November 25, 2013 at 17:27Will lawyers change laptop to tablet?
When we started developing mobile applications for lawyers two years ago, we still did not know where this direction would be "taxied out".
In addition to the issue of readiness to use the tablet, the lawyer's willingness to work in the “clouds” was also unclear.
But, since we originally planned the project as a commercial business application, we first of all met with a potential consumer.
Lawyers, like programmers, are different. Lawyers, judges, legal advisers, prosecutors - they are all lawyers. But despite the diversity of specializations, there are common features of the profession that are inherent in all legal professionals. According to our observations, three main features can be distinguished:
Before the mobile revolution, all of these needs were perfectly met by offline legal systems. Being installed in the office, they coped with the first two tasks, and on the laptop - with all three.
Why is there a tablet, and even more so a smartphone? Do they have prospects?
We will share our thoughts on the basis of our own experience in this area. So, the Ukrainian mobile legislation is ipLex. Implemented in two projects:
ipLex . Laws is a free application for smartphones and tablets. It contains immediately both the program and the base of the basic legislation. It is updated by completely rewriting the next version once a month. Works under iOS, Android, WP8. It is issued since 2012.
ipLex.Profi- A client application for desktops, tablets and smartphones. Connects to a complete regulatory framework via the Internet. It works under MacOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android. This is a commercial version in a paid subscription mode. It has been produced since 2013.
Today we observe such dynamics of users (there are about 300 thousand qualified lawyers in Ukraine, about half * work in their specialty):
* These are estimated indicators that we obtained as a result of surveys and indirect information. They characterize orders of numbers and trends rather than accurate data.
So, the numbers show that the vast majority of practicing lawyers work with traditional offline legal systems, but at the same time, very many have supplemented their arsenal with free “pocket” applications on smartphones and tablets. Note that ipLex. Laws is also an offline application.
It is impossible not to note the emerging decline in the market for offline systems. Several factors can influence this: the deterioration of the economic situation in the country, the availability of free Internet resources, and, finally, the moral aging of traditional technologies. Indeed, the regulatory, judicial, analytical information bases contain tens of millions of documents. To squeeze them into a laptop and update them daily, developers have to sacrifice either the amount of information or the quality of searches or the reliability of the work. And users are starting to prefer online resources.
Some of these users acquire the commercial version of ipLex.Profi. Arguments “for”: cross-platform, work on a smartphone-tablet-desktop, synchronization of personal bases, significant savings in effort and money. The deterrent - you always need the Internet. But this group of users, as a rule, combines analytical work on the desktop, with quick problem solving “on the go” using a smartphone or tablet.
CONCLUSION No. 1: Lawyers will not give up laptops, but are additionally ready to use tablets and smartphones.
CONCLUSION No. 2: Lawyers are not yet ready for full work online, but are already actively looking into the clouds.
And finally, photos of the working day with comments from one of our advanced user-lawyers:
In addition to the issue of readiness to use the tablet, the lawyer's willingness to work in the “clouds” was also unclear.
But, since we originally planned the project as a commercial business application, we first of all met with a potential consumer.
Lawyers, like programmers, are different. Lawyers, judges, legal advisers, prosecutors - they are all lawyers. But despite the diversity of specializations, there are common features of the profession that are inherent in all legal professionals. According to our observations, three main features can be distinguished:
- constant appeal to legislative acts, which means high requirements for the quality and relevance of texts in regulatory frameworks;
- generation of own documents: procedural, administrative, contractual, etc. Why do you need a comfortable text editor, as well as a database of analytical, practical, reference materials, judicial practice analysis systems;
- rather mobile nature of the activity: courts, state institutions, business trips, meetings with colleagues, clients, opponents. Therefore, access to information outside the office is highly desirable.
Before the mobile revolution, all of these needs were perfectly met by offline legal systems. Being installed in the office, they coped with the first two tasks, and on the laptop - with all three.
Why is there a tablet, and even more so a smartphone? Do they have prospects?
We will share our thoughts on the basis of our own experience in this area. So, the Ukrainian mobile legislation is ipLex. Implemented in two projects:
ipLex . Laws is a free application for smartphones and tablets. It contains immediately both the program and the base of the basic legislation. It is updated by completely rewriting the next version once a month. Works under iOS, Android, WP8. It is issued since 2012.
ipLex.Profi- A client application for desktops, tablets and smartphones. Connects to a complete regulatory framework via the Internet. It works under MacOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android. This is a commercial version in a paid subscription mode. It has been produced since 2013.
Today we observe such dynamics of users (there are about 300 thousand qualified lawyers in Ukraine, about half * work in their specialty):
| Number of users | Regulatory framework | Document Creation | Access Terms | Fee per month | Other costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offline systems 2011 150 thousand * 2012 145 thousand * 2013 140 thousand * | full or partial | comfortably | at the office or on your laptop | $ 50-100 | accompanied REPRESENTATIONS bases 20 hours / month * |
| ipLex. Laws 2012 30 thousand. 2013 130 thousand. | only codes and basic laws | not | any tablet or smartphone | - | - |
| ipLex.Profi 2013 4 thousand | complete | desktop- comfortable tablet- partially | need internet | $ 20-30 | Mobile Internet $ 10 / month |
* These are estimated indicators that we obtained as a result of surveys and indirect information. They characterize orders of numbers and trends rather than accurate data.
So, the numbers show that the vast majority of practicing lawyers work with traditional offline legal systems, but at the same time, very many have supplemented their arsenal with free “pocket” applications on smartphones and tablets. Note that ipLex. Laws is also an offline application.
It is impossible not to note the emerging decline in the market for offline systems. Several factors can influence this: the deterioration of the economic situation in the country, the availability of free Internet resources, and, finally, the moral aging of traditional technologies. Indeed, the regulatory, judicial, analytical information bases contain tens of millions of documents. To squeeze them into a laptop and update them daily, developers have to sacrifice either the amount of information or the quality of searches or the reliability of the work. And users are starting to prefer online resources.
Some of these users acquire the commercial version of ipLex.Profi. Arguments “for”: cross-platform, work on a smartphone-tablet-desktop, synchronization of personal bases, significant savings in effort and money. The deterrent - you always need the Internet. But this group of users, as a rule, combines analytical work on the desktop, with quick problem solving “on the go” using a smartphone or tablet.
CONCLUSION No. 1: Lawyers will not give up laptops, but are additionally ready to use tablets and smartphones.
CONCLUSION No. 2: Lawyers are not yet ready for full work online, but are already actively looking into the clouds.
And finally, photos of the working day with comments from one of our advanced user-lawyers: