Have you ever received an email that required your attention, but you didn’t have time to deal with it right away? Maybe it was a project update, a client request, or a feedback form. You probably thought, “I’ll get back to this later,” and moved on to other tasks. But then, hours or days later, you realized that you forgot to reply to that important email, and now you’re in trouble. You missed a deadline, lost an opportunity, or disappointed someone. How can you avoid this scenario and make sure you always respond to the emails that matter most? One simple way to do this is to use a pin to p ..read more

By Jim Calloway Lawyers have held and safeguarded client data for generations. Of course, in the past, it wasn’t called data. Our data was in paper client files, forms to “go by” and brief banks. While it wasn’t planned this way in advance, my most recent Law Practice Tips columns blend as a series. In the January 2024 Oklahoma Bar Journal, the subject was “Automated Document Assembly is Easy, Right?” The February 2024 column was “A Time of Great Change Caused by Artificial Intelligence Developments.” If the connection with these three topics isn’t readily apparent to you, that is understanda ..read more

Judge Scott Schlegel from Louisiana was a speaker at the 2023 Oklahoma Access to Justice Summit. Last year, I noted his conviction that both courts and law firms should embrace text message reminders to reduce failure-to-appear issues. Lawyers want to make certain their clients, especially potential new clients, do not miss their scheduled appointments as well as any court appearances. “Embracing AI in the Legal Sphere: A Necessity, Not a Choice,” was the title of Judge Schlegel’s recent post on his Substack account. He explains the inevitability of AI adoption quite well: If there was any l ..read more

Decades ago, I assumed that technology would soon advance to the point where automated document assembly would be fully incorporated in most law offices across the country. While great strides have been made in law office technology tools, and tools for automatically generating documents are much improved over what was available decades previously, many law firms still have not fully embraced automated document assembly. Why is that? I can speculate. Using a standard form as a starting point and using copy/paste plus some custom editing to create the final isn’t terribly inefficient or error ..read more

Years ago, I put together a presentation called “The Client-Centered Law Practice.” It focused on the irony that while law firms focused on serving clients and appropriately addressing their legal needs, clients sometimes had an impression that differed from that. To those (hopefully few) clients, it seemed that the law firm was busily engaged doing important work for other, very important people, while their matter was not a priority. In fairness to lawyers, that was often the perception rather than reality. But in the legal world, your client’s perception often is your reality. Certainly, it ..read more

2023 cast a huge spotlight on Artificial Intelligence tools. That means it is a great year to attend ABA TECHSHOW, which will be held in Chicago February 14 – 17, 2024. But it is time to decide now! The Early Bird registration ends on Friday, January 11 and there is a price increase after that deadline.   Those who have previously attended an ABA TECHSHOW know what a great event this is. If you have been thinking about attending TECHSHOW previously, then this year provides a great opportunity to learn from technology experts on subjects ranging from AI to Automated Document Assembly to u ..read more

It’s that special time of year. By that I mean it is time for the Tech Toys for the Holiday episode from the Digital Edge podcast. Sharon Nelson and I both agree that it is our favorite podcast of the year and many of our listeners tell us the same thing. This year we have a wide range of tech toys to add to your shopping list, even if you are just shopping for yourself. Our show notes has links to all of the items featured. So even if you don’t want to listen to the entire podcast you can still see the list of items featured for your online shopping. From dash cams to web cams, from a digital ..read more

By Jim Calloway and Julie Bays In August’s Law Practice Tips column, “ChatGPT, Artificial Intelligence and the Lawyer,”we covered the development of AI tools and some challenges they have presented to attorneys who did not appreciate the limitations of ChatGPT. This month, we will look at more AI-powered tools and techniques for using them. DOCUMENT AND DEPOSITION SUMMARIES One thing artificial intelligence does well is summarizing lengthy documents, such as depositions or long court opinions. The Association of Immigration Lawyers of America (AILA) has been experimenting with powerful AI tool ..read more

Technology innovations and artificial intelligence tools have generated much discussion this year. There have been many truly amazing uses for AI demonstrated and many of the tools we currently use are now adding AI components. This is a perfect time to attend ABA TECHSHOW 2024, scheduled February 14-17, 2024, at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The Oklahoma Bar Association Event Promoter code is: EP2403. This allows Oklahoma lawyers to register at the discounted ABA membership rate, if they do so before January 11, 2024. OBA Practice Management Advisor Julie Bays and I will be on the faculty. Wheth ..read more

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