By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

I prefer to have my notes in electronic form rather than on paper but there are times I feel like writing rather than typing. Notability is an easy-to-use iPad app I’ve been testing in a variety of settings for a few months that allows me to jot down handwritten notes.

My field tests included client meetings where I’ve pulled out my iPad and taken notes with my Boxwave stylus. When I spent an afternoon observing Probate Commissioner Pat Connaghan as part of my research for the post, “iPad Use on the Bench,” I penned my observations using Notability. And I used Notability to scribble last-minutes comments I didn’t want to forget before speaking at two recent technology-related CLEs.

The Notability app offers several advantages:

• Hand write or type notes
• Append a recorded message
• Organize notes by subject
• Email, upload and save as a PDF

As an added bonus, Notability is currently selling on iTunes for 99 cents. (Affiliate link)

Note taking Options

Notability allows the user to choose between handwritten and typed notes. To take notes by hand, just tap the pencil with your stylus.

To set the thickness of your stylus marks, press the pencil icon again with your stylus and a menu appears. Notability offers 12 tip widths and several ink colors.

To change the background color, press on the paper icon along the top.

To erase your writing, tap the eraser and then swipe your stylus over the mark. Unlike a pencil eraser, you don’t have to meticulously cover each mark on the screen in order to make it disappear.

Do you want to highlight specific passages in your notes? Just tap the highlighter.

Record a Message

If you like to add recorded messages to your notes, Notability offers the capability. Simply press on the microphone and a recorded message is appended to the note. Unfortunately, it won’t transcribe the message.

Organize Notes by Subject

Notability contains a library which allows you to file your notes by subject.

Upload, Email or Open in New Application

With Notability, you can upload your note to Dropbox, email it or open it in several different PDF readers. On my iPad, that means iBooks, iAnnotate, DocsToGo and even in my Kindle app.

Notes Without the Paper Fuss

Notability has become an important app in my paperless toolbox. Of course, it isn’t the only handwriting app but at just 99 cents it is one of the most affordable ones.

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

Rob Dean is an associate with the Frith & Ellerman Law Firm in Roanoke, Virginia. The firm handles employment litigation matters and represents individuals and families with nursing home neglect and medical malpractice claims.

Dean also writes about the latest developments in trial technology and mobile computing on his website, WalkingOffice: Mobile Solutions for Legal Professionals.

This week, Dean, who tweets from @_RobDean, shares some of his favorite iPad apps with Lawyer Tech Review. (Affiliate links below.)

Device

iPad

Apps for work

When it comes to work, an iPad and a Targus stylus are indispensable tools for Dean. “As a trial attorney, I am always carrying my Apple iPad and stylus,” Dean says. “I use my iPad to access case documents, take notes, send email, and check my calendar.”

To get the most from his iPad, Dean uses several productivity-boosting apps. For storing case files, he uses the Goodreader app ($4.99). To connect to his office, Dean prefers the free cloud storage app from Dropbox. When it comes to note taking, Dean likes Notability ($0.99). And to edit documents, Dean uses PDF expert ($9.99).

Apps for fun

Dean and his wife enjoy traveling and his iPad doubles as an entertainment device when he’s away from home.

“When we’re traveling, we like to catch up on our favorite shows such as Friday Night Lights, Mad Men and 30 Rock,” Dean says. With free apps from Netflix and NBC, the Deans can watch their favorite shows based on their own schedule rather than the networks.

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

St. Louis Probate Commissioner Patrick Connaghan has long embraced technology as a means of saving time and taxpayer money. In March, Lawyer Tech Review attended a hearing that showcased the court’s push toward more extensive use of technology, including Connaghan’s discovery that he could move cases quickly and economically with the use of an iPad.

Connaghan’s duties include hearing mental health docket cases. Before 2008, hearings regarding involuntary civil commitment or treatment required patients to be transported to the courthouse in an ambulance – an expensive, complicated and sometimes traumatic process.

