Take Your iPad to Court

I have to admit, unlike Tom, there are not too many devices that give me “gadget envy.” One that does is the iPad2^®. I’m sure there’s an iPad in my future – if for no other reason than to allow me to read magazines and books while listening to music or to watch my own choice of movies on long international flights. Other than the obvious email, web-surfing and entertainment uses, I’ve been trying to find professional uses, so I surveyed attorneys and Certified Legal Nurse Consultants to ask how they use their iPads. I also spoke with a friend who has a company that creates demonstrative evidence for law firms to see how he’s using his iPad.

Attorneys and CLNC^® consultants are well aware that with an iPad they can easily access the Internet to research an expert or other subject during a deposition or trial, or email their office for help, documents or vital information.

There’s also a rapidly growing world of legal apps that attorneys find useful, such as The Deponent App. This app links to a database of sample deposition questions that are grouped by question type. Of course, each case is different so attorneys will want to customize and add their own questions and the app lets them. But here’s the best part: Deponent allows you to link a particular question to an exhibit – so long as the exhibit is stored in an Adobe^® pdf format. This popular feature can help keep the attorney from losing track of an exhibit or an expert’s CV during the deposition process. Of course, to enter exhibits such as documents, photographs or other demonstrative evidence, etc., into the court record, attorneys as of today still need to have paper copies that can be properly marked and admitted into evidence.

Attorneys and Certified Legal Nurse Consultants can also use Deponent to take deposition notes on the iPad instead of on a trusty legal pad and to annotate an exhibit with comments or follow-up questions. All that aside, Deponent does have some limitations, but it’s a good start and an evolving app.

Another must-have for attorneys is a file-management app that helps organize and keep track of files and allows remote access to a desktop computer to retrieve documents (in case she forgets a document, exhibit or her depo notes).

My friend with the demonstrative evidence company is an early-adopter and loves his iPad for making sales calls and especially for reviewing trial graphics in an attorney’s office. He can examine, blow-up and, in some cases, annotate an exhibit if it’s in pdf format. His creative staff can then edit that graphic or create new ones and get them to him on-the-fly. He and his attorney-clients have great discussions over which demonstrative evidence will enhance their position in the case.

My friend brought up another logical use, one that I must admit I hadn’t thought about, and that is the ability to view accident scenes and other locations using Google^® Earth. From that “view,” they can also discuss how to present evidence visually, create supporting animations and to make an initial (and often subsequent) site visit without what can sometimes be a fruitless and time-consuming trip from the office.

CLNC^® consultants can use the iPad in a fashion similar to my friend’s – for showing sample work-product, graphics, etc., during sales calls to attorney-prospects. When consulting with an attorney-client on a case, the ability to research something or illustrate that point without the need (or wait) to boot up a laptop is priceless. Like the attorney, you can take notes during deposition and trial and also access copies of the medical record, X-rays and other stored documents as you follow an expert or party’s testimony. You can also use it to keep up with your email from other attorney-clients during breaks. But the best part is that at the end of the day, you’ll look wicked cool and cutting-edge in the attorney’s eyes, which can only help with your branding.

iPads are certainly making increased penetration into the legal and legal nurse consulting worlds. Are they a necessity? Not yet. Are they a great accessory? Yes. As more and more legal-related apps are developed, I’m sure that Certified Legal Nurse Consultants will find new ways to use them to expand their CLNC^® practices. Hmmm, I wonder if I should get mine now?

Success Is Inside!

P.S. Comment and share how you use your iPad and share the apps you love.