It's been some time since the economy wasn't the dominant theme in our yearly survey. But while the struggling recovery must still be reckoned with, feedback from the 82 law firm technology chiefs who responded this year—and follow-up interviews with nearly a dozen of them—reveal that the top focus has moved from dollars to data. The key issue: How do firms make information accessible to their lawyers without making it too accessible. The main challenges facing chief information officers include how to capture the potential cost savings offered by cloud-based data-storage options without compromising security, deciding which applications lawyers can download to their firm-supported mobile devices, and responding to client concerns about where and how data is kept and accessed. Striking the right balance will help determine how firms fare in an anytime-anywhere world.
Drawing The LineHow much data access is too much? Security concerns take center stage in The American Lawyer's annual survey of law firm technology.
THE CHARTS
Software and Storage: Head for the Cloud?Continuing cost pressure is among the factors leading firms to explore remote information-storage technologies. But the cloud comes with costs of its own. (Click on chart graphics for firm-by-firm responses to key survey questions.)
Communications: All About the Connections When it comes to going mobile, the BlackBerry still dominates. But more firms than ever support the operating systems that power Apple and Android devices. (Click on chart graphics for firm-by-firm responses to key survey questions.)
The Money: Spending and SavingEmbracing the most promising technologies costs money, so many firms are boosting their capital budgets for IT services. But some of that spending is just playing catch-up. (Click on chart graphics for firm-by-firm responses to key survey questions.)
Purchase the electronic version of the 2011 Am Law Tech Survey from ALM Legal Intelligence by visiting www.almlegalintelligence.com or by calling 1-888-770-5647.
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