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The 2008 ABA TechShow, held last month in Chicago, is billed as the premier legal technology conference and expo in the world. Two members of the N.C. Bar Center staff, Tom Purdy (information technology director) and Erik Mazzone (director of the center for practice management) attended the event, both for the first time.

They returned with a world of ideas and glimpse of the future as provided by an impressive array of TechShow speakers and vendors.

First, the basics: TechShow is two and a half days filled with session after session (more than 50 in all) of information on technology for lawyers and law firms. If that is not enough to over stimulate your inner geek, there is also a gigantic vendor expo with well over 100 companies selling software, hardware, services, gizmos and gadgets for lawyers to use in their practices and at home.

The conference is divided into six different “tracks” to help attendees find their way to the sessions they really want to see. The tracks vary by day and included groupings like Paperless Office, Advanced IT/Security, E-Discovery, Solo/Small Firm and Internet as well as roundtable discussions to foster discussion of all things legal and technological.

Purdy and Mazzone attended on behalf of the NCBA in keeping with the aims of Momentum 2010, the current strategic plan for the NCBA and NCBA Foundation, which is replete with technological innovations and initiatives to allow the NCBA to maintain its position as one of the most technologically advanced bar associations in the country.

From creating a technology center for members to access on the NCBA homepage to continuing to expand into new media such as podcasting and streaming video, Momentum 2010 has set the bar high for helping to integrate the increasing importance of technology into our members’ practices and lives.

The information technology and security fields are constantly changing, and the ABA’s TechShow provides an excellent opportunity to hear about products and trends that NCBA members and staff can benefit from.

Purdy attended the Advanced IT/Security, Internet and Solo/Small Firm sessions and three roundtable discussions. These sessions provided the latest information from legal and IT experts on data backup, breaches and security measures as well as Internet resources for legal research, collaboration and knowledge management.

The roundtable discussions included a practical exchange of information on E-Discovery, Voice over IP (VoIP) implementation, and creating disaster recovery plans. The TechShow was valuable in that it reinforced decisions made by the NCBA/F and provided insight into new areas to consider for the future, Purdy said. 

Mazzone focused on attending sessions in the paperless office and solo/small firm tracks. The movement of law firms of all sizes to a partially or completely paperless system continues to grow, and the challenges and opportunities grow with it.

These sessions touched on everything from unlocking the secrets of Adobe Acrobat to a discussion of which scanners and hardware to purchase to how to keep all of that newly digital information safe, secure and organized.

“I left TechShow with my head spinning,” Mazzone said, “from all of the advances made in legal technology – particularly products newly affordable to the solo and small firm market – and full of great ideas to bring to our members.”

To learn more about the TechShow, visit www.abanet.org/techshow.