Ep 082: How One Law School Teaches Legal Tech, Pre- and Post-Pandemic

Here’s one that gets a bit meta. Back in November 2017, LawNext host Bob Ambrogi spoke at BYU Law School about a lawyer’s ethical duty to be technologically competent. The talk prompted the school to explore ways it could help students improve their technological abilities. What resulted was the school’s Legal Technology Initiative, a multi-pronged program to provide law students with technology training and assessment.  Initially overseen by Shawn Nevers, deputy director of the law library, BYU this year brought on Tina Wilder, a former practicing lawyer, as an assistant law librarian to assist Nevers and take the lead in running tech training. On March 12, 2020, Ambrogi was at BYU and sat down with Nevers and Wilder to discuss the initiative and learn more about how the school teaches technology.  But what no one anticipated when the interview was scheduled was that March 12 would be the very day that the coronavirus crisis would force the school to shut down its physical classrooms and put its lessons online. So Ambrogi recently connected with Nevers and Wilder for a follow-up on how going virtual has impacted the initiative. This episode of LawNext begins with the original interview with Nevers and Wilder recorded March 12. Then, in a postscript recorded in July, Ambrogi catches up with the two guests for an update.  NEW: Comment on this show: Record a voice comment on your mobile phone and send it to [email protected]. We are now on Patreon! Subscribe to our page to be able to access show transcripts, or to submit a question for our guests.