We all know that Facebook and MySpace have changed how we interact with each other. We can view pictures of our friends (or potential employees), see who they know, become their friends, etc.
The growth of Facebook has been staggering – in the fall of 2007, over 1 million new users signed up on Facebook every week. During that time, Facebook received 40 billion page views per month and it has continued at 100% growth between March 2007 and March 2008 (Neilsen’s March 2008 ratings).
This phenomenon has expanded into the business world, with Neilsen reporting that LinkIn experienced 319% growth with users over 45 now accounting for over 31% of its user base. This trend has moved into the legal sector with sites like LegalOnRamp providing an online community targetted at in house counsel.
NetLegal focusses on the long existing “social” network between firms and courts allowing lawyers to join for free and to build a directory by inviting other lawyers to join. However, instead of sharing pictures of your last Halloween party, NetLegal lets you share documents by electronically serving the other counsel in the case and creating a secure online case repository.
Judges can also be invited to join the case so that lawyers can electronically serve and file the document with the click of a button. Judges can also set up e-filing for free on a case-by-case basis and then invite counsel for the parties to join.
I doubt that there will be much demand on NetLegal to send a gift or a drink to each other but is there any other functionality would you like to see. For example, should we have a “wall” for a case? What about a Wiki on certain legal issues?
Post your comments on these and any other ways law firm users, court users and students can interact.
Filed under: New Functionality, Process, Social Networking, lawyers, legal technology, netlegal, Social Networking
