Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1037
www.iltanet.org 88 Peer to Peer inside ilTA In "The Practical Side of Going Green," panelists representing both U.K. and U.S. law firms shared real world tips for implementing green technologies. In some instances, panelists noted that technologies implemented for other reasons — for example, print tracking — may have unexpected green benefits. One of the panelists, whose firm has achieved an ISO standing for its green program, cited the importance of their green awareness campaign in both achieving the ISO credential and improving their carbon footprint. Particularly notable was the participation of a law firm facilities manager specializing in environmental management. This position may well exist in many firms in the not too distant future! All of the panelists agreed that green initiatives cannot start or end with IT. The involvement of management, facilities and even procurement is essential. After lunch, knowledge management and litigation support topics competed for attention. In the strategic session, KM practitioners from a large international law firm joined with the global legal knowledge officer from one of their major clients to present an intriguing case study. The unique relationship between the two entities, which involves development and delivery of precedent documents, research, and lawyer training, truly illustrates that KM can be the "Glue That Binds." As firms seek to retain key clients in an increasingly competitive legal market, KM may well provide an unexpected advantage. On the practical side of the equation, panelists from three large international law firms spoke on the topic of "Litigation Support Focus: Herding Cats or Managing External Service Providers." As litigation support work is increasingly outsourced, it becomes essential that internal resources understand how to select and — even more importantly, how to manage — the outsourced providers. At the request of many attendees, we plan to repeat this topic at ILTA's Annual Educational Conference in Washington, D.C., in August. The final sessions of the day were unique in terms of both content and presenters. In the Practical Track, we were delighted to welcome the project manager responsible for implementing electronic filing in Her Majesty's Courts. The week of INSIGHT, Her Majesty's Court system was launching its initial pilot of electronic filing and document management. We truly heard from "the man in the trenches" about this important development in the U.K. courts. In the Strategic Track, we were the beneficiaries of an important effort sponsored by LITIG in the U.K. LITIG has engaged SJ Berwin to perform a legal analysis of the implications of sharing product prices among law firms. Based on the information presented, it is squarely within the acceptable realm to compare experiences with products and vendors. However, sharing information about prices paid for products and services may well cross the boundary of competition law, particularly in the E.U. Our final session of the day was a high level overview of the day's sessions and a brief discussion of ILTA. We all left the session ready for more ILTA educational and networking opportunities. WORTH NOTING Several items overall were particularly notable about this year's INSIGHT. First, a number of practicing (or recovering) lawyers participated as speakers and/or panelists. When we are all struggling with how to spend smaller budgets in challenging times, it is especially important to hear from our lawyers about their needs and client demands. Second, the programming was heavily weighted toward panels made up of law firm technologists sharing both war stories and resounding successes. The attendees appreciated hearing from their peers. Finally, networking was the order of the day. Many attendees arrived early for network over breakfast, sat in groups at lunch, and conversed until well into the evening following the event. SHARING MORE INSIGHT I came away from the event, as always, energized and recommitted to the mission of ILTA. As Janet Day, our European Regional Vice President, expressed, "I can pick up the phone and make contact with other CIO's here in London; and ILTA allows my staff to pick up the phone or connect via e-mail to their peers." That's insight worth sharing! ILTA ". . . green initiatives cannot start or end with IT. The involvement of management, facilities and even procurement is essential."