In this new age of transparency and openness, it’s near-impossible to bottle up information and sell it. Today, information begs to be free. This is especially true in the realm of digital information. Last month, Bob Dickie from the Aide-de-Camp blog sent me the Wall Street Journal article about a strange monopoly over a particular realm of information: the law.

The article states,

But with the possible exception of the ever-leaky CIA, no aspect of government remains more locked down than the secretive, hierarchical judicial branch. Digital records of court filings, briefs and transcripts sit behind paywalls like Lexis and Westlaw. Legal codes and judicial documents aren’t copyrighted, but governments often cut exclusive distribution deals, rendering other access methods a bit legally questionable…

In law school, I recall a lesson in Criminal Law where we were taught that “ignorance of the law is no excuse.” It was explained that there’s a presumption that everyone knows the law and purposely chooses to follow or break it. By itself, the presumption is obviously a huge stretch, but it’s also understandable.  Otherwise, could you imagine all the “I didn’t know” excuses?  But when we lock access to the law behind expensive pay-walls, doesn’t it fly in the face of this presumption of knowledge? On the one hand, we want to hold everyone to a standard of sophistication and understanding. On the other hand, we bury the laws behind expensive websites that are only accessible by law firms.

Hence, the monopoly over legal information. As lawyers, we make a living exploiting the ignorance of our clients. It’s true. They have a need, they have no idea how to solve it, we have access to the information to help them, and we earn a living by connecting the dots. There’s nothing wrong with this model. It’s been around a long time. In defense of this model, I’d argue we have a unique skill set to understand the issues and leverage the information to the client’s full advantage. And with skills, comes marketable value. Again, there’s nothing wrong with this.

But this model is on the wrong side of history… As an example, if you used to make a living setting up corporations and LLCs, you’ve probably moved on thanks to Legal Zoom. Who’s next? The problem with information is that it can easily devolve into a commodity.

So what’s the solution?  Be an expert, own a niche, and stay one step ahead of the commodity curve.  The legal profession needs to get out of the 20th century, embrace openness, and seek to empower average citizens with as much information as possible. Entrepreneurs are already trying to make this happen. Lawyers can share documents at JD Supra, law students can share case summaries at Advanced Advocates, lawyers can cheaply search for cases over at fastcase.com. Furthermore, the American Bar Association needs to end the requirement to be certified in each state separately to practice there. If I practice law in a state for 3 years, I’m more qualified to work in a different state than some law student that just crammed for the Bar exam. If you can practice in one state, guess what, you can practice in all states. Open up the doors of competition. Entrepreneurs will slowly pick this industry apart. Either accept openness, or be destroyed by it.

Advanced Advocates survived the beta phase! Advanced Advocates is a new social platform built exclusively for law students. I built the platform to fill a much needed niche in the law school space. With all the great networks around us like Facebook and LinkedIn, there was nothing in my opinion that law students could leverage to enhance their education. Law students are a talented bunch and they each have a unique story. Getting into school is an accomplishment by itself. When I was in school, I only networked with students in my particular school. I met some great folks, learned a lot, and had some fun. But with technology now, law students should be crossing geographical divides and networking with EVERYBODY. Why not?

With AA, I tried to create features that were relevant for law students that enabled them to collaborate with law students across the country (or globe). In order to students to network on a regular basis, there had to be a compelling reason to return to the site.  Got a question about a case? Find the case and start a discussion thread. There’s ZERO marketing budget so it depends on positive statements from the users. As a relevant service, the network effect kicks in, meaning more users, more value, leading to more users, etc. Positive stories help.

It’s refreshing to see so many bright law students leveraging social media to create their personal brands. You can never start too early! Without a doubt, the universities will eventually get on a board and the entire system of legal education will be changed DRAMATICALLY. With AA, students can now discuss cases, form groups, leave feedback about summer jobs, share outlines, etc. Soon, it’ll a place where interested lawyers and recruiters can find the best and brightest. And it’ll always be free for students.

Lawyers are like the IRS…we’re slow, but not stupid. We’ve never been an industry of early adopters. It took a while for lawyers to grasp email, but, to the detriment of our marriages, we got there. It took a while for lawyers to jump on the blog bandwagon, but we got there. The slowness to change is probably due to the old guard that runs law firms. They’re the last one’s to change their habits to conform to new technologies. Guy Kawasaki says, “The higher up in an organization you go, the thinner the air.” It’s no different in law firms (when it comes to technology, not experience).

And now law students are getting it! They twit, blog, and write articles all over the net. In an article on Social Media Law Student, which is a very impressive site full of cool links and widgets, the author states,

But in all seriousness, it is exciting and refreshing to see a large bureaucracy [universities] willing to change a fundamental line [by allowing blogging and networking] they have been feeding students for the past few years.. . at least a few (albeit very few) institutions are sitting up and taking notice, and hopefully not too late to help America’s future lawyers.

The same author has the following as her tagline on her blog: “belief that legal services should be affordable, accessible, and online.” She also has a link to a virtual law office website, which is something I discussed in my Googley lawyer piece. Are you kidding me? Is there really a law student that’s smart enough to know the old model is broken? Yes! Now imagine five years from now when each student shares this belief. The next generation will be savvy enough to leverage technology. They’ll have a powerful network built up via law school. They’ll be able to work remotely, schedule their own hours, maybe even be happy with what they do. They’ll be a different kind of lawyer entering the market. Much more potent than myself and my peers. Can you see it? I can, and I’m trying to help.