Four years ago, the St. Louis Circuit Court authorized the use of video to conduct hearings. In a pioneering partnership with several St. Louis–area hospitals, video rooms were created within these hospitals where a patient and his or her lawyer may participate in a hearing, listen to testimony and testify. The judge and the assistant circuit attorney handling the case for the hospital are located in the courtroom, which is also equipped with a video feed, allowing the patient to see and hear everything taking place in the courtroom. In the four years since the project’s launch, more than 2,000 video hearings on the mental health docket have been conducted.

Traveling Courtroom

An iPad 2 connected to the Internet using a hotspot from an iPhone 4S

To accommodate those hospitals that don’t have video rooms, the St. Louis Probate Commissioner opted to change the way in which hearings are conducted: Now, the commissioner and lawyers travel to the hospital. Connaghan needs just two microphones and a recording device to make a record of the hearing and an iPad with which to review his pleadings and issue orders.

For these on-site hearings, Connaghan brings an iPad 2 – configured by the Missouri Office of State Courts Administrator for additional security – giving him access to closed and sealed files; an iPhone 4 with a personal hotspot that allows him to connect the iPad to the Internet; and a BoxWave stylus.

Before leaving for a hearing, Connaghan downloads the pleadings for the docket into the PDF Reader Pro app for the iPad. (Since the hearing attended by LTR, Connaghan has begun using Quickoffice Pro.) (Affiliate links)

During the hearing Connaghan, wielding the stylus rather than a gavel, flips through the pleadings and reports and takes notes during the testimony.

Because each hearing is limited to a narrow question, such as whether the individual in question should remain in the psychiatric unit or undergo treatment, the range of orders that may be issued once the evidence has been heard is limited. Connaghan prepares orders reflecting the various rulings that might be rendered in the case and, after the hearing, selects the appropriate order and issues it. Using the personal hotspot produced by his iPhone, he sends the order to the court’s clerk, as well as the attorneys in the case.

“I like to issue orders as soon after the hearing as possible,” Connaghan explains. “The individual patients are anxious about their future, and the hospitals need to know what the next step is in the process. The quicker we can process the orders after a full hearing, the better it is for everyone involved.”

Paperless Push

The modernization hasn’t stopped there. In 2009, the probate court concluded that too many physical files, often containing just a few pieces of paper, were being created for cases that were often never heard because the patient either agreed to treatment or was released. However, under court rules these files had to be kept for at least five years. As is the case in many U.S. courthouses, the probate court’s space is limited, and physical files carry a cost in terms of storage and human resources.

To stave off the problems associated with this steady accumulation of paper, the court adopted an e-filing system. Petitions for involuntary commitment are now submitted electronically; when a paper document is involved, a clerk uses a scanner to product a PDF document and file it in Missouri’s Case.net system. The court transmits documents by way of email rather than traditional mail, allowing them to be added to Case.net as well. Going paperless also means that court-appointed lawyers can be sent relevant court documents by way of email.

Connaghan reports, “With the reduction in paper, we have been able to maintain our postage budget at 2009 levels despite the fact that we have not reduced the number of cases we handle and considering that postage rates have risen.”

Of course, when the scanning project began, the iPad did not yet exist. But when the gadget emerged, he quickly realized that it could be integrated into the mental health docket to make it more efficient.

As the old saying goes, justice delayed is justice denied. In Connaghan’s court, technology helps reduce that wait.

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

Based in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton, Nalini S. Mahadevan practices in the areas of immigration, estate planning and business law. In April, she joined Lowenbaum Partnership LLC where she heads the firm’s immigration practice. Prior to that, she owned Mahadevan Law Office.

On her blog, Lawyers You Can Talk To, Mahadevan provides information on a variety of topics including helpful tips on immigration matters for individuals and businesses. In addition to her law practice, Mahadevan is an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University School of Law teaching practice management and business law. Mahadevan worked as a corporate lawyer in India before moving to the United States, where she obtained a master’s in business administration and a law degree.

This week, Mahadevan shares some of her favorite Android apps with Lawyer Tech Review. (Affiliate links below.)

Device

Android

App for work

Mahadevan finds that the Fast Image Viewer app is indispensable when it comes to attachments and PDFs. The app’s advanced features include slideshow, show on map, rotate, crop, resize, save-as, set-as-wallpaper, share and export to PDF.

