Much of the conversation has been on the impact of technology on the delivery of legal services and the changes that the profession will undergo in the coming years. Extremely relevant points have been made and discussed in both the partner meetings and blogs, demonstrating that the firm is live to the evolution that the profession is undergoing. One aspect that has been somewhat more on the periphery has been the societal changes behind the push for transformation.
I had the opportunity to attend and speak at the Canadian Elder Law Conference this past week and gain a better understanding of the practical realities that are facing the profession in light of a shifting demographic. For the first time in Canadian history, the percentage of the population over 65 is greater than the population under 15. While we have been focusing largely on the increase in technology that the profession has at its fingertips, there are a growing number of potential clients that will inevitably need our services but may not understand the technology we will be employing. This requires those of us that will be working with elders to appreciate the impact of technology on this growing demographic.
I do not dispute that a willingness to innovate is going to be essential, nor do I suggest that those 65+ are incapable of using or appreciating technology. I do think, however, that as we seek to integrate new methods and technologies that we take into consideration the impact that may have on our clients. Creating more affordable services will greatly benefit our senior clients and, as the baby boomers get set for retirement, this portion of the population will be facing a society that is increasingly more tech savvy.
We must be sure to balance our reliance on technology with the very personal service that our aging clientele has become accustomed to. It cannot be our approach to either assume our client understands technology or require them to familiarize themselves with it in order to benefit from an affordable service. Nor should we assume that technology will be able to replace the personal aspect of our profession, such as the interview in which a lawyer conducts an assessment for testamentary capacity. It is this personal interaction that sets us apart from machines such as IBM’s Watson. And it is this interaction that clients appreciate, along with getting the job done for a fair price.
How can we balance our growing use of technology with an aging population?
Great Post Kelly! This has been something I have been thinking about throughout the course as well. We have been looking a lot at how we can change the way we provide legal services but we haven’t spent time looking at how this change would impact the actual client.
With respect to your question, I think there are going to be certain circumstances where we can integrate some of the newer technologies that law firms have access to but at the same time not lose some of that personal side of the profession that maybe some of the older clients appreciate.
One example of a service that seniors will go to a lawyer for is to write a will. Rather than having the senior client input this information on his own through a software that a firm provides, it will still be important to have that in-person interview. So, we could still use some of our traditional approaches, like an in-person interview, but then we can use the programs that firms have where the lawyer can input the information and create a will very quickly.
Great Post Kelly! This has been something I have been thinking about throughout the course as well. We have been looking a lot at how we can change the way we provide legal services but we haven’t spent time looking at how this change would impact the actual client.
With respect to your question, I think there are going to be certain circumstances where we can integrate some of the newer technologies that law firms have access to but at the same time not lose some of that personal side of the profession that maybe some of the older clients appreciate.
One example of a service that seniors will go to a lawyer for is to write a will. Rather than having the senior client input this information on his own through a software that a firm provides, it will still be important to have that in-person interview. So, we could still use some of our traditional approaches, like an in-person interview, but then we can use the programs that firms have where the lawyer can input the information and create a will very quickly.
Thanks, Onkar. I think you are absolutely right in that the technology will play a large role in the “background” of the practice and we still maintain that personal interaction with the client. This will be particularly so in instances where capacity needs to be assessed. If we, as lawyers, are going to be taking signatures for formal documents, we need to satisfy ourselves that the client has the capacity to sign. I could only imagine the liability issues that may arise if we have clients fill out an electronic document and a system spits out a will, all without us meeting the client in person and assessing their testamentary capacity. Relying heavily on technology for the sake of efficiency could detract from our ability to get a “sense” of our client’s true needs or situation, making an integrated approach much more appealing to me.
Kelly,
To answer your question, and similar to Onkar’s response – I agree that advancements in technology can be used to assist lawyers in providing more efficient and cost-effective services, rather than technology being used to replace lawyers altogether.
I think that using technology helps lawyers by saving time in preparing/drafting etc., which in turn will cut the traditional hourly billing rate – thus resulting in more affordable legal services. In addition, saving lawyers time in completing mundane or ‘mindless’ legal tasks will provide them with more opportunities to serve a larger number of clients – thus again providing more access to justice by serving more clients in a given time frame.
Using technology to make services better, faster and more affordable allows lawyers to spend the necessary ‘face-time’ in order to serve clients (including elder clients), address their specific needs and concerns, and help them solve issues with a personal touch. In my opinion, this personal touch is what will keep the profession alive – even with the introduction of Watson & Co. into the legal field. #L21C
Hi Kelly. Great point. I was thinking about this lately when trying to contact an elderly relative who doesn’t use email. I think that we assume that everyone has access and familiarity with the same technologies that we are used to. However, this leaves many people out of the loop.
When talking about the benefits of Clio (like being able to invite clients into the interface to check on progress) it’s important to remember that these benefits won’t be the same for everyone. Some clients will appreciate the easy access online communication provides, while others will want to conduct all communication over the phone or in person. There’ s no one-size fits all solution.
I really enjoyed reading this post Kelly. It’s definitely raising a concern which is going to be more and more prevalent in the legal industry. In fact much of the clientele law students may interact with, as lawyers, is the aging baby boomer demographic.
I agree with the points Onkar raised as well. Since law is a service-based industry it is integral that the services are as accommodating to the client as possible. This will bring the client the most satisfaction.
However, we cannot ignore that some aging baby boomers have adapted and adjusted to technology. E-mail is commonly used, and searching the web has become a learned skill. As you’ve mentioned, it is about finding a way to tailor these technological services and devices to best meet the needs of the client. Working on establishing video-conferencing, or still communicating via phone calls, are great ways to communicate with an elderly client. Additionally it provides the lawyer the chance to go through the work in detail, as opposed to sending a large overwhelming document over, which can be tiresome to read.
Additionally, as Onkar mentioned, using computer programs makes it easier to input the data and information needed, but cannot replace the communication element required to fulfill the legal service. Devices like tablets and laptops will be beneficial in transporting legal documents, when discussing them with the client, but they are ancillary to the legal service, and not a substitute for it.
Technology can be used to facilitate legal services for the elderly, but it will be very tough to replace legal services with technology for them.
This is a great post, and calls our attention to something really important that we can’t lose sight of. The great promise of technology in the legal field, to me, is the potential to enhance access. There is no question that we need to do better on providing access to justice and legal services, and technology can help by doing things faster and cheaper, making distance irrelevant, enhancing connectivity and so on. But your post reminds us that access is compromised to the extent that the technology itself is not accessible. I think this is an important consideration not only with respect to elderly clients but also for people with disabilities that online technology doesn’t always take into account. For example: can the blind use LegalZoom? Is there a blind-accessible version?