 |
| Seinfeld, "The Contest" |
Jerry Seinfeld reminded Kramer that we should be the “Master of our domain.” While the
boundaries of our personal “domain” may have been relatively clear back in the
day, technology has had a significant effect on expectations and assumptions of
what we ought to be familiar with.
Carolyn Elefant on MyShingle recently shared her frustration
with young lawyers who are not also experts in technology, in her Open Letter to New Lawyer. She shares that a newly-minted attorney should be up
on all of the latest techie tricks, including blogging, marketing, and social
media. She then goes on to challenge the young attorney by stating, “You should
be able to figure out, in a snap, how to use video editing tools if you don’t
already and volunteering to create cool informational videos so I can market my
firm and generate more business that will support more new hires.” While these things aren't necessarily taught in
law school, she asserts that if one has grown up with technology, one should be
comfortable with it.
Less than a week goes by and Josh Camson retorts on The
Lawyerist in his Open Letter to Senior Lawyer, “Although I consider myself tech-savvy, I believe
your expectations are unrealistic.” He adds, “…my age does not make me any more
of an expert than you. Nor does it mean I should become your tech consultant.”
His article suggests that even though one has been immersed in technology since
childhood, it doesn’t make one an expert.
Both articles have interesting perspectives, and both include some great
reader comments. While the MyShingle blog is directed more toward small and
solo firms, the points made are worth considering, regardless of firm size. As
a Legal Technology and Litigation Consultant having started in-house with a
large firm (Brobeck), I have dealt with lawyers of all ages, and in all sizes
of law firm. While there is indeed a “value-added” component to the young attorney who
is comfortable with technology, it will likely be of greater value in the small
firm. Larger firms are more likely to have attorneys working on cases,
marketing people working on promoting the firm, and technology experts handling
litigation support tasks.
Regardless of firm size, you will need to decide when to
call in the experts. While you can be the “Master of your domain,” you must also
be realistic about the boundaries of that domain. You might be able to learn
some software well enough to cobble together a video, but you’re not likely to
be nearly as efficient as someone who does it every day – nor is it likely to
be of the same quality. Being a “digital native” does not necessarily make one
a digital expert.
A small-firm lawyer must be proficient in law, technology, marketing
and business, while a large-firm lawyer may be more specialized. Either way,
the more you bring to the table, the more you’ll get to eat.
