The article explores the use of Macs and Mac software by trial lawyers. It discusses the hardware and software used by two trial lawyers, including MacBook Pros, Keynote, Adobe Acrobat, FileMaker Pro, and iPhones. The lawyers find Macs easy to use in trial and not at a disadvantage compared to other systems. They are able to organize documents and presentations, annotate evidence, and access materials from their iPhones. In conclusion, Macs provide trial lawyers with powerful tools to prepare and conduct their cases.

1. MAC USER Macs at Trial 3/26/11 4:58 PM
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By Victoria L. Herring
Periodicals
Publications The use of computers and technology in trials and other
proceedings has steadily grown over the years, particularly as
Resources more courts have upgraded their infrastructure. Virtually
everyone knows about PowerPoint, as that presentation
program has been used throughout corporate life for all sorts
of training, so that its use in trials is not surprising. The
purpose of this article is to explore the world of Macintosh
lawyers using Mac technology and software in their
presentations to courts and juries. My own experience mirrors
what follows, but since it’s been a few years since I’ve been
at trial, I thought it best to consult two lawyers with ample
current experience in trying cases using the Mac.
I spoke with Tom Hart and Ron Murphy. Tom Hart practices
trial law in Charleston, South Carolina, and Christiansted,
Virgin Islands, and tries four to five complex cases (such as
asbestos litigation and class actions) throughout the country
each year. He has a blog called “Tom’s Tech Tips for Trial
Lawyers” ( http://tomstechtipsfortriallawyers.blogspot.com).
Ron Murphy is a trial lawyer in New Britain, Connecticut, and
also is involved in complex litigation involving personal
injuries, medical and legal malpractice, and some criminal
defense work as well. He is the principal trial lawyer with The
Advocates Law Firm ( www.advocateslawfirm.com). In
addition, others chimed in with their experiences, and I
reviewed the two sets of video DVDs from the “Using Macs in
Trial” seminars held near Dallas, Texas. From all this the
takeaway is: Lawyers using Mac computers and software are
not at any disadvantage and, indeed, may be more
advantaged, than those using other systems.
Hardware
Both Tom and Ron use their Mac-Book Pro computers in trial,
as have I. The 15” screen is excellent, though Ron said he
thought the 17” might be better for him, given his need to
have a variety of windows open on his screen at the same
time. Each brings with him the necessary extension cords,
adapters, and power strips, along with projectors and iPhones
(more about the iPhone later). Both have found, as have I,
that you really should bring your own tried-and-true hardware
to court to minimize the possibility of glitches, such as
projectors that won’t work.
Software
Several pieces of software made for Macs are used by
litigators with finesse. Tom uses Circus Ponies’ Notebook (
www.circusponies.com) for almost everything he does in trial
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2. MAC USER Macs at Trial 3/26/11 4:58 PM
work. He has a “master” notebook into which he saves
repeatedly used medical art, scientific literature, experts’
contact information, etc. For each case he also creates a
separate, dedicated notebook, into which he imports copies of
documents, exhibits, and depositions; information on the
witnesses; and outlines of his opening statement. If something
is in the master notebook, such as information on an expert
or a medical illustration, he opens up both the master and the
case notebooks and clicks and drags what he needs from the
master to the case notebook. It is possible to have only
documents and information referenced in these notebooks,
but Tom imports the data in full—I think I’d err on that side,
too.
Tom uses Apple’s presentation software, Keynote (
www.apple.com), quite a bit in his cases, creating slides to
use with experts and witnesses and to lay out his opening
statement. He recently had the pleasure of being able to make
adjustments to his opening slides “on the fly” in about 15
minutes and watch the other side struggle for hours to do the
same with their own technology.
Adobe’s Acrobat Professional (AAP;
www.adobe.com/products/acrobatpro) is a favorite piece of
software for both Tom and Ron, though less so for me (I’m
sure it’s because I haven’t taken the time to learn its features).
Tom explained to me—we used screen sharing in iChat so he
could demonstrate what he meant—how to use AAP’s
“properties” feature to fill in all sorts of useful metadata so that
you can easily find documents. He uses Yep’s Leap (
www.yepthat.com/leap) to organize his documents; this
software uses detailed metadata to organize and make
“findable” all sorts of documents on a given topic. It’s sort of
an OS X Finder on steroids.
