. A CRM system generally has two different purposes, and it can be deciphered somewhat from its own title – Contact Management & Relationship Management. Depending on the contact, your goals may require entirely different actions, even though the end goal is to drum up business. The first purpose is for tracking a prospective client.... read more
by Brian Focht | May 12, 2016 | Lawyers, Law Firms, Courts & Technology
Sometimes, you just can’t take it anymore. Your client has had WAY too much of a good thing – meaning your service as their lawyer. The case has gone superbly, and your client, whom you loathe, is about to reap the rewards of your work. At least that’s what I’m left to assume as you conclude your closing argument. You had done splendidly up to that point, putting on all the evidence you needed to support your case. You even made your tyrant of a client (I’m assuming, remember) look amazing on the stand! You stood up to give your closing argument – even ignoring the judge’s ridiculously calling it your “summation,” (I hate it when they call it that, too) – ready to rock. It was clear that you’d chosen this moment to detonate your client’s case. This was the moment you broke out that miraculous piece of hell-ware known as PowerPoint. Here are 10 Innovative Ways to Destroy Your Lawsuit with PowerPoint: 1) You prepared your PowerPoint Presentation last week, and never even thought to update it. Sure, you’re a busy attorney, so it’s possible that you didn’t actually do this on purpose. However, I’m assuming that you take your technology competence at least as seriously as the color coordination of your belt and necktie, so I’m going to assume that this was really just a cover. Your PowerPoint presentation included several slides that you had to run back to your computer and advance through. Why? Because they contained evidence that the judge ruled was inadmissible. This was a stroke of genius on your part – even if... read more
by Brian Focht | May 10, 2016 | Lawyers, Law Firms, Courts & Technology
Special Guests: Sean Dennin and Peter Mansmann Download this Episode: Download Audio On this episode of the Legal Technology Review Podcast, my guests Sean Dennin and Peter Mansmann, CEO and President, respectively, of Precise, Inc., a legal technology company from Pennsylvania, join me to discuss their newest product, Predict. Using the power of statistical research and analysis, Predict allows attorneys to get a detailed, statistically significant look at how jurors are likely to respond to various issues, topics, witnesses and general concepts in their case. Precise, Inc. uses Big Data and Presentation Tools to help lawyers They’ve gotten good at figuring out the best way to present information to people. For example, people spend 11 hours per day getting their information from a screen – TV, internet, social media, etc. As a result, jurors tend to be pretty bored with the way information is presented, so Precise has spent a lot of time learning about ways to take information and present it in a way that jurors are not only likely to understand, but also are more likely to remember – because they’re actually paying attention. Predict – Using Big Data to Break Down Your Jury Pool Predict is bringing the science of statistics and psychological profiling – understanding the way populations respond to fact patterns. It’s been used in many industries – what message is going to resonate with what types of people, and what types of people are going to best respond to your message? There are four basic personality types in the Myers-Briggs personality profile. (16 types, but 4 types of 4 main categories) – people in... read more
by Brian Focht | May 9, 2016 | Uncategorized
Efficiency is a critical aspect of your business. You try to find ways to do things better, faster, and with less expense, so as to provide better service to your clients. But that’s not the only benefit to being efficient. Probably one of the more overlooked beneficiaries of efficiency is your ability to focus. Being efficient in what you do, especially the smaller-but-necessary tasks that occupy the periphery of your more important tasks, means you’re able to focus more attention on the primary task at hand. This focus receives its own exponential boost the longer you’re able to do it without distraction. Since computers are our primary means of accomplishing most of the tasks we perform in the modern law firm, having tools that allow us quick access to our productivity software and services is essential. Maintaining focus on our tasks means that those access tools need to stay out of the way. The Better Touch Tool, an amazing system that allows you to do pretty much anything with your computer’s touch pad, makes it considerably easier to deal with those necessary access tools without losing focus on the main task at hand. In this week’s episode of Tech Tips & Tricks, I’ll show you how: The Better Touch Tool allows you to dramatically improve your efficiency numerous ways. 1. Better Touch Tool provides quick access to keyboard shortcuts Keyboard shortcuts can be hard to remember, and can require using a complicated combination that slows you down while you’re working. Better Touch Tool lets you set up gestures that you are able to quickly execute on your trackpad for... read more
by Brian Focht | May 3, 2016 | Best New Apps
Download this Episode: Download Audio Whew! Wow, how was your April? Mine was pretty damn busy! Then, as I go looking through my sources for the best new apps this month, I have to say I found an embarrassment of riches. While this was a particularly strong month for solid updates to existing platforms, there’s still plenty of new stuff too. Here are the best new apps for lawyers released or updated in April 2016: Multi-Platform: Multi-platform apps begin at the (1:02) mark of the podcast. Outlook by Microsoft Corp., free (iOS, Android) (Update). The flagship email platform of Microsoft, I not too long ago declared that Outlook was the winner of my review of the best overall email apps for mobile devices. Even then, Microsoft has been aggressive at pushing updates, making it even better. This update is no different. Ever since Microsoft purchased the Sunrise Calendar app in 2014, many wondered when the integrations that are a favorite feature on Sunrise would start to make their way to the Outlook app. Wait no longer, as this month Microsoft announced integration with Evernote, Wunderlist, and Facebook. Users of those platforms can now expect reminders in Evernote and Wunderlist to appear in your Outlook calendar, complete with a link to the native reminder. Facebook now links your birthday reminders right into your calendar. Additionally, Android Wear users now join Apple Watch users in being able to operate their Outlook – Dick Tracy style. WhatsApp Messenger by WhatsApp, Inc., free (iOS, Android) (Update). The big news in April among security enthusiasts was the announcement that WhatsApp, the ephemeral messaging service purchased by Facebook,... read more
