By Brian Malcom 

Social media is becoming a crime-fighting weapon, and criminal defense attorneys are catching on.  For some reason, most people believe that there is anonymity on the Internet.  This is an especially absurd belief when people go through great pains to make themselves as visible as possible in social media.

A Nashville, Tennessee criminal defense attorney named David Raybin immediately advises his clients to shut down their Facebook account.  I suspect that he is not the only criminal defense attorney giving this advice to his clients.  Lately, there has been an increased use of social media by police investigations.

The ABA Journal writes, "USA Today notes several cases throughout the country in which police investigations were bolstered by taking time to explore YouTube, Flickr and other online message boards:" 

• Police in Suffolk, Va., were able to identify suspects involved in a Dec. 14 street fight when cellphone videos were posted on YouTube.
• Police in Chattanooga, Tenn., discovered an online forum where residents were planning illegal drag races, staked out the area and ticketed participants.
• Police in Los Angeles used YouTube and Flickr to identify people suspected of being involved in riots following the June 2009 NBA Championship. 

What can a young lawyer learn from this?  Well if you are interested in going into criminal defense, you may want to advise your client to immediately delete their social media account.  If you are not interested in criminal defense, maybe you should just take this as a yet another example that social media can be dangerous.

I would place good money on the fact that all bar organizations are already trolling social media outlets for information about bar applicants, committee applicants, and practicing attorneys under investigation for ethical misconduct.  This may be a good time to take down the picture of you doing a keg stand at last month's young lawyers get together.

Reminder about my rule of thumb: never post anything on the Internet you don't want your employer to see.  Thanks to cache technology, anything posted to the Internet will exist forever in cyberspace.

By James Bowden

Do you need an attorney, and are more familiar and comfortable with online dating sites than the common law firm website?  Are you a practicing attorney who wishes for a way to use your charismatic personality and your rakish good looks to woo clients?  Have no fear, LegalTube is here!

LegalTube is apparently the natural evolution of legal advertising in the information age.  According to the ABA’s Business Law Today:

The site is intended to mimic that initial conversation for a prospective client—learning about the lawyer's personal style, experience, areas of expertise, and answers to general queries. As opposed to a standard directory where only certain text information is available, lawyers participating in LegalTube can not only give virtual tours of their offices, but also give viewers insight into their firm, their personality, and their background.

I don’t know about all of that, but the website does feature the three worst-delivered lawyer jokes in history.  Also included is an honestly entertaining “webisode reality series” called “Law After Dark,” which is really just a series of hilarious/sad clips from the Jefferson County Alabama (Birmingham) Circuit Court.  Fun game: juxtaposing the instructions concerning appropriate courtroom attire in the “Shorts?” clip with the treatment given to the defendant wearing the Hooters t-shirt in the “Nice hair” clip, planning wardrobe for upcoming hearing in Jefferson County appropriately.

Overall, I don’t know how well the site functions as a business development tool, and I somehow doubt that its existence will improve a client’s ability to select their ideal attorney – but the limited content available certainly is entertaining.  It should keep you chortling for at least a .2.

By Brian Malcom 

Let me begin by giving credit where credit is due.  iPhone J.D. has a terrific post about the new features of Google Scholar.  I would definitely recommend checking out the post.  I will try to hit the high points here.

On November 17, 2009, Westlaw and Lexis lost a little piece of their stranglehold on legal research.  "Google announced that it expanded its Google Scholar service to include free, full text legal opinions from U.S. federal and state courts."  The federal opinions include tax and bankruptcy opinions and date back to 1924.  State opinions date back to 1950.  Apparently, "the Google employee who worked on this project as a part of the "do something interesting with 20% of your time here" policy that Google encourages for all of its employees."  If he developed this with 20% of his time, I cannot imagine what this programmer could do with 50% or 100% of his time.

Some of the benefits of searchable legal resources through Google Scholar are:

  - It's fast.
  - It's free.
  - It's Google.
  - It's streamlined. This is great for a quick search from your PDA or
    laptop using a wireless card.
  - It's very familiar.  If you haven't done a Google search in the past decade,
    you may want to check your pulse.
  - No login required.  This kind of informs "it's fast", but I think it's important enough
    to mention again.  Logging in can be annoying when you're in a hurry.
  - It highlights search terms, but you can turn them off if you follow iPhone J.D.'s tips.

iPhone J.D. writes, "When you find a legal opinion that is relevant to you, you can use the helpful "How Cited" tab to find other decisions that have cited your found opinion.  This is somewhat similar to Shepards on Lexis or KeyCite on Westlaw, although Google does not currently characterize the citing authority to tell you if, for example, another case overturns or distinguishes your case."  iPhone J.D. also points out that "[t]his is not the first free caselaw service on the Internet (even though it may quickly become the best), and Westlaw and Lexis/Nexis currently offer a lot that Google is not offering including summaries and headnotes, case histories, formatted downloads suitable for printing, etc."

