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Daily Archives: January 1, 2018

Robert Ambrogi – 2017: The Year of Women in Legal Tech

This is a must read article – it is a positive, illuminating, thought provoking and informative shout-out to women in legal tech – some of whom you may know, and many to whom you will be introduced – who have redefined this male dominated sector with their innovative and multifaceted work in multiple arenas of an increasingly high profile and competitive sector. I am honored that I am included for BeSpacific and LLRX, and look forward to learning valuable lessons throughout 2018 and beyond from these dynamic women.

Robert Ambrogi – LawSites: “As 2017 comes to a close, I took time to think back over the major trends and developments in legal technology over the past 12 months. I figured I write about such notable trends as artificial intelligence, bots and blockchain. But as I was thinking about the year, something else stood out – the prominence of women in legal tech….But it felt to me that the tide changed in 2017. Yes, legal tech has long been a male-dominated field. Yes, it continues to be a male-dominated field. Yes, women continue to face hurdles breaking into and achieving success in this field. I do not want to minimize any of that. Even so, it felt to me as if we reached a tipping point in which women’s voices and influence combined to form an undeniable force. Women are not just contributing to the legal tech conversation, they are driving it as never before. This did not start in 2017 and it certainly won’t end here. But at the close of a year that started with legal tech entrepreneurs such as Alma Asay feeling frustrated about being a woman in a male-dominated industry, women are, themselves, the legal tech year’s greatest success story.

What does machine learning actually mean?

World Economic Forum: “…Machine learning is all around us: it informs everything from our Facebook feed, our suggested traffic routes in Google Maps, our autopilot email spam filters, and even the security of our banking information. But current day iterations of machine learning have r adically evolved since the 1600s. Today, machines can learn with… Continue Reading

2017 Was a Big Year for Scrubbing Science from Government Websites

MotherJones: 2017 Was a Big Year for Scrubbing Science from Government Websites. Here’s the List. Are the changes routine, rebranding, or censorship? “Moments after President Donald Trump took the oath of office last January, nearly all references to climate change disappeared from the White House official website. A page detailing former President Barack Obama’s plans to… Continue Reading

ABA Journal – A strategy for defeating cyberthreats to lawyers

ABA Journal: ” Every week brings news of major new cyberattacks—the stealing of personal information from Equifax and the federal Office of Personnel Management, the Petya and WannaCry ransomware worms, the Russian hacking of the Democratic National Committee’s emails, to name a few. Indeed, the cyberthreat from criminals, hacktivists and state actors is growing. The… Continue Reading

New Website on US Cryptocurrency Law

Bitcoin.com: “Bitcoinlawhub.com is a newly launched site [by attorneys Dave and Susan Berson] that lives up to its name. It provides a repository where US citizens can access a wealth of resources pertaining to digital currencies. If you’ve ever wondered how anti-money laundering laws affect bitcoin ATMS, or how bitcoin fits into estate planning, you’ll find… Continue Reading

Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary

The Chief Justice’s 2017 Year-End Report – Chief Justice John Roberts: “…We have a new challenge in the coming year. Events in recent months have illuminated the depth of the problem of sexual harassment in the workplace, and events in the past few weeks have made clear that the judicial branch is not immune. The judiciary… Continue Reading

Face Scans at Airport Departure Gates: An Investigation

A new investigative report by the Georgetown Law Center on Privacy & Technology – Not Ready for Takeoff Face Scans at Airport Departure Gates Executive Summary [snipped]: “At Boston’s Logan International Airport, travelers at one international boarding gate will be surprised that they are being told to stop before what looks like a sophisticated camera.… Continue Reading

How the Trump era is changing the federal bureaucracy

The Washington Post: “Nearly a year into his takeover of Washington, President Trump has made a significant down payment on his campaign pledge to shrink the federal bureaucracy, a shift long sought by conservatives that could eventually bring the workforce down to levels not seen in decades. By the end of September, all Cabinet departments… Continue Reading

The rise of female whistleblowers

The rise of female whistleblowers. Oxford Bibliographies. Andrea Hickerson. January 1, 2018. [Andrea Hickerson is the Director of the School of Communication and an Associate Professor at Rochester Institute of Technology.] “Until recently, I firmly believed whistleblowers would increasingly turn to secure, anonymizing tools and websites, like WikiLeaks, to share their data rather than take… Continue Reading

The Extinction of Libraries: Why the Predictions aren’t Coming True

An idea to kick off 2018 – think of each librarian (this includes all relevant job titles) to be in essence, a living breathing library. The wide ranging expertise of each librarian engages and employs skills that include communications, marketing, research, technology innovations, teaching, training, knowledge discovery, building communities (including those of best practice), ensuring… Continue Reading