Legal Commentary

Congrats to Randi Mayes, Peggy Wechsler, T.J. Johnson, and the rest of the ILTA execs and volunteers, for a tremendous 2010 convention.

I was honored to participate in the Law2020 series, a "multi-year, multi-platform" series of educational programs on how our profession must adapt to thrive into the next decade.I moderated a panel, organized by John Alber, a partner at Bryan Cave, that featured three dynamic speakers: attorney Maureen Atta, of Huron Consulting; consultant Barbara Schane Jackson; and Gibson Dunn partner Gareth Evans. They brilliantly addressed how alternative fee arrangements are triggering changes in law firm hierarchies, with the addition of more "staff attorneys" (especially in e-discovery), and how concrete metrics are needed to satiate client demands for better, faster, and cheaper legal services.

Thanks also to the vendors who took time to tell LTN about their products and services. My only regret was that I did not have time to attend more sessions. At ILTA, just like LegalTech New York, I always leave wishing I could have cloned myself at least four times to take full advantage of the show.

Ultimately what makes ILTA and LTNY the most valuable, is spending time with our wonderful legal technology community. The chance to connect with your peers, catch up, compare notes, commiserate, and chat informally about how we are all addressing the challenges we face.

More than anything else, at the end of the meetings, that is what sends you home energized and excited about the days ahead. Not surprisingly, the ILTA Twitter feed #ilta10 is still buzzing furiously.

P.S. Best lines of the show:

? "No wonder Cupertino is running out of iPads. Everybody here has one!" (Hat tip for link: PinHawk)

? "A science major could figure out the guest room lights in about three days."

? "This is the first hotel room I've ever stayed in that comes with an owner's manual."

(Re: above two: context)

? "Nothing good happens after 8 p.m." - Browning Marean (A&BKM below). (Yeah, right, Browning. Especially in Vegas. :)

Reports, Blogs, Apps, Videos:

LTN's Sean Doherty: In Focus: Post-ILTA 2010

Palindrome Video (No, not Sarah Palin). This is way kewl, played before opening keynote.

3 Geeks and a Law Blog: What Happened in Vegas Shouldn't Stay in Vegas (ILTA Elvis is from that blog post).

ILTA/InsideLegal Technology Purchasing Survey

ILTA 2010 Mobile App (iPhone/iPod Touch/BlackBerry/Mobile Website)

Above and Beyond KM: An #ILTA10 Survival Guide.

ILTA 2010 Conference Blog