SA Lawyers Must Embrace Technology in Order to Survive and Prosper
Someone wrote recently, “Technology won’t replace lawyers, but lawyers who use technology will replace those who don’t”. As someone who specialises in eDiscovery and witnessed the transformation in the UK of the use of technology before moving to South Africa some six years ago, I would totally agree with those sentiments. Since living here, it has been my mission to educate lawyers in the use of eDiscovery technology and to persuade the Department of Justice to amend the rules of civil procedure to incorporate eDiscovery, bringing South Africa into the 21st century and aligning with other jurisdictions. I feel privileged to have met Professor Richard Susskind OBE. Amongst other things, he is President of the Society of Computers and Law; IT Adviser to Lord Chief Justice (in the UK), and a renowned author and speaker. Of the many books that he has written, all with a similar theme, I commend at least four to you. There was one he wrote a few years ago entitled, “The End of Lawyers? Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services”, which particularly resonated. There is another called, “Tomorrow’s Lawyers: An Introduction to your Future”, and another entitled, “The Future of the Profession: How Technology will Transform the Work of Human Experts.” His latest is “Online Courts and the Future of Justice”. All of these and others are readily available via Amazon. Do you detect his theme and my interest? Of course, it is the technology and how its use could and should be changing how … Continue reading →
