Richard Granat
Highlights
Richard Granat
We are proud to present our opening speaker, Mr. Richard Granat. Richard was recently cited in popular technology magazine Wired as a pioneer in the field of eLawyering. He is co-president of the American Bar Association Task Force on eLawyering and was identified by the ABA Journal as one of the United States’ 50 “legal rebels”, a list of individuals who are the most engaged in changing the legal profession.
Elawyering will be mainstream in three years. I predict that in five years, if you’re a small firm and don’t offer this kind of Web service, you’re not going to make it. -Richard Granat, Wired Magazine, 17.09
In a recent blog post, Richard suggested that recently founded virtual law firm Legal Zoom could soon become the largest firm in the United States. In light of this recent development, Richard will talk about eLawyering and its recent evolution.
Biography
Richard is a lawyer and a recognized expert on the delivery of legal services over the Internet. He is also the Founder of Granat Legal Services, P.C., in Washington, D.C., one of the first virtual law firms in the United States.
He also serves as Co-Chair of the eLawyering Task Force of the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association and is a member of the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services.
In 2009, the ABA Journal recognized Richard as one of 50 Legal Rebels, throughout the Unites States – individuals who are engaged in changing the legal profession. In 2010, Richard received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Bar Association in recognition of his innovations in the delivery of legal services.
Richard has been involved in developing innovative legal services delivery systems for over 30 years, first as part of the initial working group that created the National Legal Services Program, and then later as Director of the Center for Legal Studies at Antioch Law School in Washington, D.C., the nation’s first clinical law school, and later President and Dean of the Philadelphia Institute for Paralegal Training, the nation’s first paralegal school. He is a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management.
Previously he was the founding CEO of Automated Legal Systems, Inc., an affiliate of The Philadelphia Institute, one of the first legal software companies to publish legal applications for the personal computer.
He has spoken on the impact of the Internet on the legal profession at many bar conferences and also taught at the University of Maryland School of Law, the District of Columbia School of Law, Rutgers School of Law, courses in Computers and the Law and Law Practice Management. Richard is a graduate of Columbia University School of Law (J.D.), the University of Pennsylvania (M.S.) and Lehigh University (B.A.).
Richard is a member of the Maryland and District of Columbia Bar.
Twitter: @rgranat
