Month: September 2015

The problems-and possible solutions-for crowdsourcing legal research

September 3, 2015 Shelby Bice Leave a comment Tech, Tech for Lawyers

Robert Ambrogi of the blog Law Sites believes “that crowdsourcing can help democratize legal research and enable free research sites to become more viable alternatives to paid sites.” Unfortunately for those who believe strongly in the impact crowdsourcing can have upon the law profession, most websites focused on sharing legal issues have failed. Crowdsourcing relies on users to contribute freely to the conversation at hand, whether that be by posing questions about certain law practices, sharing new insights or research that can educate others, or arguing hypothetical cases. Due to the fact that users are posting of their own free volition and not because they are looking forward to being paid, they need an incentive to keep coming back to the site and adding to the growing bank of knowledge. In the past, as shown by a multitude of legal crowdsourcing websites that have disappeared or gone dormant, finding the right incentive can been difficult. As Apoorva Mehta, the creator of one such failed enterprise, explains, “I didn’t know anything about lawyers when we started. Turns out, they don’t like technology, and they don’t like to share things.”

Even though many have failed in the past, crowdsourcing legal research could still be effective at accumulating knowledge. Three sites—Casetext, Wex, and CanLII Connects—are proof that lawyers can collaborate using technology. Each site has a slightly different way of encouraging lawyers to contribute. For example, Casetext has created little niches called Casetext communities that allow lawyers with similar interests to discuss and network together online, prompting discussions and drawing more users to the communities. Additionally, Casetext provides an outlet for lawyers who love writing about law without the added worry setting up an individual blog or analyzing SEO. This publishing platform, called Legalpad, even comes with built in readers from the Casetext communities. Wex approaches incentivizing a bit differently by narrowing down the type of crowdsourcing it hopes to generate and focusing on becoming a sort of legal Wikipedia. Those that contribute to Wex articles are then listed as one of the authors. Lastly, CanLII boasts a bit of exclusivity by only allowing registered members the ability to engage in crowdsourcing.

Crowdsourcing websites have to focus on what is going to make people want to contribute and how to make those contributions useful to others. Though sites are still trying to pin down exactly how to accomplish the former, the free availability of legal research that Ambrogi dreams of may not be just a dream much longer.

Article via Law Sites, August 10, 2015

Photo: The Rotherhithe Picture Research Library via Chris Guy [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

TransTech, helping transgender people get jobs in tech

September 2, 2015 Astrid Countee Leave a comment Human Rights, Tech

Transgender people are subject to discrimination that often prevents them from being employed and promoted in their work. As a result, this group has twice the unemployment rate of the general population. For those that are employed, 90 percent have reported dealing with harassment and discrimination at work, while others have simply been fired for their trans status. TransTech is trying to change that. 

Founded by CEO Angelica Ross, who is herself a trans woman, the goal is to employ transgender people in fulfilling work. To accomplish this, TransTech has programs to teach technical skills like coding, data entry and software management. Discrimination and harassment often push transgender people out of school, and they miss out on learning these skills. Ms. Ross has created a 12 week program to teach these skills that has even gotten the attention of the White House. The idea is to create a skilled workforce that can be judged on their ability and performance, instead of their gender affiliation.

Article via TechCrunch, 1 September 2015

Photo: Steve Jobs took Apple To Unimaginable Heights via Sacha Fernandez[Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

New .law domain name available for lawyers

September 2, 2015 Shelby Bice Leave a comment Legal News, Tech, Tech for Lawyers

Now, in addition to common domain names such as .com or .net, lawyers with the appropriate qualifications can differentiate themselves with a domain name specific to the legal community. As Lou Andreozzi, the CEO of .law explains, this new domain name can be useful in several ways to interested attorneys. For example, it opens up names that may already be registered to a .com or .net address to be used. Additionally, since there are specifications that individuals must meet to purchase a .law domain name, namely being a licensed lawyer, websites with .law may appear more creditable than those with a domain name that can be purchased by anyone, such as .com. While .law is the first domain name available specifically for those in legal professions, other such as .attorney or .esq may also become available soon.

Some prominent law firms are already beginning to take advantage of the new domain name. Though the domain name will not be available to the legal community at large until October, firms that have registered their trademarks with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers have had early access to ordering from the owner of .law, Minds + Machines.