As of today, the service does not include statutes.  But, let's give Google some time and some traffic.  I bet if this takes off, Google will devote more the 20% of one programmer's time to beefing up the resources available.

What will this do to overhead of law firms?  Well, I have a feeling that major law firms are going to keep their subscriptions with Lexis and Westlaw for now.  Google is too new and unfamiliar to trust with the important task of legal research.  That being said, I am betting that law firms and clients will begin to pay attention to the Google Scholar page as a low-cost resource for legal research.  Clients may even require their attorneys to use Google Scholar or another free resource, in lieu of paying for legal research sources.  Small law firms, non-profits and pro bono organizations will likely be the first to take advantage of Google Scholar.

Questions for another day: Is Google Scholar secure?  Will Google Scholar store or save your searches?  Are there ethical and confidentiality issues with using Google Scholar?  If you know the answers, feel free to answer in the comments.

By Emily Zibart 

As you are inevitably aware, the Internet has created unique and seemingly endless opportunities for intellectual property infringement.  Social networking and other new media websites create particular dangers for trademark owners, who can wake up one morning to suddenly find themselves the targets of phony Twitter or Facebook accounts.

With victims ranging from international companies such as American Airlines and Exxon Mobil to celebrities like Lindsay Lohan, online impersonation is rampant.  Moreover, the risk of encountering counterfeit goods is no longer restricted to the physical realm.  The sale of counterfeit virtual goods has taken the popular virtual world Second Life by storm. 

For these reasons, any comprehensive brand protection strategy should take into account the impact of new media sites. Check out my more in depth articles about how to protect trademark rights on Facebook and about brand protection on the micro-blogging website Twitter and the virtual world Second Life.   

By Brian Malcom 

We have written about how Twitter can get you fired.  We have written about how Twitter can get you hired.  Now, we are going to tell you about companies using social media to solicit applications and recruit candidates. 

CNNMoney.com discussed this new trend in a recent article.  The article tells the tale of companies using social media to advertise open positions and communicate with potential candidates, in lieu of more traditional means of advertising a job opening.  "Posting ads on job search sites like Monster.com could mean spending hundreds of dollars -- and precious hours poring over resumes. In contrast, social media tools are mostly free and offer added value: Candidates bring their own online networks, blog content and references, which speeds up the interview process." 

If you haven't already switched over to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Craigslist to search for job listings, or if you haven't seen something shiny off in the distance and become otherwise distracted, let's discuss how this might affect young lawyers or law students.  In honor of Twitter, I will try to do so in 140 characters or less. Here goes:

Firms may use web 2.0 to find legal talent. Toss the classifieds. Get a laptop and PDA. Follow firms on web 2.0 sites, and look for job listings. Times are changing.

By Brian Malcom

Imagine handing out a business card with one phone number on it.  Imagine not fearing missing that call from a partner, colleague or client when you leave your desk or forget your cell phone.  Imagine only having to remember one phone for each of your friends, colleagues, clients and contacts. Imagine a world with less phone numbers. You're imagining a world with Google Voice.

Google Voice, the descendent of GrandCentral, promises a simpler world of telephony. The idea is simple: one phone number for all your calls and SMS. The Google Voice number will ring your home, work and cell phones separately or collectively, depending on the user's election at the time of setup. The main features of the service include:

• Call screening - Announce and screen callers
• Listen in - Listen before taking a call
• Block calls - Keep unwanted callers at bay
• SMS - Send, receive, and store SMS
• Place calls - Call US numbers for free
• Taking calls - Answer on any of your phones
• Phone routing - Phones ring based on who calls
• Forwarding phones - Add phones and decide which ring

Other features include a visual form of voicemail, voicemail transcription, voicemail notification by email or SMS, conference calling and call recording. Google Voice also intends to offer low rates for international calls. 

Now for what this may mean for young lawyers: 

- Your Google Voice phone number will belong to you. Thus, the days of having to inform your contacts of a new phone number upon a job change, move or upon changing cell phone providers may be a thing of the past. Think of your Google Voice number as your new SSN. You won't be able to shake it if you try. 

- Facilitated communication. When your contacts can call one number at any time of the day to reach you, instant communication is easier.  I'll let you decide if this facilitation is a good thing. 

- More freedom. You are no longer tied to a fixed location to receive communications. Your communications will find you. Go ahead, play those nine holes on Friday afternoon. 

- Lessened overhead for firms. Google will manage the storage and delivery of calls, voicemail and SMS. Complex firm voicemail and phone systems may be obsolete in ten years. 

Google is taking over the world. Get on the train, or get out of the way. Google Voice is only available by invitation at this time.  If you're currently using Google Voice, write us and tell us about your experience.

By Brian Malcom 

"Bob likes to kick puppies."  "Eileen likes to wait outside ice cream shops and steal ice cream from small children."  These are the types of libelous statements that could get me slapped with a libel suit if I post them on my Twitter account (or publish them to a blog for that matter...oops).  

