Updated: 11/10/05; 2:55:17 PM. |
Rory Perry's Weblog Law, technology, and the courts What IS the best use of a lawyer's skills An obscure point in this article on XML.com about uses of XML in government: "But before XML, the main tool for drafting legislation was a DOS-based text processor that required the attorneys drafting legislation to learn typesetting codes -- perhaps not the best use of a lawyer's time." According to the article, the customized system (using Corel's XMetal) "lets lawyers be lawyers and not typesetters or computer experts." I don't know about this. A lawyer's skill set might be changing. I know mine is. Since taking a job as Clerk of the Supreme Court of Appeals, I've had to learn basic SQL, HTML and XML, and how to map business rules to databse systems. I run our webcast, so I've had to learn about networks, security, video and audio quality, and encoding. Admittedly, lawyering skills have helped me learn what I need quickly and move on. This has been even more true over the past year, as I've learned about rendering, outlines, OPML, and RSS through using Radio to publish various blog pages. Now, I may not be the typical lawyer, but who is? Having some technical chops seems to be a requirement for so many things lawyers do (i.e. finding intelligence in documents, web posting, video depositions, e-filing, time tracking, working on the road, building presentations, searching and creating data), that it seems like you're at a disadvantage if all you can do is a little legal analysis. Soon I'll advertise for a Deputy Clerk (a position that has been vacant for over a year now and I really need some help). You can bet I'll be looking for someone with some technical skills. 12:50:54 PM [Permanent Link]
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