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When I graduated from law school in 1995, the world was a different place. Legal research still took place in law libraries using books. Windows 95 had not yet been released, and MS-DOS reigned supreme. The internet was just emerging ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Last week, I wrote about a recent case where Fitbit data was used in a California case to convict the defendant, the victim’s stepfather, of her murder. In that case, the victim was wearing a Fitbit and her heart rate ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Wearable devices are becoming incredibly common. Take a look around — you’ll notice Fitbits, Apple Watches, and other wearable devices on the wrists of many people whom you encounter on a daily basis, including your legal colleagues and co-workers. They’re ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Lawyer-only online forums and listservs are commonplace. Often these forums are hosted by bar associations, but that’s not always the case. Facebook, LinkedIn and Reddit private groups are often created by lawyers for lawyers. Because these groups are typically gated ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

In the wake of Hurricane Florence, disaster preparedness is on everyone’s minds. For lawyers affected by disasters, natural or otherwise, there are unique concerns given the nature of the services that they provide. Statute of limitations and other deadlines must ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

By now, I’m sure you already know that New York lawyers have an ethical obligation to maintain technology competence. What that means is that you need to have a basic understanding of legal technology issues so that you can make ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

As I mentioned in recent columns, I’m in the process of drafting my half of the annual update to “Criminal Law in New York,” a substantive criminal law treatise that I co-author with Brighton Town Court Judge Karen Morris. Every ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Last week I wrote about a case that I came across while conducting research for the annual update of the Thomson Reuter’s substantive criminal law book that I co-author, “Criminal Law in New York.” That case, People v. Jiles, 158 ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Every summer, I write my portion of the annual update for “Criminal Law in New York,” a book on substantive New York criminal law that I co-author with Brighton Town Court Judge Karen Morris. During my research of the criminal ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Podcasts have been around for decades now, but it was only recently that lawyers really began to take notice of them. The “Serial” podcast’s fame helped expand the reach of podcasts, both among the general public and lawyers. Since then, ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

 If you’ve been reading my column over the years, you already know that unencrypted email is inherently unsecure and that it’s no different than sending a postcard written in pencil through the post office. Despite this fact, in the mid-1990s, ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black

Smartphones have become central to the lives of most Americans. We count on our phones to keep us connected to the world. Because our phones handle so many pivotal functions for us, we’ve become increasingly reliant on them. They’ve have ...

Tagged with: Legal Loop Nicole Black