Lawyers have a reputation for being Luddites — a profession resistant to change and slow to adopt not only modern language, but new technology. But if San Diego-area law firms are any indication, as the practice of law caters to an increasing number of high-tech clients, it has become decidedly high-tech itself.

Indeed, the legal community is embracing high technology to improve productivity and client communications. Law firms are using high-speed, broadband connectivity for voice, data and video communications, and are relying on high-speed connections to the Internet as a quick route to critical information.

"It’s an absolute necessity," says Bill Kolegraff, a patent attorney in the San Diego office of Baker & McKenzie. Before his office got a high-speed Internet connection last year, he did all of his online research from home, where he had a cable modem. Prior to that, he was using what is by today’s standards a horse-and-buggy approach — a dial-up modem.

The patent files he needs are typically large and in portable document format (PDF). With a dial-up modem connection over a standard telephone line, each could take 40 minutes to 50 minutes to download. Now he can retrieve even the largest files in two to three minutes.

"The Internet has really made the standard online legal tools easier to use and more accessible," he says. Those tools include Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw, as well as patent, trademark and copyright databases.

"Years ago — as in two years ago — you'd have to go through all the hassle of doing your dial-up with Lexis. It was very cumbersome to move someplace else," Kolegraff explains. "Now, if I’m on Lexis and I don’t get the answer, I double-click and I’m on Westlaw."

This quick access increases productivity exponentially. Research that used to mean a day at the law library can now be done from his desk in a fraction of the time.

Kolegraff is not alone. Similar stories were echoed by lawyers at a number of law firms around town.

Court rulings can be obtained online as well, which greatly improves efficiency and productivity, says Mary Allen, a paralegal and network administrator for the San Diego office of Sullivan, Wertz, McDade & Wallace.

"The secretaries love it, because instead of having to dial a telephone and transcribe a five-minute recording, they just pull it up on the Web site, print it out, and there it is," Allen says. "It saves a lot of time, a lot of effort."

She also says that now when a client contacts the firm with a question, the research is done online and the answer is e-mailed to the client in a matter of hours rather than days. And because e-mail has become a primary means of communication, the once indispensable fax machine has been rendered almost obsolete.

Client Driven

Still, while research and information gathering is critical to any law practice, Marina Park, managing partner of Pillsbury Madison & Sutro, says the driving force behind high-speed connectivity at her firm is clients who not only want immediate responses, but who have developed Internet-based communications systems they expect their lawyers to use as well.

"If it takes you an extra three minutes to download a document, that’s not as strategically critical as your ability to deliver services in the way your clients want you to deliver them," says Park, who works in the firm's San Francisco office. "If they want you to deliver documents in a certain way or set up Extranets and communicate in a certain way, that’s the No. 1 priority."

As an example, she points to network equipment manufacturer Cisco Systems, which has established an Extranet (a private network that uses Internet protocols) to enhance communications with its suppliers and customers — and its attorneys. Other companies are doing the same.

"I think that will just be part of the service model going forward, and that will present an interesting challenge to lawyers, because it means they're going to need to get familiar with how to work their way through a lot of different systems," Park says. "At its core, you’re going to have a very flexible, scalable and fast infrastructure to support that. So, that’s the strategy — it’s client driven."

Harry Rubin, head of the Cooley Godward LLP technology transactions practice in San Diego, concurs, contending that high-technology and the Internet are revolutionizing the practice of law.

"Law firms like us, who represent technology clients, have to be there, because that’s the way the clients like it to be done," he says. "We’re mobilizing the practice of law and the delivery of legal services. We are trying very hard to make people as mobile as possible, so they can do everything with their laptops, and as that migrates to wireless devices in a few years, that will take it even further."

Baker & McKenzie, which has upgraded its North American network from a 64 kilobits-per-second frame relay system to 1.5 megabits-per-second T-1 lines, has moved in that direction, too, says Diane Pewtress, information technology manager in the San Diego office.

"Because of high-speed Internet access and our VPN, we are able to give our attorneys e-mail access in a secure environment anywhere, anytime from any kiosk in the world, without having to tote their laptops around," she explains. (VPN is short for virtual private network, which uses the Internet to route e-mail and documents, which are encrypted to ensure privacy.)

She notes with a chuckle that it’s a mixed blessing. "How nice this is depends on whether you want to do work while you’re on vacation or not."

The firm is upgrading its network, and once in place, it will provide voice, data and video communications.

Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps, which has been using the Internet since the early '90s, uses its high-speed wide-area network for both voice and data communications.

"Our productivity has gone up a lot," says Peter Hahn, a partner specializing technology law. "Clients require that, especially technology clients. They don’t want to hear that we’re waiting for a fax machine to send those 100 pages to them."

It also has increased the speed and changed the manner in which litigation is handled, he says. During a telephone conference with opposing counsel and clients, it’s impossible to have a confidential conversation with his clients.

"While the telephone conference is going on, we’re sending e-mails back and forth that may be proposed changes to documents or comments on the way the negotiations are going," he explains.

The next big thing, he says, will be collaborative video conferencing. While technologically feasible today, it’s a matter of getting more people using it before it comes into widespread use.

"Technology is here, and it’s going to make us all more productive and more efficient," he adds. "It’s the way of the future."

Private Networks

While most law firms use T-1 connections — and in some cases, multiple T-1s — for interoffice and Internet connections, Sullivan Wertz is using cable access provided by Cox Communications.

Allen explains that since their office building was already wired for cable television, it was the most cost-effective solution. In addition, a VPN was set up for attorneys working at home.

It’s not uncommon for large firms with multiple offices scattered around the state, country or even the world to have private WANs that not only carry data communications, but voice as well.

Some firms also set up intranets for interoffice communications (an intranet is a private, in-house network based on Internet technology) and extranets to enhance communications with business associates and legal counsel.

Cooley Godward, for example, has an extensive intranet that provides the firm's staff with general information, calendar information and forms, says Mike Santos, the LAN manager in the San Diego office. It also provides quick access to archival documents stored and retrieved through the "Docs" software program.

"Having the high-speed connections that we do makes the process a more enjoyable experience," he says.

Not only has productivity improved at Cooley Goodward, but so has morale and the general mood since the firm upgraded from 56 kbps modems. "They don’t dread hitting that Explorer icon on their desktop anymore," says Santos.

Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich, which has had a wide-area network since the late 1980s, uses leased T-1 lines for most of its interoffice voice and data communications. It also uses a VPN to connect with its Seattle office.

"We’re constantly increasing our bandwidth," says Don Jaycox, the chief technology officer for Gray Cary who provides the strategic direction for the firm in terms of technology. "Now that we’ve got most of the wrinkles out of VPN, the next logical step is to migrate all of our interconnectivity to VPN style connections, because the economics are tough to beat."

Gray Cary also is moving toward using online software applications provided by third-party service companies (ASPs) in the next three to five years.

"Do I need to run my own ex-change (e-mail) server in-house? Do I need to run my own billing system in-house? Should we run our own payroll system in-house or should we rely on an outside service provider for that?" Jaycox asks rhetorically. "And if we rely on an outside service provider, what’s the most logical way to connect to that person?"

The answer, he says, is probably through an ASP using a VPN so the data remains private.

It’s not just the high-tech clients who are demanding their lawyers be up to speed technologically, either.

"The interesting thing that we’ve seen over the last six months to a year is that our big so-called 'old economy' clients are also getting very sophisticated about their use of technology," Pillsbury's Park says. "They've focused a lot of internal resources on maximizing their use of technology, and I think that they're going to be expecting law firms to do that as well."

High-Tech/High Cost

With improved efficiency and increased productivity, one might think the cost of legal services would to go down. Not likely, reports Park, because the technology is not inexpensive.

"There is no company out there that doesn’t have a need for speed right now," she says. "Their benefit is not a reduction in fees, but better service, quicker turnaround and better communications."

If anything, she contends, law firms are packing more into 15 minutes worth of service than ever before. What’s more, because of the high costs, Park predicts that the continued adoption of high-technology will result in more mergers between law firms.

"If you have a law firm with 900 lawyers, it’s going to be easier to support a cutting-edge infrastructure than it is if you have a law firm with 300 or 500 lawyers," she says.

The cost is heavy because technology is not a one-time shot. Park put it in plain English to the firm's partners, who two years ago had believed their substantial investment in technology was a one-time expense.

"This is huge, ongoing, never-ending," Park told them. "This is a cost of doing business on an annual basis from here on out. We have to constantly invest or we’ll fall behind."

Bottom Line

Broadband connectivity enables law firms to obtain and disseminate critical information faster than ever before. They'd better. Because in this era of virtually instantaneous communication, the business community is expecting faster service from its legal counsel.