header-logo header-logo

12 May 2017 / Roger Smith
Issue: 7745 / Categories: Opinion , Profession , Technology
printer mail-detail

A glimpse into the future

nlj_7745_comment-smith

Roger Smith reports on the ABA Techshow

In my (albeit limited) experience, Americans do a good conference. They have the numbers; the diversity of experience; and the energy to start at a scarily early hour. The ABA Techshow in March was no exception. Day 1 began with ‘where yoga and technology meet’ at 7am and went on through sessions that included ‘lunch n’ learn’ into ‘affinity’ dinners in the evening. Three days of this must have been pretty exhausting even if you were not an effete European who had flown into Chicago only the day before the opening.

High energy

In a way, the energy of the event was its defining feature. The conference was run by the organising committee which had been taken over by a group of powerful women, led by charismatic consultant and trainer, Adriana Linares, and which included ABA president Linda Grant. They had disqualified as a potential speaker anyone who had addressed the conference in the last five years: that dealt with most of the men. An impressive

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

Commercial property and child law teams expand with senior hires

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Set expands London and Singapore offering with senior international disputes hires

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Firm strengthens real estate and litigation teams with partner promotions

NEWS
Behind the profession’s polished exterior, lawyers are ‘internally drained rather than physically tired’, according to a stark assessment of burnout in legal practice
Five years after the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 came into force, concerns remain that the family courts continue to minimise allegations of abuse in child contact disputes
Uber has built a formidable strategy for insulating itself from liability for drivers’ conduct, but the legal terrain differs sharply between the US and England and Wales
The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026 marks a constitutional watershed by severing the centuries-old link between hereditary titles and automatic membership of the upper chamber
The Civil Justice Council’s review of Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974 could mark the end of what one commentator calls an ‘outdated’ and overly technical regime governing solicitor-client fee disputes
back-to-top-scroll