Tag: lawyers

Uber for Lawyers

January 15, 2018

I have a large file bucket in my den where I throw all my scribbled notes  concerning business ideas, blog posts and the like. I sift through them periodically  in search of inspiration, and I’m always surprised at how many relate to the topic of change in the legal profession. Disruptive change is coming , and the possibilities fascinate me.

Last week I came across a rather cryptic “note-to self” that said only “Uber for lawyers”- it was an aide -memoir scrawled on the back of some printed material from a lawyers retreat I had attended with lawyers from my previous firm last year.

Fleshed out, the idea  runs something like this: we as lawyers  (especially those of us who practice in suburbia) spend an inordinate amount of time commuting to, and cooling our heels at, mandatory, but low or no value court appearances – showing up to fix trail dates, for pre-trial conferences, arraignments, and other assorted  procedural matters. Often these appearances take only a  very few minutes of court time, but consume half a day or more of the lawyers time, which the hapless client must pay for.

There ought to be a better way! so what if you could somehow connect with another lawyer who was going to be languishing in line in the same court, and pay him or her to make the appearance for you? We have long used ad-hoc “agency” arrangements for these nuisance  court appearances, but it can be frustrating and time consuming trying to track down an appropriate agent. We need an Uber to act as matchmaker and payment processor.

Well, I suspect that the folks at Vortex Law must have sulked  into my den  in the dark of night and rifled through my “great ideas” file, because they have stolen my idea, and have now launched a website where  law firms needing a warm breathing body in a particular court on a particular day, can shop the gig to a roster of pre-vetted lawyers. Looks like the service is only available in the US for now, and they are focusing on States like California, which are renowned for their time-sucking court appearances . but its only a matter of time before the service is available here.

Two questions remain, will the Vortex service actually help to reduce the cost of litigation, and , will this Uber for lawyer launch in Vancouver before Uber itself gets off the ground?

BLOOD IN THE WATER

September 19, 2017

If you have been out and about around Metro Vancouver over the past several months it can’t have escaped your notice that there is a personal injury law firm that really wants your business. Their ads are plastered over every third sky train car, and you can’t make it through a local news cast without viewing an advert featuring a smarmy guy in a suit talking about justice for injury victims. Their name is Prezler law, and when I saw their saturation marketing campaign my first reaction was “Who are those guys?” You see, both my bride and I have been in the law game in the lower mainland for the past 40 years, and neither of us had ever heard of them. New firms form daily, of course, but none with pockets deep enough to fund an over the top marketing blitz.
Dong a bit of digging, I discovered two things. Firstly, the smarmy pitchman in the well-tailored suit isn’t Prezler, in fact, he isn’t even a lawyer. He’s an actor. Secondly, Prezler is a well- established Ontario law firm. They have been around for decades, and have obviously done well for themselves practicing personal injury law there.
Curious, I thought, that a specialty firm from another province should target British Columbia. I mean, its not as though we were short of high profile personal injury lawyers around here.
While still shaking my head over the puzzle, my morning Vancouver Sun arrived, and I was treated to the spectacle of a full front page advertising wrap, announcing the grand opening of Diamond & Diamond, another Ontario personal injury firm with money to burn on marketing. Let’s face it buying the front page of the Vancouver Sun ain’t cheap (but them neither is ad-wrapping a Skytrain car )
So, what’s up with this migration of litigators- the gunslingers of the profession?
Well, one of the first things I learned in law school was “follow the money”. These aggressive law firms haven’t descended on the province becase they like the scenery- they are her to pick ripe fruit. My guess is that word has gotten out that the pickings are good here in Lotusland . ICBC it seems, is a cash cow, flailing around in the water, and bleeding profusely.

And now comes a stern faced David Eby, our newly minted Attorney General, to announce stiff new auto insurance premiums. Pity he didn’t bring a bandage to the news conference, because raising rates is truly only a band-aid solution.

One of the first things I was taught in Law School was “follow the money” , and that, evidently  is what our learned friends from Ontario are doing, Either the word is out that  the BC courts are handing out  very generous awards, or that ICBC is a soft touch when defending. Either way, the sudden appearance of these eastern lawyers should tell us that it is time for a serious  re-think of how we compensate the victims of  motor vehicles crashes. Our present system is leaving too much blood in the water .