The American Bar Association Legal Technology Resource Center has released its ABA Tech Survey 2022, a comprehensive publication exploring how attorneys are using technology in their practices.
Separated into five different data-focused reports on technology topics, Tech Survey 2022 covers the prominent areas in technology that lawyers face today.
The survey data concentrates on issues relating to technology use. Among the statistical information included:
• 56% of all respondents regularly use free internet/online services for legal research, and 29% occasionally use this resource. Four percent of respondents report that they never use free online services for legal research.
• Respondents were asked to select their firm’s top technology spending priority over the next 12 months. The largest percentage selected hardware for the office (28%), followed by security (20%), mobile technology (11%) and litigation technology (10%).
• Only 14% of respondents said their law firm’s website offered the ability to schedule a consultation, with smaller firms more likely to report having that capability, including 20% from firms of 2-9 lawyers, 17% from firms of 10-49 lawyers and 14% of solo practitioners.
• Live chat, a feature becoming increasingly common on all kinds of websites from banks to retailers, is rarely offered on law firm websites: 80% of respondents’ firms do not offer live chat, and only 3% were sure that their firm’s site offered it.
The ABA TechReport 2022 articles, appearing in Law Technology Today on Wednesdays and Fridays through January 2023, focus on a variety of topics, including:
Litigation and TAR; technology training; websites and marketing; budgeting and planning; practice management; solo and small firm; cloud computing; cybersecurity
TechReport 2022 combines data from the annual Legal Technology Survey Report with expert analysis, observations and predictions from legal technology leaders. The Legal Technology Survey Report, started more than two decades ago by the ABA Law Practice Division, is recognized as the primary source for information regarding the use of technology by attorneys in private practice. It is based on responses by practicing lawyers — not consultants, vendors or IT staff.
To view the survey, visit www.americanbar.org/groups/departments_offices/legal_technology_resources/techsurvey2022.
