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A Videoconferencing Guide for Oklahoma Lawyers
By Jim Calloway 2020 has been a time of change. One change generated by the increase in working from home was an explosion of videoconferencing. Many people whose prior videoconferencing experience had been limited to a few online seminars or product demonstrations were soon having multiple videoconferences each day. Online clothing distributors reported sales of…
Tips to Avoid Some Major Technology Glitches
By Jim Calloway Technology updates and changes, like so many things in life, have positive and negative aspects. One thing that most end-users hate are the changes in our interface that happen with an automatic update. I recall one Adobe Acrobat Professional update where it seemed the developers changed most of the tools I commonly used for no apparent reason. I…
Two-Factor Authentication is Critical Today
By Jim Calloway Technology tools for lawyers is a regular topic in this Law Practice Tips column. Any advice columnist knows the readers will often treat their column like a buffet, taking what they like and ignoring some items that may be good for them, but don’t strike their fancy today. Password managers are like that….
Eliminating the Terror of Lost Client Files
By Jim Calloway To err is human, as the saying goes. We human beings make mistakes. We forget. We don’t follow through on carefully crafted plans sometimes; but the legal profession is an exacting undertaking, requiring attention to detail, and the legal system is sometimes very unforgiving of errors. Several years ago, as those of us who advise…
Cloud Computing for Lawyers – 2019
By Jim Calloway “Is it really OK for a lawyer to use the cloud?” is one of the most commonly asked questions I hear from lawyers both today and over the years. The answer is what has been referred to as every lawyer’s favorite answer to any legal question – “It depends.” In my opinion, the expanded answer…
Oklahoma Bar Intellidrafts
By Jim Calloway This is big. At the Annual Meeting the Oklahoma Bar Association announced Oklahoma Bar Intellidrafts, an automated document assembly service for OBA members. You can enjoy a free trial until the end of 2018 by going to oba.intellidrafts.com. I’ve given many presentations on automated document assembly, both at ABA TECHSHOW and the OBA Solo…
Ten Tips From the OBA Opening Your Law Practice Program
By Jim Calloway It’s a challenge to open your own law firm directly out of law school. We provide some basic training to Oklahoma lawyers who are opening their own law practices. Since 2012, we have offered a free program in the spring and fall called Opening Your Law Practice. Prior to that, we called…
The Lawyer’s Tools of the Trade
By Jim Calloway What are a lawyer’s tools of the trade? Many years ago, as a consumer bankruptcy lawyer, I had to research the meaning of “tools of the trade” as applied to lawyers under Oklahoma law. Oklahoma has opted out of the federal bankruptcy exemptions and instead uses the exemptions under 31 Okla. Stat. §1. The state statute…
Technology Competence for the Family Lawyer
By Jim Calloway Some lawyers were concerned when the Model Rules of Professional Conduct were changed to include a comment that competence as a lawyer included an appreciation of “the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.” Many states began adopting this language into their own version of the rules with some variance in language. Now…
Time-Saving Microsoft Word Customizations and Tools
By Jim Calloway Often there are easier ways to do our everyday tasks, but we can’t use more efficient techniques if we do not know about them. TRACK CHANGES One of those efficiencies is using Track Changes in Microsoft Word. When many lawyers make final edits on a document, they print it off and make…