Exploring the Ethical Duty of Technology Competence Part I: Tech Savvy Is a Requirement, Not an Option

This program, taught by Ivy B. Grey, author of American Legal Style for PerfectIt by Intelligent Editing Ltd and Senior Attorney at Griffin Hamersky LLP, will cover the duty of technology competence.

This is Part I of a two-part program that, together, will address (1) the duty of technology competence as it relates to technology used in practice generally (Model Rule 1.1); (2) the duty to train and how it relates to the technology mandate (Model Rule 5.1); and (3) the issue of lawyers' refusal to embrace technology and how such refusal can become an ethical issue, and lead to overbilling clients (Model Rule 1.5).

This program will focus on the substance of the duty of technology competence; it will also address the obligation to train and ensure compliance with the duty of technology competence for all lawyers in a firm. Examples and discussion will focus on use of MS Word in legal practice because it is a basic technology tool that nearly all lawyers will use, regardless of practice area.