The question has already been asked, what's a Tweet worth?  A defendant in a defamation lawsuit could find out the hard way how much her Tweet can cost her.  According to the Chicago Bar-Tender, the plaintiff is seeking $50,000.00 in damages.   The lawsuit stems from a Tweet by the defendant that read, "You should just come anyway.  Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment was bad for you?  [The plaintiff] thinks it's okay."  The complaint alleges that the defendant "maliciously and wrongfully published the false and defamatory Tweet on Twitter, thereby allowing the Tweet to be distributed throughout the world."  According to the Chicago Bar-Tender, the defendant only had about 20 followers.  The defendant's Twitter account has been closed. 

A few things for YLB readers to learn from this situation: 

• A Tweet is a publication
• In everything you do on Web 2.0, check your privacy settings.  Twitter allows you to "lock" your Tweets.  Though any Tweet would likely still be characterized as a publication for the purposes of libel, it is still a good idea to control who views your content.  If you still insist on keeping your Tweets open, be very careful about what you decide to publish. 
• Do not use Twitter to defame others.  If you decide to publish a Tweet, you had better make sure it's true.
• Advise your clients and friends to be careful with their "Trash-Talking Tweets."
• While this suit involves Twitter, there are many other ways to "publish" defamatory statements in Web 2.0.  Be careful on MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, and anywhere else on the internet where you are publishing.
• A video or audio clip recorded and then published on the web can arguably get you in just as much legal trouble as a written statement. (Cough...Cough...YouTube posts....Cough...Cough...CNN iReport posts.)  Be careful with any recording of statements, especially if they're untrue. 

Who wants to predict where the next libel suit will come from?  Let's hope it's not YLB.

By Brian Malcom

We here at YLB are dedicated to the task of preventing you from getting fired because of social media.

While common sense goes a long way in properly using social media, a little advice never hurts.  (Hint: Just like warning labels on products, there is a reason I am giving this advice!) Here is some general advice: Assume your boss reads everything you write.  If you would not want your boss reading your post, it's probably not safe or smart to place on the web for all the world to see.

Basic Twitter Advice:

• Do not tweet about your lack of motivation
• Do not tout recent job offers
• Do not badmouth your job, your colleagues, your boss, your company or your clients
• Do not tweet about your illegal activities
• Do not tweet inappropriate comments about co-workers

Basic Facebook Advice:

• Do not use Facebook to bash your job, your colleagues, your boss, your company or your clients
• See Twitter tips for status updates
• Do not login to Facebook while at work (With the "chat" feature, your "friends" can see when you're online.  If you should be working, work) 
• Assume everyone can see everything. (Don't lie to your boss about a family emergency, and then post a picture of you dressed as a fairy at a Halloween costume party time-stamped on the date of the supposed emergency)
• If you're a professional, keep your Facebook page professional and/or private

A recent MSN article highlights the plight of those who failed to heed common sense and my, apparently, late advice. For your entertainment, below is an excerpt from the article which points out some terrible, but true, tweets.  These 10 examples of Web 2.0 blunders get the first 10 honorary YLB Web 2.Oh No! Awards.

"Paul Wilson, a freelance/corporate Web marketer and blogger, found several of such moments on Twitter, a social networking and micro-blogging site, and posted these "Top 10 Tweets to Get You Fired" [sic]:

1. "hate my job!! i want to tell my bosses how dumb they are and how meaningless this job is, then quit, and be happy!"
2. "So my job was to test all the food at the new resturant, can I just say, ughew. I'm going to taco bell then twistee treat."
3. "Workin... This job sucks worse then the economy!"
4. "I'm going to work! Walmart! Must find better job! I hate it when chicks there have a deeper voice than me and refer to me as foo!"
5. "Also I'm really bummed that I'm working today, i asked off so i could study but my boss is a ******* **** ***** ***** who can't read."
6. "Coworker smuggled out a chair for me. Currently being paid to SIT around and listen to John Barrowman on my iPod. I don't hate my job today!"
7. "having sex dreams of people you work with makes for an awkward day."
8. "smoking weed at work is so [EDITED] great :)"
9. "It's bad when you overhear the n00b programmer say "I used to work at McDonalds with him" and you wonder if he is talking about the CEO..."
10. "Huh, with my boss on twitter, maaaybe I should take down that sexy picture of her... but her reaction will be priceless!"

By Robert Chapski 

Microsoft has just announced that it will release a free version of its Office productivity suite as part of Office 2010 that can be accessed on the web.  This move is an obvious attempt to compete with Google, which released its own free office productivity software a few years ago.

Google recently announced that it plans to launch an operating system to compete with Windows.  I would suspect, as with other advancements over the last several years, consumers stand to benefit from this competition.  I can still remember when a new desktop computer cost over $4,000! This is great news for young lawyers, especially those hanging their own shingle or working for a small firm.  The modern tools of the trade--word processing programs, spreadsheet software, and presentation software---are becoming more available and accessible to small businesses.  It's hard to imagine how a modern lawyer can survive without spell-check . . . 

** Click here to read an article I wrote for DRI about free webware and productivity suites available to lawyers.