Nothing like Nothing but the Net!

Whatever has happened to the Law Society of Scotland? Surely this staid old dame of the legal establishment would never sully her hands with giveaways of newfangled gadgets like iPods or digital cameras? And who would have thought Scots lawyers could be enticed to an IT conference by the promise of fruit smoothies and free de-stress massages? Yet all this happened at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on 3 October, where the seventh “Nothing but the Net” conference took place.

Registration for the event carried with it (in addition to mega-amounts of CPD) the added lure of a free digital camera to whichever lucky delegate had his or her registration form pulled out of the hat. Needless to say the lucky winner, Alison McIntyre of CCW LLP, was required to come on stage to pick up her prize – what a start to her traineeship! Throughout the event, delegates were reminded at almost half hourly intervals to complete their course evaluation forms, in order that the next conference might be even more wonderful than its predecessors. The first form out of the hat (regardless of content, complimentary or otherwise) would win no less than a 40Gb iPod. The lucky winner was David Howat of Pattison & Sim.

The traditional coffee breaks had been supplanted throughout the event with an invasion of fruit smoothies. This last pandering to Jamie Oliver was something of a leap of faith on the part of the organisers, Update, but lo and behold, the smoothies were consumed at a vast rate of knots whilst the caffeine could only steam in frustration. To cap it all, Update had also arranged for a free head and shoulders ergonomic massage to be available, should any of the overworked delegates feel the need to unwind. Many evidently did. Beyond all these high profile magnets, the event further boasted a number of hands-on attractions, notably the R2S (Return to Scene) crime scene reconstruction software.

Not content with the innovations already mentioned, Update also introduced “speed dating”! This consisted of one of the larger function rooms being equipped with nine tables staffed by, amongst others, representatives of Marsh (risk management), Brodies (managed services), the Law Society of Scotland (new website), Faculty of Advocates (IT project management), Registers of Scotland (ARTL), Pinsent Masons (open source) and Conscious Solutions (website and e-marketing for law firms). The format of the event included 10-minute talks at each table punctuated by “all change” blasts on an air horn, all of which added to the merry carnival atmosphere. Most delegates found this an innovative and interesting way of obtaining useful soundbites in relation to their chosen topics. The speed dating session ran for approximately an hour, whilst two other seminars suitable for the shy and retiring took place in an adjoining hall.

The following speakers gave presentations during the conference. The keynote speaker, Charles Christian of Legal Technology Insider, looked at “Your future today”, aimed at predicting the future legal trends and urging quicker uptake of legal IT. Douglas Mill, Chief Executive of the Law Society of Scotland, responded with an analysis of Richard Susskind’s 1996 predictions in his seminal book The Future of Law, and consideration of which had in fact come to pass – most, was the considered opinion.

The conference broke for exhibitions and networking in mid-morning, but this allowed Update to play its trump card by recording the very first Law Society of Scotland podcast. This involved the writer, Douglas Mill and Charles Christian who were interviewed by Gordon Brewster, head of IT at the Society. The podcast dealt with the conference and better use of IT in the courts. It can be downloaded (on any PC with a sound card as well as portable devices) at www.lawscot.org.uk/Members_Information/ podcasts/nbtn2006.aspx . Well worth a listen. No doubt Mr Howat has already done so or the Society will be wanting that iPod back!

After the morning break the conference broke into the now familiar “two stream” approach. Stream A considered legal aid online (SLAB); the WEEE Directive (Niblock Environmental Ltd) and was rounded off by an interview with Ken MacDonald of the Information Commissioner’s Office. In a unique departure from previous events – not another innovation, surely? – this interview took place on two sofas, Parkinson style, with Angus McLeod of WJM playing Parky. Meantime, the stream B delegates heard from Glen Abbot Ltd in relation to disaster recovery, Scotland Online in relation to VOIP, and Gordon Brewster as regards podcasting.

The Scottish Court Technology Forum is gaining momentum in this jurisdiction and it was a pleasure to have a very court-focused series of presentations in opposition to the speed dating sessions for the first part of the afternoon. Sheriff Iain Peebles of Glasgow Sheriff Court spoke generally about the need to modernise IT in the civil courts and Colin Armstrong of the Scottish Court Service ESDU (Electronic Service Delivery Unit) reviewed progress, or not (in some cases), towards achieving those objectives. Ingrained practices on the part of solicitors and counsel were singled out for particular criticism, and Mr Armstrong exhorted the need for change in the way cases are still habitually presented using reams of paper.

The final session involved a thoughtful presentation by Angus McLeod concerning data storage and retention, but the star event of the afternoon (with no disrespect to Angus) was the three-way debate preceding him. This involved Graham Gibson, Michael Sheridan and Kyle Peddie who debated via 10-minute soundbites whether automated legal documentation was a good thing. A little more time to explore in greater depth some of the areas traversed might have been preferable, but it’s hard to beat the rough and tumble of live debate for entertainment value, and there was no doubting the passions displayed both on and off stage. Kyle Peddie was staunchly in favour of document automation, whereas Michael Sheridan equated the use of automated documents as something akin to betrayal of one’s principles as a lawyer, representing a sure road to hell and eternal damnation. A lively question and answer session followed; Tom Drysdale of ARTL contributed from the floor to make it clear that participation in ARTL would be optional and not mandatory. Graham Gibson still felt that institutional lenders would de facto bring about compulsory use of ARTL. We shall see!

An excellent event wound up right on time and something of the order of 190 delegates attended, most of whom stayed to the end. No less than 26 sets of exhibitors participated this year and the organisers appreciated the sponsorship of Scotland On Line (main sponsor), together with Voice Technologies (associate sponsor), and Legal Technology Insider (media sponsor). The podcast was brought to you by LonelyPixel and bPod. So “well done” to the Society’s Update team who made it all happen, by common assent the most successful incarnation of the event to date.

    Paul Motion is a partner with Brechin Tindal Oatts and chaired the event reported above.