“With the Fast Image Viewer, I am able to view photos and PDF quickly from my smartphone,” Mahadevan says.

The app is available for free. Users can also purchase the app for $2.99 in order to get unlimited exporting to PDF, unlimited re-sizing and unlimited saving capabilities.

App for fun

For exercise, Mahadevan uses Endomondo Sports Tracker, a personal trainer and sports fitness partner.

“Endomondo is a useful way to track distance, calories, route and map of exercise and can be applied to many types of exercise,” she says.

The Android app has a free version and a pro version that costs $3.99. The pro version includes interval training programs and an audio coach that helps you beat your previous workout time or set calorie goals for your workout and gives live audio feedback to let you know how you’re doing.

For iPhone users, free and pro versions of Endomondo Sports Tracker are also available in the iTunes store.

Turn your iPhone or Android phone into a portable document scanner to go paperless

By Enrique Serrano.

Underlying the effort to go paperless is a desire to clear out the clutter. At Lawyer Tech Review, we have already introduced some useful ideas to help in the articles replacing you legal pad by an iPad and using Evernote as an alternative to printing.

If you’re on the go and need to capture a document or quickly sketched pen-and-paper annotation, consider using CamScanner, an app for the iPhone and Android.

The CamScanner App

CamScanner is an iPhone and Android app that turns your smartphone into a portable document scanning device. It uses the camera on your smartphone to take a snapshot of a document and then provides additional options like:

• Image adjustments.
• Multi-page PDF conversion.
• Document sharing options.
• Cloud storage integration.

The creators of CamScanner suggest using the app to capture a lot of diverse documents: interesting newspaper articles, agreements, whiteboard sketches, book excerpts, business cards, tickets, coupons, and so on. But let’s take a closer look at how CamScanner works.

Mobile Document Scanning Made Easy

Main menu buttons: capture document with your camera, create document from image (in your phone galleries), search document, extended options (delete, combine, share document, upload to cloud, password protect and tag) grid / list view toggle and paid version purchase.

To scan a document, the first step is to take a snapshot of your document. For this example, I scanned a hand-written note in a dim-light environment. I used only automated capture settings (automatic flash, automatic image trimming and high enhance mode) so the whole scanning process was as fast as taking a picture of the note. With automatic flash mode, the app will use the smartphone’s built-in flash to achieve the proper lighting level. CamScanner detects edges in an automated way but also provides manual fine-tuning with zoom functions and a crosshair cursor.

Sample scanned note with smartphone. CamScanner auto-detects the corners.

Once you have scanned an image, you can rename and tag the scan to quickly find it in the future, export it to PDF format, or combine it with other scans to create a multi-page PDF document.

The next image shows how this sample scan looks after being converted to PDF. The image enhancement features produce a PDF with crisp text and a clean white background in which most paper wrinkles have been removed. The file size advantages are obvious. The original picture would weigh more than 1 MB while the scanned, trimmed image converted into a PDF weighs a tenth of its JPEG counterpart.

Scanned note converted into PDF format

With CamScanner, your scanned contents are accessible from many locations. You can select images and tap the share button to send them via email, Bluetooth, save them as Evernote notes, or even to print them. And you can integrate CamScanner with your own cloud storage services like Box.net, Google Docs and Dropbox.

Why CamScanner is Better than a Photo

CamScanner offers many advantages over standard smartphone photos of documents:

• Useful photography tools control the phone camera’s flash and a digital leveling tool helps identify whether the phone is perpendicular, flat above the scanned document.
• Scanned images are already edited and require no further process. Built-in tools trim, rotate and enhance the scan to deliver a ready-to-use image.
• The scanned document image quality is surprisingly good. The automated smartphone flash plus the contrast enhancements applied to the captured image retain high readability even in challenging conditions.
• Scanned documents can be converted into multi-page PDFs, which are easier to browse than a set of independent images.
• You save space on the memory card of your smartphone since trimmed PDFs occupy much less space than high-resolution pictures.
• Scanned documents are organized and tagged when captured, making them much easier to locate and manage.
• CamScanner offers direct integration with cloud storage services like DropBox, Google Docs or Box.net.
• CamScanner users can password protect the scanned documents to add an additional layer of protection.

