In the age of social networking, the legal industry has apparently stepped up to the plate. A recent article from The Wall Street Journal online, To Blog or Not to Blog, tells the tale of a relatively new form of communication of the late 90s that either peaked too early and fizzled out or, rather, survived the test of time. An industry that has, as a whole historically, been resistant to electronic forms of communication is now saturating the world wide web on sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning, and, of course, a variety of blogs. There are firm blogs and solo practitioner blogs; practice area blogs and jurisdiction blogs; even law school blogs. And you’ve got visionaries like Kevin O’Keefe of LexBlog and Bill Gratch of Blawg, who have made an industry out of the legal industry’s use of blogs. Even the Judiciary’s joining in the fun, including links to sites like Twitter, Digg, Google, or for setting up RSS feeds, in its online monthly The Third Branch Newsletter. Further, the reach is extending beyond just the sharing of information, with firms like Virtual Law Partners, that have no physical office or unspoken face time expectations to which its lawyers are bound. Instead, we lawyers are latching on to the internet, hoping to surf our way to success. Thus, it seems to be the wave of the future; so I’ve decided to jump on the bandwagon (or the surfboard, that is) and be Legally Bound.
NOTE: Thanks to The Blogger Guide for instructions on modifying blogger templates.