Does the Law Need a Technological Revolution
![handle is hein.journals/ucollr18 and id is 398 raw text is: fDOES THE LAW NEED A TECHNOLOGICAL
REVOLUTION?
Louis 0. KELSO*
In his recently published report, the Librarian of Congress,
LUTHER H. EVANS, makes the point that, There seems no
likelihood that world peace can be established, much less main-
tained, without the same completeness of information and docu-
mentation required by a world war.
It is equally true that justice n the administration of law
depends on completeness of information upon the part of those
who must make legal decisions and render legal opinions.
Whether advising a client as to the best future course of
action to avoid trouble, or getting a client out of an existing
difficulty, the quality and effectiveness, of legal service is de-
pendent upon: (1) The attorney's mastery of the facts; (2) his
complete information as to the laws involved (judicial and ad-
ministrative), the statutes, regulations, rules, decisions, social
customs and practices; and (3) the attorney's judgment and
powers of intelligent analysis of the facts and the law.
Although it is the attorney's judgment alone which is
sought by the client, or the judge's decision alone which is sought
by attorneys representing parties to litigation, the correctness
and justice of the judgment in both cases depend upon the first
two factors: mastery of the facts and the law.
The immediate facts of the client's case may be few or many,
but almost invariably the mass of law which bears on the ques-
tion is staggering in its quantity.
Multiply the statutes, cases, rulings, the administrative or
legislative constructions, the customs and practices, and the eco-
nomic background data applicable to each question by the num-
ber of questions put to the lawyer per day or per week, and by
fCopyright, Louis o. Kelso, 1946.
*Member of the Colorado and California bars; formerly associate pro-
fessor of law, University of Colorado.
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Does the Law Need a Technological Revolution
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