Ron explained to me his extensive use of AAP. He scans and
OCRs (applies “optical character recognition” to) all medical
records and other items, then Bates stamps them, bookmarks
them, and adds comments to them. The bookmarks and
comments allow him to follow along with a medical exhibit that
the witness is using and to question the witness about each
part; with a simple click he can pull up any part of the
document, complete with relevant bookmarks and comments,
onto the screen of his MacBook Pro. Those with an interest in
learning more about using AAP in trial might want to check
with the Adobe website and, specifically, with the blog
“Acrobat for Legal Professionals” (
http://blogs.adobe.com/acrolaw).
Ron’s “go-to” programs are AAP and File-Maker Pro (
www.filemaker.com). In File-Maker he organizes all the
information of a case into databases for facts, names, items,
and issues. Because File-Maker allows for the creation of
relational databases, he can then tie the relevant facts,
names, and documents in a case to the issues of that case. I
use the very old Trial-Maker template for File-Maker Pro to do
much the same thing. There are quite a number of other File-
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3. MAC USER Macs at Trial 3/26/11 4:58 PM
Maker templates to be found as well. The beauty of File-
Maker is that you can edit and adjust the templates to do what
you need, as demonstrated by Ron’s adaptation.
As litigators know, many court reporters use the Windows-
based Real-Legal transcription software ( www.reallegal.com)
to take and render depositions. Tom has found that using
Code-Weavers’ Cross-Over (
www.codeweavers.com/products/cxmac) allows him to access
Real-Legal transcripts without using Windows software. Just to
be safe, however, he gets depositions in TXT and PDF format
as well. (I insist on those two formats being e-mailed to me,
particularly because for some odd reason some court
reporters are still delivering floppies!) Tom then imports the
depositions into Notebook and annotates them there.
Other programs that might be worth investigating for use in a
law office, in preparing cases, and in trial are often discussed
on the Mac-Law listserve ( www.maclaw.org). There’s also a
Google Group called MILO (Macs in the Law Office;
http://gdgrifflaw.typepad.com./home_office_lawyer/2008/10/macs-
in-law-off.html) that you might want to check out, as well as a
blog, MacLitigator ( www.maclitigator.com), that might be of
interest.
iPhone
The topic of a litigator using the iPhone might, perhaps,
require an entirely separate column. For now, note that I have
an iPhone 3GS and use it in all sorts of situations, in and out
of court. Tom and Ron both have iPhones and use them in
their practices, including at trial (subject to the rules, of
course). For example, there are a number of document
applications for the iPhone that allow you to take documents
with you and edit and e-mail them just as you would on a
computer. (I recently wrote about them on my blog—
www.herringlaw.com—under the topic of technology.) One of
the problems with some of these applications is that they
require you to be on WiFi in order to access your data, which
I find limiting. But not all do, so you just need to look around a
bit. Lawyers interested in the use of the iPhone should
consult iPhone J.D. ( www.iphonejd.com) and its author’s link-
filled article for the ABA TECHSHOW website about the
iPhone ( www.abanet.org/techshow/blog/092208.shtml); Tax-
Prof’s blog (
http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2009/08/five-
iphone.html); and The Mac Lawyer’s article on five iPhone
applications for lawyers (
www.themaclawyer.com/2009/08/articles/iphone/five-helpful-
iphone-apps-for-attorneys), plus the various iPhone-centric
websites.
As you can see from the above discussion, there are plenty of
trial attorneys with experience using Macintosh computers and
software in preparation for and conduct of a bench or jury
trial. In fact, one of the best things about using the Mac OS
on a newer Mac computer is that you can stay in the Mac
world all the time—as I do—or you can dip your toe into the
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Windows ocean from time to time with software that lets you
run Windows-based programs.
Victoria L. Herring practices in Des Moines, Iowa, in an office
that has used only Apple/Macs since the early 1980s. She
may be reached at vlh@herringlaw.com.
Copyright 2009
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