CamScanner Versions

CamScanner comes in two versions (affiliate links:)

• The free CamScanner version (for iPhone and for Android.)
• The paid CamScanner Pro version (for iPhone and for Android.)

Here’s a comparison table of the features in both CamScanner versions:

CamScanner Feature Comparison
	CamScanner Free	CamScanner Pro
Ads	Yes	No
Watermarked PDFs	Yes (line of text in the bottom-right corner)	No
Maximum Document Number	50	Unlimited
Maximum Pages per Document	10	Unlimited
Maximum Batch Mode Scans	3 at a time	Unlimited

Conclusions about CamScanner

CamScanner proved being a very useful application, and a much better way to quickly scan and keep texts than using the raw functions of your phone camera.

For your own personal use, to ocassionally save interesting documents on the go, or to scan fast sketches no matter where you are, the free CamScanner version will come in handy. And if you find yourself using the app often, batch scan lots of pages or share scanned documents at work then the inexpensive CamScanner Pro version will be a valuable addition to your app toolbox in the process of becoming paperless.

By Enrique Serrano

With a wonderful screen, tactile interface and compact size, the iPad has become the star of the productivity gadgets as well as a favorite with attorneys and judges. When loaded with legal apps, the iPad can serve as a replacement for your legal pad and allow you to access and edit documents on the go.

With the recent release of the new iPad, Lawyer Tech Review takes a look at how it stacks up to the iPad 2. In this easy-to-understand infographic, we compare the new iPad and the iPad 2 to help you decide whether to buy the new gadget.

New iPad vs. iPad 2

• Although the latest iPad is often referred to as the iPad 3 or iPad HD, Apple’s official name for the device is just the "new iPad."
• The new iPad is slightly thicker and heavier than the iPad 2. However, it’s just 0.03 inches (0.6 mm) thicker and 0.11 pounds (51 g) heavier.
• The most important improvement is the Retina screen of the new iPad. While the screen size is the same, the resolution of the new iPad is double that of the iPad 2 on each dimension. The new iPad has four times the pixels of the iPad 2, providing, sharper, crisper images. In fact, the 2048 x 1536 pixels resolution of the new iPad is higher than the resolution of an HD TV – and it fits in the palm of your hand.
• The new iPad won’t enhance the image quality of low-resolution pictures or apps and when high resolution apps start to flood the market, they won’t function at their best in an iPad 2.
• The CPU of the new iPad is an improved Apple A5X processor which comes with a quad-core Graphics Processing Unit (GPU.) This gives the new iPad higher graphic performance, enabling it to use image-intensive apps, and potentially opening the doors to a new generation of iPad gaming.
• The back camera has been improved. The camera of the iPad 2 was a 720 p HD back camera with around 1 MP resolution. But the new iPad comes with a 1080p HD camera with 5 Megapixel resolution, autofocus and face recognition.
• The new iPad is the only model with versions enabled to work with 4G LTE mobile networks. However, if you live outside the United States, you should check with your carrier. The new iPad might not be compatible with the mobile frequencies assigned in your country, as it fails to support European LTE frequencies.
• Siri was one of the favorite additions to the iPhone 4S but Siri isn’t available on the new iPad. Nevertheless, voice-to-text dictation capabilities have been added. And there are free alternatives to Siri available, like Dragon Go!.
• Although Apple states that the battery life of both models is around 10 hours while browsing, some users are reporting that the new iPad has a shorter battery life (see CNET’s review) and that it is slower to recharge.
• The new iPad is available in 16, 32 and 64 GB models. Apple now only offers the iPad 2 in 16 GB models.
• The price of the new iPad starts at $499, the old selling price for the iPad 2. The iPad 2 is now available starting at $399.

If you are going to use your iPad intensively with video, high-resolution apps, games or high-quality image presentations, then the new iPad will be your best choice. On the other hand, if you want to use existing apps, you will be fine with the not-so-high resolution of the old iPad 2, which is more affordable than ever thanks to this new $100 discount.

