Until this year’s presidential election, most of us got our news and current events via radio, newspapers and television. This year, though, even traditional news sources often quoted “blogs,” which exploded onto the scene with political opinion and news. Their creators even were invited to report at the political parties’ conventions.

What exactly is a blog and what is their role in the legal field?

Blog is short for web log. In the early 1990s, Tim BernersLee of the nuclear research center CERN and one of the commercial internet pioneers (he created the World Wide Web in 1989), began a site that collected lists of new websites. By the end of the decade, newly created software allowed less technically oriented people to easily add formatted comments to their sites. And as of July 2003, there were an estimated 600,000 blogs with more added daily.

Blogs started as “streams of consciousness” where originators would comment on anything that caught their fancy. Often, these writers would collect interesting information they found elsewhere on the internet and link to those sources. With programs like Blogger (blogger.com) and TypePad (typepad.net), people began keeping journals of their thoughts on their websites. While blogs look like other sites, by their nature, they’re easier to work with — more like typing an email message. Typical websites require a web editor or knowing the ins and outs of HTML (HyperText Markup Language) with starting and ending tags to place the text on the web pages.

Blogger.com is free, although users must contend with advertisements in exchange for using the software. TypePad, which costs under $5 a month, can be set up quickly and is easy to use. Another choice, although slightly more expensive ($150 for the license), is Moveable Type (moveabletype.org), which allows more customization, is a little trickier to install and requires users to provide their own host, which many law firms already have for their website.

In the past few years, blogs have become more specialized. Some contain interesting commentary; some are links to other online resources. There are blogs for writers, techies and even lawyers. These usually are referred to as “blawgs,” a term coined by Denise Howell, an appellate and intellectual property lawyer with Reed Smith, who puts her comments on bgbg.blogspot.com. Her site is a combination of comments on a wide range of topics (from intellectual property developments to factoids like “SpongeBob Square Pants is the most watched children’s show in the history of television”).

Resource blawgs

One of the more prominent legal blog resource sites is maintained by Ernest Svenson, a New Orleans attorney, known online as “Ernie the Attorney.” On his site, radio.weblogs.com/0104634/outlines/law%20blogs.html, he has listings of blawgs ranging from academics and court administration to humor, legal marketing, legal news, legal journalism, law students, law and technology, legal research, and paralegal and practicing attorney resources. Within those categories are blawgs focusing on criminal law, ethics, health, immigration, elder law, tax, and securities law. Most are written by lawyers specializing in those areas and contain a wealth of information about the latest developments.

Another good source for locating legal related blogs is blawg.com, which has a comprehensive list.

The biggest differences between blogs and traditional websites (if you can call something that’s been around less than a dozen or so years, traditional) are the startup costs and maintenance. Most firms hire outside experts to design and add information to their firm’s website using web editing programs like Front Page or Macromedia. Additionally, because a place is needed to store files accessed through your site, you must arrange for a hosting site and pay a monthly storage fee.

When most attorneys want something added to the firm’s site, that information is sent to the webmaster. In contrast, many software programs used to create and manage blogs are either free or less than $40 a month when combined with the place to store the blog. By design, they’re easy to update, keeping the information on them more current than most law firm websites. Many firms’ websites are nothing more than a glorified brochure; blogs, however, are fresher and more dynamic.

Depending on the nature of the blog and its owner, they can be updated several times a day or month. The more often new information is added, the more visitors will be attracted. New content also makes the site more visible on search engines like Google and Yahoo. Some of the more recent tools allow bloggers to aggregate and pull headlines from other sites, allowing readers to follow more sites efficiently.

The beauty of blogs is that with the small startup cost and easy design, lawyers from any size firm can have their own blog. For lawyers in small firms who are good writers and have a specialty, a blog can generate more attention. Several attorneys in various size firms have received a lot of marketing value from blogs. Most of the early legal bloggers have come from the technology or intellectual property arena. Their blogs tend to focus on technology trends in law firms or developments in patents and trademarks.

Jersey bloggers

Those who’ve made the leap into law related blogs are still pioneers. So far, there are about 100 blogs edited by practicing lawyers. A quick internet search found several with ties to New Jersey. Among them are newjerseypersonalinjurylawyers.blogspot.com, which focuses on issues related to personal injury law here. This site is maintained by Robert M. Unterberger, founder of Legal Writing Success. Several of New Jersey’s larger firms have blogs. For example, the New Jersey Law Blog edited by lawyers at Stark & Stark includes regular commentary on New Jersey court decisions. For information on environmental issues, check Lowenstein & Sandler’s blog, theenvironment.ws/default.aspx. In the past, these larger firms created (and still may) targeted newsletters on specific practice areas for clients and potential clients. Moving this information to the internet saves mailing and printing costs, while reaching a much larger pool of potential clients.

For lawyers in small firms, depending on areas of practice and expertise, establishing a blog can develop a following and attract business. It can provide visibility on search engines and make it easier for potential clients to find you. While they’re not for everyone, some clients will be particularly interested in seeking counsel from a lawyer prominent on the internet. Additionally, showing your expertise through a blog may bring more referrals from other attorneys.

Commitment

If you make the commitment to set up a blog, you must post interesting things on a regular basis. This is probably why some of the more popular legal blogs focus on recent court decisions.

As with other types of marketing, once a blogger establishes a reputation as the go to person in a particular area, that lawyer will attract even more attention.
And, the traditional rules of marketing apply. You must be persistent — tell people about your blog, make your content meaningful and timely, be responsive to those who inquire about you and your services, and know your stuff.

Perhaps because I already write this monthly technology column, I have less need to share my wisdom and experiences with the online community. I have thought about what I would write if I were to add a web log to my company’s website. In looking at technology web logs aimed at lawyers and law firms, they tend to focus on technology developments rather than practical tips about deploying technology to improve a firm’s service to clients.

The more I looked around to prepare this column, the more I realized there are no blogs (at least none that I could find) that discuss the issues I generally deal with in working with my clients. I am leaning toward setting up my own blog on technology challenges and solutions for law firms.

Maybe a blog is something you should be thinking about, too, for your firm.

Carol L. Schlein is president of Law Office Systems in Montclair, a training and consulting firm specializing in law firm automation. Copies of previous columns are on her company website, www.losinc.com. For information about her quarterly meetings for Time Matters users, check the website or e-mail info@losinc.com. Schlein formerly chaired the Computer and Technology Division of the ABA Law Practice Management Section.

Questions for Carol L. Schlein on law office technology may be faxed to New Jersey Lawyer at (732) 650-7010, e-mailed to news@njlnews.com or mailed to “Law Technology Questions,” New Jersey Lawyer, Edison Square, 2035 Lincoln Highway, Suite 3005, Edison, N.J. 08817.