We have spoken and consulted with a number of lawyers lately who have called about taking a law firm paperless.  Certainly many lawyers become anxious at the thought of giving up on paper and practising in a paper-less world (there will probably never be a situation where we fully abandon paper).  Often, that concern is rooted in a fear that somewhere the rules of professional responsibility or other regulations governing the firm require that paper files be kept. There are, of course, specific requirements in every jurisdiction regarding retention, maintenance and destruction of client files (check your specific practice …

Today’s Tip is less about legal research and more about the output of your research – often a research memo. There are some good general tips about writing and analysis at Catherine Best’s Legal Resarch site, and there are even sample memos like this one from UBC.

Some of the best advice I have heard comes from Wendy-Anne Berkenbosch, Research Partner at Davis LLP. When addressing articling students at the Edmonton Law Libraries Association Head Start Program, she says:

Provide your answer in a comprehensible and useable format:
– Introduction (what the memo is about);
– Brief

Forbes published a fantastic article on ten simple and essential things that everyone should doing to protect their privacy. The ten steps outlined in the article are really and truly very simple things that all of us can and should be doing to keep casual intruders from invading our privacy. You don’t need to be a techie to do these things. This article is a must read for everyone. Please read it – and follow the steps it recommends. You can find 10 Incredibly Simple Things You Should Be Doing To Protect Your Privacy here.…

A Virtual Law Office has been defined many different ways by many different people.  It can certainly be seen as one form of e-lawyering, or using the power of the  Internet to deliver legal services.  It is a secure method of delivering legal services online that is accessible to the client and the lawyer anywhere they can access the Internet.

Simply put, there are several different ways to create a virtual law office. One is to be entirely web based. Another is to establish a virtual practice as part of a “bricks and mortar” firm, meaning the virtual lawyer utilizes …

Search terms
Search words
Search phrases
Keyword search

All these mean essentially the same thing.

Today’s tip: If you are searching for a phrase, remember to use thesaurus words and alternative phrasing.

For example, you would want to search both of

relief from forfeiture
relief against forfeiture

Thanks to Scott Matheson for the tip.…

Facebook is very complicated and can be confusing to use and configure. Many people are not using Facebook to its full potential.
Do you want to do more with Facebook? Look to Mashable’s Facebook Guide Book, a complete collection of resources that will help you do more with Facebook. It has “Facebook 101” content for people that are new to Facebook, directions on doing more with Facebook apps, practical advice on using Facebook for promoting a business, and more advanced information for those that want to take Facebook to a higher level. You can find Mashable’s Facebook Guide Book…

Many firms are coming up to a decision point.  Windows XP will no longer be supported after .  Accordingly firms are looking at replacing their desktop or laptop XP machines with Windows 7 (or perhaps Windows 8) PCs.  Or are they?  There has been a considerable growth in BYOD (Bring Your Own Devices) to work.  iPads and other tablets have made considerable inroads.  Many lawyers now operate using an iPhone, Android or Blackberry  or indeed a lightweight Mac Air – and don’t relish the idea of lugging a PC laptop around.  So what is a firm to do?

Before they …

A frequent question in legal research is “what do judges say about [insert phrase here]”

Fortunately there are many excellent sources for answering this question, both with print tools and their electronic equivalents.

Some examples noted by Slaw include these posts:

• Words and Phrases Compared by Gary Rodrigues, November 3, 2008
• Are Words and Prhases Judicial Definition Sources Still Required by Shaunna Mireau, September 17, 2009

And for a great example of judicial definition in a case quote see:

• Barratry, Champetry, Maintenance, Oh My! by Simon Fodden, September 20, 2011

Today’s tip: If you are searching (electronically) for the distinction …

We all like to be on the same wavelength with people we work closely with, but this tendency to select others like us can be a problem when seeking out a new support staff hire for your law practice.  For example, if you’re a sole practitioner with a keyboard speed of 90 words per minute or skilled in the operation of voice recognition software, a speed typist may not be the best use of use of your hiring dollar.

Before you hire, think about the tasks that require a law license. Unless you’re considering hiring an associate, you are going …

As I was driving behind someone chucking garbage out their car window this morning I considered how little I know about the concept of citizen’s arrest. Here in Alberta, drivers who suspect that another vehicle is being operated by someone who is impaired may call 9-1-1, but I was pretty sure that the RCMP – I was driving on a highway at the time – would frown on 9-1-1 calls for littering.

The Tip part of this post is: sometimes Google is the fast path to a legal research question.

Back at my desk (not in the car where I …