Use your smartphone to make your law firm leaner and more flexible

Guest post by Leslie Krick

Smartphones are changing the way everyone does business, but legal professionals in particular can benefit from the flexibility and efficiency of running certain aspects of their business using their smartphones. Here are some apps to put your smartphone to work for you, whether you’re in a doctor’s office for a deposition, out on the golf course or taking the train to work.

1. The Law Guide

If you’re a paralegal or law student, this app is a great way to stand out among your peers. With a comprehensive legal dictionary and FAQ at your fingertips, you can impress your boss and colleagues with a confident grasp on the language of your trade. If you’re between jobs, The Law Guide allows you to upload your resume and connect with employers in your area. Even qualified attorneys can benefit from the free case-review links and law dictionary. It’s free to download, ad-free, and content-rich.

• Download The Law Guide for Android

2. RDM+ Remote Desktop Management

If you’ve ever forgotten to bring a file home with you or wished you could work during your commute, this app is a great solution. RDM+ gives you remote access to any computer from your smartphone. Your home or office desktop will appear on the smartphone display. Functionality is slightly limited by your smartphone’s keyboard but otherwise it’s just like having your desktop computer with you wherever you go. Be sure to keep this app password-protected so that phone thieves can’t access sensitive documents.

• Download RDM+ Remote Desktop Management for Android

3. CallTrack

Legal professionals’ time is valuable but tracking billable hours is a hassle. This app saves a surprising amount of time by tracking all your work calls by length and contact details and automatically syncing them to Google Calendar. CallTrack adds up all your billable and non-billable call hours at the end of a billing period you designate so you (or your accountant) can use time more productively.

• Download CallTrack for Android

4. WinScribe Digital Dictation

If you really want to turn your smartphone into a mobile office, a tiny virtual keyboard is going to be your primary obstacle. The best solution on the market right now is digital dictation—while it’s imperfect, the sophistication and accuracy of dictation software has come a long way in recent years, and you’ll be surprised at how effective it can be. WinScribe lets you dictate, transcribe, and review finished documents from your smartphone—making your smartphone as work-ready as your desktop computer.

• Download WinScribe Digital Dictation for Android

5. Dropbox

If you do any business at all online, in any profession, Dropbox should be part of your arsenal. It allows you to share files across computers and mobile devices as easily as clicking and dragging files into a folder. The Dropbox app gives you access to shared folders on your home and office computers, so you never again experience that sinking feeling of having left a vital file at home. You can simply access it from your phone, finish it up on the go, and share it with co-workers or clients over Dropbox.

• Download Dropbox for Android

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

One of the most useful free tools Google offers lawyers is Google Scholar. As we wrote previously in Lawyer Tech Review, the database allows lawyers to search and read published federal and state court opinions in the United States.

Google Scholar’s legal research tool has always had two features that are useful to lawyers. First, it incorporates links to the cases that are cited within the opinion. Second, it includes a Works Cited tab that lists indexed journal articles and other cases that cite the opinion.

Earlier this month, Google Scholar announced it has improved the Works Cited tab. Senior staff engineer Alex Verstak writes on the Google Scholar blog:

To examine the changes more fully, I compared the Google Scholar results in the Works Cited tab from our previous article that was written before the changes and the results that are listed after the change using the case Miles v. Miles, 43 S.W.3d 876 (Mo.App. W.D. 2001).

Google Scholar Results before the Update

Before the recent update, the left column of the Works Cited tab began with an excerpt from Royalty v. Royalty, listed an excerpt from Bradley v. Bradley second and then another excerpt from Royalty v. Royalty third.

In the Cited By column on the right, the list begins with Ochoa v. Ochoa, Farnsworth v. Farnsworth and Rickets v. Rickets. The related documents section in the right column cites Wells v. Wells, Ward v. Ward and Starrett v. Starrett.

Google Scholar results before the update. Click to enlarge.

Google Scholar Results after the Update

The left column still begins with an excerpt from Royalty v. Royalty but then includes an excerpt from In re the Marriage of Green before listing Bradley.

The Cited By section in the right column contains the most interesting development. The opinion in Royalty v. Royalty is now listed at the top and includes an icon. When a cursor is hovered over the icon, the researcher learns that the opinion “discusses the cited case at length.”

