The month of May saw two technology and legal regulation issues come to light in the US.
Cyber security and client communications
The changing technological landscape and rising incidence of “cyber intrusion” prompted the ABA’s ethics committee to update an 18-year-old opinion on whether lawyers must use encrypted e-mail when communicating with clients. Technologically, much has changed in the past 18 years regarding how lawyers and clients communicate. Unfortunately lawyers are often the weak link in the cyber security chain making them an obvious target for cyber criminals. Read more…
And…
Florida Supreme Court rejects proposal to regulate online ‘legal matchmakers’
The Florida Supreme Court on May 3 rejected a controversial proposal—supported by state bar leaders but opposed by some of the most successful legal technology startups—that would have subjected companies in the burgeoning “legal matchmaking” industry to regulation by state bar authorities. The proposed rule changes could have subjected some of the most disruptive industry startups—including LegalZoom, RocketLawyer, UpCounsel and Avvo—to a host of regulatory requirements that may have increased their operating costs or required them to revise plans to plow resources into the legal matchmaking sector. Read more…