Article via ABA Journal, August 10, 2015

Photo: The letters of the law via laura.bell [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Using mobile devices in health care, safely

September 1, 2015 Abby Shulman Leave a comment Cybercrime, Health Justice, Privacy, Security, Tech

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released a practice guide on how health care providers can share patient information securely through mobile devices. The guide is the first in a series dedicated to the development of advanced cybersecurity for all organizations.

Tablets and smartphones are already integrated in the health professions, as 87% of physicians report using a tablet or smartphone in the workplace. Physicians can exchange patient information, submit medical claims, access electronic records, and e-prescribe through mobile devices. In general, the use of mobile devices for these tasks is efficient and less susceptible to error.

However, the use of tablets and smart phones for secure health information carries significant risk. Vital patient information could be leaked if the device were lost or stolen, or if a patient sent data through insecure cellular networks. Without developed authentication or data encryption, patients face the threat of “medical identity theft,” disastrous for both their own health and the success of their provider.

NIST guide seeks to mitigate risks through explicit instructions and hypothetical scenarios. The guide will take comments from the public until Sept. 25, 2015.

Article via Ice Miller Strategies LLC, August 6, 2015

Photo: Man at work–physician assistant via yooperann [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Non-lethal drones can be used in North Dakota by police

September 1, 2015 Shelby Bice Leave a comment Criminal Law, Ethics, Privacy, Tech

Legislation was passed last spring that allows police in North Dakota to utilize drones not only for surveillance but also as non-lethal weapons. The bill, which was originally introduced by Representative Rick Becker, did not permit the use of any kind of weaponry to be used, but lobbyists advocated for the bill to be amended to allow non-lethal weapons in order to win the support of law enforcement. There are restrictions incorporated into the law that limit the scenarios in which drones can be used by police, though. For example, a drone may only be used for surveillance if the data will be used in investigating a felony, and law enforcement must obtain a warrant to use the drone which includes very specific details on how, when and where it will be used. There are also limits on how personal information that the drone uncovers may be dealt with. Even with some restrictions within the legislature limiting the use of drones, some say that the drones are providing law enforcement with too much power.

Jay Stanley from the American Civil Liberties Union states that even non-lethal weapons can still have lethal results. Tasers, though non-lethal, still lead to approximately fifty deaths a year. Additionally, using drones may lead to detachment between the person operating the drone and the suspect on the other side, which could lead to regrettable choices. Jim McGregor disagrees, explaining that police officers out in the field may have a harder time making the right call than someone operating a drone in an offsite location with less to distract them. He likens drones to other methods, including SWAT teams and snipers, to show that drones are not so different from well-known choices for dealing with dangerous situations.

Whether non-lethal drones are a positive or negative development in law enforcement technology, Representative Becker intends to propose a  new law that will make non-lethal as well as lethal weaponry on drones illegal.

Article via TechNewsWorld, August 28, 2015

Photo: Drone via ninfaj [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Footage of police brutality could be tampered

September 1, 2015 Abby Shulman Leave a comment Court, Criminal Law, Government, Justice, News, Tech

Recent incidences of police brutality have sparked public outrage, and as a result, the use of police dashboard and body cameras has increased. However, footage released to the public could be altered. Sandra Bland’s arrest video, for example, loops several times in the 52 minute span. Journalists have accused police departments of editing the videos; the Texas Department of Public Safety denies any tampering of the footage.

Police camera footage is stored unaltered on police department software systems. This is because the Axon body cam dominates the police camera industry, and it records footage in a way that is nearly impossible to corrupt. The only way an officer could impede a video is by physically pushing the off-button for five seconds, an unlikely occurrence during a high-intensity event. Additionally, the officer’s name is attached to the video for as long as it exists in the software system.

Although raw footage can’t be edited, there’s no way to regulate what edits are made to the footage released to the public. In fact, almost all videos that the media releases are edited—bystanders’ faces are blurred, and sections of video with no action are removed. The Freedom of Information Act has no provisions that require police departments to release raw footage. However, several incidences recorded on police cameras have led to the indictment of guilty officers, and no allegations that videos are tampered have been confirmed.

It’s evident that police body and dashboard cams will continue to rise to prominence, whether the accusations of video tampering are true or not. The Obama administration has proposed a $75 million program to provide 50,000 cameras to agencies, and the Department of Justice is allocating $20 million for police body cameras.

Article via The Huffington Post, August 28, 2015

Photo:  via Whoop Whoop that’s the Sound of the Police via AshtonPal [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]