The Related Documents section in the bottom right column has also re-ordered many of the cases.

Google Scholar results after the update. Click to enlarge.

Visual Indications of Importance

After researching a few different cases in Google Scholar, I found three different “Indications of Importance” icons:

Discusses cited case at length

Discusses cited case

Discusses cited case briefly

The Cited By section also includes cases with no icon for opinions that were cited but not discussed.

Conclusion

The visual indications of importance are a welcome addition to Google Scholar, especially when researching a heavily cited case. Alternatively, it might be a quick way to preliminarily evaluate your opponent’s arguments to determine the relevance of the cases he or she is citing.

Have you used Google Scholar in your practice? What are the benefits – and drawbacks – to using it for legal research?

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

Mario Sandoval handles technology for the Lancaster, California-based personal injury law firm R. Rex Parris. When the firm is in trial, Sandoval is in charge of the technology used in court. In-house, he is responsible for managing all of the law firm’s technology and iOS devices – iPhones and iPads – used by the lawyers.

Sandoval, who tweets from @mariosandoval, shares some of his favorite iPhone and iPad apps with Lawyer Tech Review. (Affiliate links below.)

Devices

iPad and iPhone

App for work

During trial, Sandoval uses TrialTouch, a trial presentation app for the iPad. TrialTouch is a free iPad app. However, it connects to an encrypted cloud server that requires a monthly subscription starting at $69.99 per user.

TrialTouch optimizes videos and images for use on the iPad. It allows users to manage multiple trials at once, upload and download content wirelessly, organize exhibits with an ‘exhibit binder’ feature, blow up select portions of an exhibit and print via WiFi.

“TrialTouch has been a great app during trial,” says Sandoval.

App for fun

To track his workouts both indoors and outside, Sandoval likes the Nike + GPS app. The $1.99 app provides feedback during a workout and allows the user to tap the map to see your location.

Sandoval recently pre-ordered the Nike + FuelBand wrist device which will also sync with his iPhone. It tracks the day’s activity, keeps count of all the steps taken and calculates the number of calories burned. However, it won’t be available until Feb. 22.

Would you like to be featured on App Friday? Contact us to share your favorite iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry apps.

By Geri L. Dreiling, Esq.

Note taking is part and parcel of most lawyers’ lives. Commercials, television shows and even law firm websites often depict an attorney sitting in a conference room jotting down information on a yellow legal pad. But if the notes aren’t filed into the client folder promptly, or the legal pad is misplaced, tracking down the information quickly can be frustrating.

For the past few months, I’ve replaced my legal pads with an iPad. Instead of jotting down notes on a legal pad while at a meeting or speaking on the phone, I’ve been using my Evernote app on my iPad and my laptop. Here are the pros and cons of the practice.

Tagging Notes

When I’m writing in Evernote, I add a tag to the information. Tags are labels that help sort and organize information. With Evernote, I can add multiple tags in order to sort the information differently depending on the purpose. For example, a matter for Jane Doe could be tagged “Doe.” If the matter included a billable item, I could also tag it with the “billing” label.

By grouping the information through tags, I have essentially created a notes folder that, in the physical world, would have been placed inside the client file.

Syncing Notes

Because Evernote syncs with my devices, I can access my information from my laptop, my iPad and even my smartphone. My notes are where I need them when I need them. However, when I am using my iPad, I do not have to be connected to the Internet to create the note. I can create and save my information and once I am signed on to an Internet connection, Evernote will sync my information.

And, as we mentioned in our Nozbe app review, if you use an organizational program like Nozbe, you have the ability to sync your Evernote tags to your Nozbe folders.

Pen and Paper Notes

I’ve been taking notes for decades using the pen-and-paper method. I admit that I occasionally miss having a sheet of paper underneath my palm and a pen in my hand. However, I do not miss flipping through pages and pages of notebook paper to find the information I know I’ve jotted down but just can’t seem to locate.

I also don’t missing managing paper. Sorting, finding, filing and shredding paper is time consuming. If you’re a solo or small firm, reducing the amount of time spent on paper management can be a time saver.

Have you moved away from paper notes? If so, is there an app or software that you prefer?