Year: 2007

Introducing Law 2.0

The internet is changing from a one-to-many broadcasting medium to a many-to-many communications system. It is becoming a shared resource where anyone can put forward their ideas, amend or correct the ideas of others, talk to their friends, locate long lost friends or find new ones, create and load up pictures or video clips or […]

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What is Web 2.0?

The phrase “Web 2.0” was coined by Tim O’Reilly in 2003 and refers to the way software developers are now using the web as a platform for delivering applications to end users and the consequent transition of websites from isolated information silos to sources of content and functionality. It is often referred to as the […]

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What’s in it for lawyers?

(Continuing the article What is Web 2.0?) Inevitably, Web 2.0 has spawned numerous industry-specific buzzwords: “Gov 2.0” is Web 2.0 in the context of government, “Library 2.0” is Web 2.0 as it relates to librarianship, and of course “Law 2.0” is Web 2.0 for lawyers. What relevance does Web 2.0 have for lawyers and the […]

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Law resources on Europa

Although the original version of Europa, launched in in 1995, simply provided a basic overview of European policies, the site has now become a single access point for official information from all the European institutions. Researchers at all levels, from school children to professors, can find relevant material, and also have direct access to official […]

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Remote access and flexible working

Nowadays there is no reason why people can’t work remotely – or flexibly – if they have all their information stored electronically and the systems and security in place to support them. Remote access requires documents to be scanned on arrival, wherever they arrive, so they can be made available (electronically) at locations where the […]

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Electronic presentation of evidence

Electronic Presentation of Evidence (EPE) is an IT-driven alternative to paper-based presentation in a room being used for a legal hearing, usually a court or arbitration room. Most commonly it will consist of scanned pages of documents being stored on a computer which are made available to the participants of the hearing via presentation on […]

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Barristers writing blogs

Most legal blogs in the UK are written by solicitors – perhaps this is just because there are more solicitors than barristers or perhaps also there are particular personality traits required to be a blogger! However, there is still a good variety of blogs from barristers available, described below, and probably there will be quite […]

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Virtualization

Computers were originally designed to run only a single operating system and a single application but virtualization (usually spelt the American way) breaks that bond, making it possible to run multiple operating systems and multiple applications on the same computer at the same time. Thus, one physical computer can function as if it were two […]

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Stealing invisible assets

Sometimes it must seem idyllic to escape from the stresses and strains of this “real world” and take refuge in virtual worlds far from these worldly issues. Unfortunately, the scourge of copyright infringement has arrived in our virtual utopia. The case which considers this issue is Eros LLC v John Doe (secondlife.reuters.com/media/SDOC1202.pdf), in which Eros, […]

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Law blogs the family way

There are now six blogs on family law in the UK, one from a barrister and five from individual solicitors. All the bloggers obviously love their blogs and have become fascinated by the whole process. Here are brief summaries of the blogs, in no particular order. Divorce Solicitor Blog is a very lively blog from […]

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Using IT to create dynamic office space

“The trouble with most law firms,” said one specialist from a mid-tier firm recently, “is that they are not using the internet properly to get the most from their corporate property.” What does “using the internet properly” mean in this context? It means making the best use of the flexibility which the internet can bring. […]

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Online dispute resolution – is anybody there?

Like the paperless office, online dispute resolution (ODR) was an early goal of those embracing online communication. Unlike the paperless office, however, whose arrival has been somewhat delayed by the principle that anything made easier, eg printing, will be done many more times than otherwise would be the case, ODR has indeed arrived. “Where is […]

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