by Catherine Sanders Reach

This article is based an a series of interviews with second and third year students about their use of technology in law school. It first appeared in GPSolo, Volume 18, no. 8 (December 2001) at http://www.abanet.org/genpractice/magazine/archives.html.

How do law school students use technologies to survive law school? How do technologies affect their school lives? What are the secret weapons used by successful law school students to get ahead and stay ahead? The American Bar Association's Legal Technology Resource Center interviewed second and third year law school students to find out the answers.

Meet the Interviewees

Pam Amato, Law Student Division Counsel Liaison, is a third year student at Michigan State University, Detroit College of Law. She is interested in focusing on tax law related to estate planning and real estate after graduation. Pam has been tucking advanced degrees under her belt, as she went from medical technology to finance to project management before landing in law school. Her varied background and studies have especially helped her research skills.

Tony Martinez is a second year student at St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami, FL. Tony's practice interests include construction and real estate law. He plans to stay in Miami after school and work as a solo. He voiced concerns that automation could affect legal professionals' individual care and creativity on document creation in the future.

Peter Lasorsa, a second year student at John Marshall Law School in Chicago, IL, has a background in network administration. After finishing law school he plans to pursue a path in litigation and intellectual property law. Peter notes that he has been going through law school at night for the past couple of years and commuting from suburban Illinois. After lugging a laptop from home to work to school and back he suggests sacrificing speed for weight when it comes to laptop purchases for law school!

Amy Brugam is also a third year at Michigan State University, Detroit College of Law. She is interested in tax law, especially as it applies to labor and employment. She is currently working in a small firm in Lansing, MI. Amy related that her first experience using document management software was a love/hate relationship - the software slowed her down while creating and saving the document, but she could be assured that she could find it again even if she couldn't remember what she had named it.

Technology Nightmares

Every law school student has nightmares about waking up late for an exam, being called on in class, or participating in his or her first mock trial. We asked the students about their worst law school technology nightmares. Tony speculated that a lost or stolen laptop could wreak havoc two weeks before finals. Peter asserts that his worst technology nightmare as a commuting student during Legal Writing I & II was the possibility of anything happening to Lexis.com or the Internet in the middle of the night. Amy has been keeping all of her notes on her laptop since the first day of law school and she said that the thought of losing that information sent chills down her spine. Pam shivers at the thought of forgetting to update her virus protection software, especially since she has actually had the experience of sending a worm to her classmates. She relates that on the occasion she was sitting in her office and heard a yell down the hall, "Hey Pam, did you give XXX a virus?" Needless to say Pam never clicks on "wait 1 day" before she downloads the newest updates of her virus protection

Technology Survival Tool

Twenty years ago a law school students' survival tools might have included a sharp pencil, hornbooks, and a backpack full of flashcards. Today's law school student is more likely to rely on technology to thrive and survive during this hectic and invigorating experience. Peter relies on his school's wireless network and his laptop to do research on the Internet, via sites like lawschool.lexis.com and Emmanuel Online, during class to give him an edge on note taking and answering questions from the professor. Amy took advantage of her school's technology grant program, TIP, and wrote a request for proposal to get money to help buy a Handspring Visor. She has also purchased software that allows her to download and edit documents on the device. Pam, as the LSD Council Liaison, finds that fulfilling her duties and her schoolwork is possible through e-mail and discussion lists for ABA communication. Tony also says that e-mail is the trick to law school survival. He e-mails questions to his professors and gets thoughtful and detailed replies in return, instead of a rushed response after class. Tony also gets quite a bit of mileage out of his cell phone, moving between home, school, and work in constant communication.

Technology Challenge

Many law school students may not have experience with the different technologies offered at modern law schools. We asked the students to identify which technology they had the hardest time learning to use or master. For Pam the biggest challenge was learning how to navigate and search online. Her previous research experience had been primarily centered on books, library catalogs, and electronic indexes. Full text searching using platforms on the Internet, and FolioViews represented new avenues in research for Pam. Tony's school uses a wireless network and his experience with wireless was limited when he first entered law school. Now not only is Tony comfortable with his school's wireless network, he has installed a wireless network in his home! While Peter could not identify any specific technology hurdles due to his familiarity with technology as a network administrator, he did concede that students should find out if there are enough power outlets for laptops in the classroom. He suggested if there are not enough outlets, students should get long lasting batteries and bring along backups. Amy responded that her biggest challenge came during a summer clerk position. She had to learn how to do research without the resources of a large law school library at her disposal and also simultaneously strive to be conscious of the client's costs. This experience helped her to learn about free and low cost website for legal research.

Favorite Technology

Pam Amato: "My laptop." She asserts she is not a fast typist, but she is a good keyboardist. She uses her laptop for taking notes, outling, and reviewing.

Peter Lasorsa: "My laptop." Peter claims that his handwriting is horrible, and the laptop helps when it comes time to edit notes. He color codes his text in Microsoft Word to distinguish between notes, reviews, outlines, homework, etc.

Amy Brugam : "My Handspring Visor." Amy uses her handheld device to download law review publication schedules, create contacts, and send e-mail. She then can sync it all up with her Microsoft Outlook account at school.

Tony Martinez: "My Palm Pilot." He uses the reminders to keep him on time. Tony has it set to keep him abreast of coming events to the tune of Star Trek themes. He also is a fan of instant messaging and says it comes in handy when you miss something the professor said without having to interrupt class.

Technology Musings and Advice

The law school students we interviewed have learned a few new things, honed their skills at others, and made use of the available technology. Whether setting up a wireless network at home or learning how to save client's money through well-honed Internet search, these students have met their challenges and excelled. All agreed that a laptop, regardless of typing speed, was an invaluable tool in law school. Pam reminds new students to learn to determine what is "good" information, use the law librarians' skills, and don't "re-invent the wheel". Tony looks forward to starting a solo practice using e-mail as one of his primary communication and networking tools. Peter suggests that law schools plan for desktop computers in the classroom to ease financial (and physical) strain from the students. He envisions law professors loading their class outlines to the Internet or Intranet so that students can concentrate more on listening than taking furious notes. Finally, Amy looks forward to new versions of software, more integration, and new technologies to make her practice more efficient.

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