Law Technology Today From the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center
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If you were asked which three advancements most dramatically altered the legal landscape, what would you answer? The Code of Hammurabi? The Magna Carta? How about the iPad? Clio, the leading cloud-based practice management solution, has released the results of their 2013 ‘Apple In Law Offices’ survey. The survey, detailing Apple device usage in law firms across North America, shows exactly how far the influence of Cupertino extends in the legal industry.
Turn over the device you’re using to read this. See an Apple logo? You’re not alone. The 2013 survey saw a marked increase in Apple adoption, with a 10% leap in both office Mac OS usage (from 56 to 66%), and iPad usage (from 57% to 67%), with iPhone usage spiking 12% to 74% (while Android and Blackberry both saw decreases in law firm usage compared to global adoption rates). Why the dramatic increase? Coupled with a number of exciting product releases and OS updates, 52% of respondents stated they chose Apple options because the technology was more reliable and secure, with Usability coming in next at 28%. Familiarity due to home use of Apple/Mac products was 10%, and aesthetics and design climbed back up to the 3% mark set 2 years ago.
Since the iPad debuted on the market, legal services penetration has risen from the initial 10% at product launch to an incredible 67% within 3 years. A demand for a mobile workforce and an industry that never sleeps have both been driving factors in iPad adoption, as well as a proliferation of offerings and apps targeted at improving law firm productivity and efficiency.
2013 was also the year cloud services came into their own in the legal sector, with each respondent averaging 2 cloud services used. Dropbox topped the charts in terms of cloud adoption with 26% of respondents saying they use the storage service, with Clio, everyone’s favorite cloud-based practice management system, coming in next at 21%. iCloud and Google Apps rounded out the cloud solutions list at 18% and 14%, respectively.
Proving that cloud and iDevice adoption are no longer the exclusive domain of tech-savvy solo practitioners, the survey was completed by 800 legal professionals across a wide variety of disciplines, from partners at mid-sized firms to law students and office managers.
The question going forward isn’t whether or not Apple devices will be used, but HOW. Firms would be remiss to not implement a Bring Your Own Device policy to ensure client data is protected and secure.
Clio’s survey results show that Apple devices and cloud services continue to be the two defining characteristics driving the legal technology renaissance. What will next year hold?
To view the infographic, please visit http://gocl.io/ailo2013, or download the full report at http://gocl.io/ailo2013report. Looking for a practice management solution that works seamlessly on all Apple devices? Try Clio for free!
Source: Clio’s Apple In Law Offices Survey 2010-2013. Of 838 individuals surveyed (85.14%) were lawyers in small firms (1-10 attorneys) practicing primarily in the United States. Others participating included law students (0.81%), in house counsel (0.92%), practicing lawyers in medium-size law firms of 11-50 attorneys (1.96%), practicing lawyers in large firms of 50 attorneys or more (1.50%), and other (9.68%).
Note: the results of the Clio survey are illustrative but nonscientific. Read “Trends in Solo and Small Firm Hardware” for additional data regarding Mac use from the ABA Legal Technology Survey Report.
