Information management is what the new attorney breed brings to the firm. There is a new technology trend surfacing in the legal industry and it is being brought about by the Internet and the way information is delivered to your desktop computer workstation. That worked fine for many years, but with today's stress on time and information management, law firms need to adapt new methods and techniques and those involve technology. Using technology available today, lawyers can research law and business libraries all over the world, search case statutes in Florida and other states, search case law either from their own CD-ROM library or one of the various online services, all from their desktop computer workstations. Most firms use computers for word processing, time and billing, and calendaring.
Many firms use interoffice electronic mail on local area networks.
There are even a few firms who are accessing the Internet. The new law library uses all these services and technology on a daily basis. West Publishing and Matthew Bender are two popular libraries. Up from about 200 in 1992, these numbers indicate a major growth area in the legal technology industry. To gain access to online services or the Internet, you need to have computer modems connected to telephone lines.