Transitioning Into Practicing Law Remotely
| Jurisdiction | United States,Federal,Georgia |
| Citation | Vol. 25 No. 6 Pg. 0026 |
| Pages | 0026 |
| Publication year | 2020 |
Transitioning into Practicing Law Virtually
The legal profession as a whole has been faced with redefining the parameters by which we work, going from mostly in-person activity to mostly online.
BY KELLYN O. MCGEE
As the world changed quickly earlier this year, so did our profession. On March 13, the State Bar’s offices closed for what would be an unknown length of time and within three days many of the staff began telecommuting from home. The State Bar was not alone in its sudden recalibration of what “going to the office” meant. The legal profession as a whole was faced with redefining the parameters by which we work.
By March 31, the Supreme Court of Georgia issued orders declaring a judicial state of emergency, amending rules for the state's trial and appellate courts, temporarily allowing lawyers to earn all of their CLE hours via online courses and suspending the requirement that an attorney must be physically present during real estate transactions. The governor issued executive orders allowing remote notarization and attestations, as well as mandating statewide sheltering in place. In a matter of a few weeks the legal profession went from mostly in-person activity to mostly online.
The transition has not been easy, particularly when confronted with decadesold laws and rules. We all quickly—or maybe not so quickly—stepped aboard the learning curve of how to keep legal business going, primarily through videoconferencing. Procedures and policies were altered to allow courts to hear motions, mediations to continue, the Board of Governors to meet and CLE programs to be offered via online venues. Deadlines were extended, the July Bar Exam rescheduled and provisional licenses granted to recent law school graduates.
We learned how to conduct legal business virtually, particularly within the confines of the Rules of Professional Conduct. We know that Alexa (the device and our family member) could be listening and Zoom may be recording. We were admonished to keep the profession professional—yes, judges expect attorneys to dress and appear properly for virtual court, which includes putting on shirts and perhaps not attending a hearing by a pool. By now, though, we have become (mostly) used to virtually practicing law and are likely less frustrated by the glitches that come with using new-to-us technology.
A Year From Now,...
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