Phoenix CD 2.0/Phoenix_CD.cdr/01e/lawonlin.zip/LAWONLIN.DOC

Text File | 1989-03-20 | 8KB | 137 lines

NOTE: This was an aborted article about lawyers using remote bulletin board
systems as a professional resource. It was aborted because I was beat out by a
couple months in the Michigan Bar Journal by another article.  Parts of it were
used a couple months later to explain my legal RBBS.

Anyone is welcome to use parts of it to write an article for your respective
state journal.  My data number is 313/774-7258, voice is 313/772-9394.

                                Lawyers on Line

                             Craig Stahl, 11/10/85

The newest development for lawyers in the computer field is the increased use
of data-telecomunications by modem.  Instead of our computer being an isolated
workstation and performing perfunctory tasks, it is becoming easier to hook up
with other computers and extract information not previously available.
Marshall McLuhan's prediction of a global village has proved accurate in the
legal field.

We already know of Lexis and Westlaw.  These are static databases which are
useful because of their huge size and the methods available for searching.
The American Bar Association introduced ABA/net in 1984 which has proved
successful for lawyers seeking information from others through its bulletin
board system.  When a lawyer posts a question on the bulletin board, they have
access to a range of experience wider than possible through conventional
contacts plus the advice won't entail a lengthy lunch.  The method is efficient
because questions and answers can be posted at one's leisure.  Michigan now has
its own version of ABA/net called FreeForm, explained in this article as
another example of a computer legal resource.

FreeForm was started for Michigan lawyers in May, 1985.  It is styled after
similar legal remote bulletin board systems (RBBSs) in Florida, Illinois and
North Dakota.  First, it doesn't cost anything except the phone call.  Lawyers
can gain longer access times and higher security levels by uploading useful
information and documents.  Experience has shown that most users will share
information on a 50/50 basis, making the system successful.

Any type of computer and modem can access FreeForm.  One lawyer calls at night
on his son's $200 home computer (he also needed his son available on the first
few calls due to a bad case of technoclutz).  Ideally an IBM PC compatible
computer should be used to take advantage of the free software available to
download.  See exibit A for some guidance if you don't yet have a modem.

There are four sections of interest to lawyers in FreeForm; legal documents
(or boilerplate), bulletin board systems, public domain software, and the
Michigan court system:

The legal document section designed for exchanging documents commonly used in
general practice.  The advantage to exchanging them by telephone versus
scrounging and photocopying is the elimination of the need to retype - The
document is already prepared for minor revision with your word processor.  I
consider myself a fast typist but I know I can kill the better half of an
afternoon with a lengthy contract.

A second advantage to this method of document exchange is that users of
FreeForm frequently improve on existing documents, for instance, weeding out
legalese or modifying clauses when the law changes.  The document section is
not static like a case law database but constantly improves (wish I could say
the same for case law).

The stored documents go beyond legal boilerplate and includes usefull things
like a resturant employee handbook and a client fact sheet on copywrite.
Documents available in comercial publications cannot be stored in the database
and are deleted when they show up.  A record is kept of who uploaded what, so
please, only public domain documents.

The bulletin board section of FreeForm is identical to ABA/net and similar
comercial services like Compuserve.  Lawyers looking for information usually
post a public message and then recieve a public or private reply.  The security
for private messages is as foolproof as possible, so you can expect a high
degree of confidentiallity.  If security is a great concern,  you can always
contact the other person by phone (voice).

Lawyers also often post other types of messages.  The name RBBS is because the
message section resembles the bulletin board in the lunch area at work
(assorted notes tacked up in no logical order).  Some sense of order is
attempted on FreeForm by having two bulletin boards.  One is for lawyers and
legal related people and the other is where computer "shop talk" goes on.

The public domain software has hundreds of free software programs of value to
lawyers.  The idea behind public domain software is that the software is free
for the taking - The author of the program usually asks for a small donation if
you find it usefull.  Some examples include word processors, spelling checkers,
data base management systems, tax spreadsheets, a client tickler system, legal
billing systems,a structured settlement analysis template and numerous
tutorials on how to use your computer.  My experience has been that these
programs are of equal quality to comercial software and I use them exclusively.

The last section of FreeForm is the Michigan Court System Files.  Each court
has a fact file which users can read or add information.  Besides basic
information similar to what is in the Bar Journal directory issue, there is
information essential to new lawyers such as myself (where the front door is,
judicial temperment to be expected, the clerk's birthday, and so on).

The best method to try a system like FreeForm is to simply dial up with your
modem - 313/774-7258 (located in St. Clair Shores).  The system will guide you
through the various functions as much as possible and extra help is always
available.  You may occaisionally get a busy signal because there is only one
phone line.  Your communication software has an automatic redial function which
will place your computer into the waiting que, if any.  It is possible to set
your computer up to automatically dial at late night, send and recieve files
and messages, and have the results available the next morning (FreeForm has a
software program available which does this).

Besides the usefulness of RBBSs like FreeForm explained above, it is a great
way to become comfortable with data-telecomunications (much more economical
than practicing on Lexis).  Using one RBBS will lead you to the dozen other
specialized RBBSs in Michigan.  Topics on these boards range from computer
science at U of M to computer dating services.  All of these resources are
free.  Should you have a jaded eye as to what's the catch, I can explain my own
situation with FreeForm:  It's only a bunch of spare and homemade parts hooked
to my office network - The real contributors are those who have uploaded legal
documents and software.  As of now, only about 50 lawyers, CPAs and other
professionals regularly use the system.  It is hoped that this article will
encourage you to try it out.


                                   EXIHIBIT A

                          Guidelines on Buying a Modem

Modems have gone through a big price drop in 1985.  I don't intend to sound
like a stockbroker, but it's time to buy.  The following is an explaination of
what to look for and what prices to expect.

The baud rate of a modem is the number of characters per second it can
transmit.  The baud rates currently available in modems are 300, 1200, 2400 and
9600.  The price increases as the speed goes up.  300 baud modems can be bought
for $50 but are too slow for business comunication.  They are usually used on
home computers.  Some 300 baud modems have the old acoustic coupler (the type
where the telephone handset is


NOTE: This is where I aborted the article.  To prevent any possibility of
suspense I was going to continue to explain that 2400 baud modems were the best
value.