Robert Ambrogi's LawSites
fillTracking new and intriguing Web sites for the legal profession.


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Robert Ambrogi,
a lawyer
in Rockport, MA, is vice president for editorial services at Jaffe Associates and director of WritersForLawyers.

He is author of the book, The Essential Guide to the Best (and Worst) Legal Sites on the Web


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Saturday, December 06, 2003
 
Web site provides guide to vital records sources
Vital Records Information tells where to obtain vital records—birth, death and marriage certificates and divorce decrees—from anywhere in the U.S. It lists sources for each state, territory and county, and most cities and towns, along with contact, fee and ordering information. For records outside the U.S., the site lists links to foreign vital records sites. This straightforward site is designed with a nod towards genealogy, but it is one many lawyers are sure to find useful.

Friday, December 05, 2003
 
Remember when the Internet was the "electronic frontier"?
For a trip down the memory lane of Internet law, visit Law on the Electronic Frontier, the June 1996 issue of the Jounal of Computer-Mediated Communication.

Sunday, November 30, 2003
 
Free cybercourts and ODR program
Howard Bashman, creator of the popular blawg, How Appealing, will be the guest speaker for the appellate process segment of the Cybercourts and Online Dispute Resolution seminar that will run next in the Network-Lawyers discussion group. Howard's portion of the seminar, the appellate process, Cybercourts of Appeal, will be begin on Wednesday, Dec. 3, and run through Friday, Dec. 5. The idea of courts going online, Cybercourts is no longer fanciful. With the advent of electronic filing and the trend to limit, and in many cases eliminate oral argument, the courts of appeal are becoming Cybercourts of Appeal. This evolution of the appeals courts and the affect of technology and the internet on the appellate process will be addressed during Howard's segment of the program.

The seminar organizers are seeking judges, court administrators and other lawyers experienced in appellate practice to join the panel to assist in the presentation of Howard's segment of the program. Please let John DeBruyn at jdebruyn@debruyn.com know if you would be available to join the panel and take an active part in the appellate process discussion that will run Wednesday through Friday.

The trial court segment will begin on Monday, Dec. 1, with Judge Gafni, joined by Judge Shelton on Tuesday for a discussion of the impact of the Internet and other technology on the trial process including preparation, filing, discovery and case management, trial testimony, documentary evidence and argument.

The speakers will be joined by two dozen other experts on various aspects of online, electronic, technology-enhanced resolution of disputes. There are also tracks on negotiation and mediation as well as public and stakeholder dialogue and policy negotiation with the courts, administrative agencies and legislative bodies. Here is an executive summary about all four segments of the Cybercourts and Online Dispute Resolution Seminar Program:

  • Negotiation and mediation track. Chaired by Professor Ethan Katsh, University of Massachusetts Department of Legal Studies, moderator of the dispute res discussion list for mediators, arbitrators, lawyers and other professionals interested in alternative dispute resolution.

  • Trial process track. Chaired by Judge Abraham Gafni, retired Pennsylvania state trial court judge and professor at Villanova Law School teaching alternative dispute resolution procedures, and Judge Donald Shelton, Michigan trial court judge who is involved with that state's Cybercourt program.

  • Appellate process track. Chaired by Howard Bashman, Buchanan Ingersoll, Philadelphia, shareholder and chair of their appellate group.

  • Collective negotiation and dialogue track. Chaired by John Helie, mediator and principal, Mediate.Com.

    To register for this free conference and for more information, go here.

  •  
    For legal aid lawyers, a technology portal
    If the bad news was the shutting down of the Equal Justice Network, the good news is a site that spun off from it, LStech.Org. Recognizing that few legal services programs have the budget to hire dedicated technology staff, LStech.org is a portal to technology services and information tailored to a legal aid audience. Funded by a Legal Services Corporation Technology Initiative Grant, it is operated as a partnership by the University of Michigan Law School, Legal Services of South Central Michigan, the National Legal Aid and Defender Association and the National Technology Assistance Project. Its most substantive section is its Tech Library, an extensive collection of articles on technology management, Web development, software, technology for advocates, telecommunications, networks, hardware and the Internet. Another section compiles information on technology projects implemented by poverty law programs throughout the U.S. The site includes online collaboration spaces, listings of tech jobs, and current technology news of interest to the poverty law community.

     
    Equal Justice Network shuts down
    I just noticed that the Equal Justice Network has shut down. It operated as a joint project of the National Legal Aid & Defender Association and the Center for Law and Social Policy, serving as an online meeting place, information source, and connection mechanism for lawyers and other advocates involved in efforts to provide civil legal assistance to low-income people. According to the notice at the site, some of the features have been moved to the NLADA site.

     
    A good site for medical illustrations
    The Doe Report is a comprehensive medical demonstrative evidence resource, providing graphics, anatomical models and medical research. It contains more than 8,000 proprietary medical-legal exhibits that can be used in demand letters, settlement conferences, arbitration, mediation and trial. The site makes it extremely easy to find what you are looking for. It can be searched by key words, or you can browse by medical topic, medical specialty or body region. The site includes a medical reference library developed in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health with entries on the most common subjects covered in personal injury and medical malpractice law. Once you find an illustration you want, you can customize it by adding your client's name and a title. Prices for medical exhibits range from $99 for a small-format PDF to $399 for a 30" x 40" print. The company also produces custom graphics.

     
    Denise Howell will be needing more baggage
    Congratulations to Bag and Baggage blawger Denise Howell on the Thanksgiving arrival of Tyler Declan Howell.