Every year, the American Lawyer ranks the top 200 law firms based on
revenue, a list called the Am Law 200. Firms on the list include
megafirms with thousands of lawyers such as Skadden, Baker & McKenzie, Latham & Watkins and Jones Day, relatively smaller firms with very high profits per partner such as Wachtell and Cravath, and successful regional law firms such as Lewis and Roca and my firm, Adams and Reese. For the last 17 years, The American Lawyer has conducted an annual technology survey of the AmLaw 200 firms. This year’s survey has information about iPhone and iPad support.
iPhone support
Back in 2008, only 5% of the firms reported having
attorneys using an iPhone. In 2009, that number jumped to 55%, leading
me to report (back when iPhone J.D. was not even one year old yet) that “Over half of the most profitable law firms use iPhones.” That number rose to 77% in 2010, 96% in 2011, and according to this year’s survey results, it is now at 99%. Suffice it to say that virtually every profitable law firm in America has lawyers using the iPhone. (Virtually all of the firms still support BlackBerry as well. 74% now support Android, and 37% support Windows Phone 7.) Given that we now see iPhones everywhere that we go, it no longer seems surprising to say that lots of lawyers use iPhones, but when you consider how dominating the BlackBerry was four years ago when only a few lawyers were using iPhones, this has been a big shift.
iPad support
This year’s AmLaw survey also asked about tablets. In 57% of the AmLaw 200 firms, over a quarter of the firm’s lawyers are using tablets. In 10% of AmLaw 200 firms, over half of the firm’s lawyers are using tablets. My own law firm has almost 300 attorneys, and while we’re not yet at the point where half of our attorneys use an iPad, we’re getting very close. And I say “iPad” not “tablet” in the context of my own law firm because while we have a handful of people using other platforms, virtually all of our attorneys using a tablet are using an iPad. I suspect that the same is true at most other AmLaw 200 firms. This year’s survey reveals that 99% of AmLaw 200 firms support the iPad, 31% support Android tablets and 12% support a BlackBerry tablet.
The survey also reveals that only 8% of AmLaw 200 firms pay for iPads. As I wrote in an article for the Big Law newsletter earlier this year, I don’t recommend that most law firms buy the iPads that their attorneys use. Instead, the key is to support iPads, including having someone in the tech department who can help people configure new iPads and select the best apps. Based on this year’s survey, that seems to be the approach that AmLaw 200 firms are taking.
It’s great that so many profitable law firm rely on the iPhone. I do feel, however, that embracing all mobile technologies is essential. This includes embracing Android devices as well.
I think Windows 8 devices will gain some traction in the market in the coming months. Although the interface is a bit jarring to some I think that having a consistent operating system on mobile and desktop devices provides new opportunities.
We’re in the process of porting our popular iJuror iPad app to Windows 8 now. It’s exciting to see some competition in the market – in the end consumers should benefit.
Windows 8 is certainly an interesting OS and looks good to the eye, but for some reason it just appears “less capable” than something like iOS or Android. I think it will take many years for it to catch up anywhere close to the “Big 2.”
I think iOS will continue to dominate in law firms as most of the largest firms are distributing and using iPhone and iPad. Also, it seems that most government sectors are transferring to iOS which will continue to give it its dominance, as Blackberry had at one point. Android is of course a good OS as well, and becoming more polished every version, but it seems like it stays more towards the “geeks” or “hacker” community than main stream corporate (or law firm) use. It is a very appealing OS, but it seems that iOS is becoming the new standard for corporations and law firms, at least for the time being.
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