Legal Tech - West Coast - Coming to Los Angeles May 17-18, 2011

Legal Tech Show (West) at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel, Los Angeles. May 17-18, 2011.

Hutchings has participated in this show for many years and will be there this year in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Bar Association. We look forward to seeing you there.

Prepare for Depositions With the iPad Deponent App

Law Technology News

Ted Brooks is a trial presentation consultant, author, and speaker, with offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco. E-mail: tbrooks@litigationtech.com. Blog: Court Technology and Trial Presentation blog.

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The Deponent App, developed by Majority Opinion, is an iPad app designed to help legal professionals draft questions to prepare for a deposition. You can select from over 150 questions organized by category, such as Admonitions or Expert Qualifications, arrange their order of presentation, and customize the text for your witnesses. Each question can also be linked to an exhibit. You can modify the included questions and categories as well as create your own.

Earth Day 2011

Marking its 41st anniversary on Friday, April 22, 2011, Earth Day will be celebrated by millions around the world. I know my community has quite a few activities planned on Saturday and Sunday, April 22-23 to increase awareness about recycling and energy efficiency. Living in a coastal town, we also have creek and beach clean-ups.

Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in first held on April 22, 1970. While this first Earth Day was focused on the United States, an organization launched by Denis Hayes, who was the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. Numerous communities celebrate Earth Week, an entire week of activities focused on environmental issues. In 2009, the United Nations designated April 22 International Mother Earth Day.

OMG! LOL: Internet Slang Added to Oxford English Dictionary

By Daniel Ionescu, PCWorld Mar 26, 2011 5:59 AM

Time-saving online abbreviations like LOL, OMG, and IMHO are now part of the official English language. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) announced the addition of several acronyms to its dictionary, adding some interesting trivia behind the origins of these Internet-associated expressions.

OED explained that although “initialisms” like OMG (Oh My God), LOL (Laughing Out Loud) and IMHO (In My Humble/Honest Opinion) are strongly associated with the language of electronic communications, their origins are surprisingly predating the Internet era.

For example, OED found a quotation for OMG in a personal letter from 1917, and FYI (For Your Information) originated in the language of memoranda in 1941. Also, apparently the LOL expression had a previous life, starting in 1960, denoting an elderly woman (Little Old Lady).

OED notes that some expressions like OMG and LOL are used outside electronic communication contexts as well, including print and spoken use, in the form of more than a simple abbreviation:

“The intention is usually to signal an informal, gossipy mode of expression, and perhaps parody the level of unreflective enthusiasm or overstatement that can sometimes appear in online discourse, while at the same time marking oneself as an ‘insider’ au fait with the forms of expression associated with the latest technology.”

If you’re not familiar with the online slang, you can always check out this Internet slang dictionary and translator. Just enter the text slang you want to translate and you’re done. TTYL

Looking for Attorney Volunteers - Power Lunch at Van Nuys Courthouse West

Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles 

 

WLALA sponsors a program called "Power Lunch" with the LA Superior Court, which introduces high school kids to our judicial system. They're looking for attorney volunteers for their next Power Lunch program on Friday, April 29, 2011 at the Van Nuys Courthouse West, which will host Grant High School. To volunteer for this Power Lunch.

The lunch will be from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Typically, they introduce the volunteers, as well as court room personnel (e.g., bailiff, court interpreter) to give the kids a sense of the different jobs in our judicial system and our personal educational backgrounds. Then they have about 30 minutes to coach the kids for a "Legal Jeopardy" game that tests their knowledge of various subjects. The Power Lunch ends with the Legal Jeopardy game.

For questions, please email  or call (213) 892-8982.

CASD presents: Neuropsychological Diagnosis in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Consumer Attorneys of San Diego will co-sponsor an online seminar on this topic. April 21, 2011, 11:30 a.m., Pacific (2:30 ET / 1:30 CT / 12:30 MT).  The consequences of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) are complicated and controversial. Appropriate diagnosis and management is often not provided in routine medical care and the outcome is quite variable from case to case. This program will provide an overview of the neuropsychological diagnostic issues in MTBI including the role of pre-existing conditions, co-existing diagnoses (e.g., depression), effort or symptom magnification testing, and determinants of long-term outcome. Credit provided. $99 for Association Member. $129 for Non-Members.  Register and learn more

Clara Foltz and the Role of Public Defender - MCLE presentation April 21, 2011

Clara Foltz was the first woman admitted to the California Bar and first to propose the creation of a public defender.  This (MCLE) panel presentation Thursday, April 21, 2011 5:30 pm at the Music Center in Los Angeles, will explore her vision of the public defender, the evolution of the office, and its role today.   Sponsored by the California Supreme Court Historical Society and presented by the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles.  For more information and to register for this event, please CLICK HERE.

Hutchings Presents at LA County Bar Association's Nuts & Bolts Seminar

On April 7, Hutchings' Jeff Koller had an opportunity to present at the LA County Bar Association's annual Nuts and Bolts seminar. The seminar covers a wide range of basic litigation skills with the predominate audience being recent admittees to the bar.

Leading the 3-member panel titled Advanced Deposition Techniques were two very successful litigators Maria Cousineau and Gretchen Nelson. Topics covered ranged from noticing the deposition, counsel and witness preparation to actual examination techniques and strategies to consider.

Jeff's contribution was focused on the use of available technology tools to help manage the discovery facets of litigation including digital transcript and exhibit availability, video synchronization, as well as realtime and software such as CaseViewNet's free litigation program and integration with LexisNexis's program Text Map.

Videotaped Testimony Synchronized with Transcripts - A User-Friendly Tool for all Phases of Litigation

by: Jeffrey P. Koller, Client Services and General Counsel for Hutchings Court Reporters
and Marnie Levy, SkyBlue Video

One of the most powerful tools for utilizing videotaped depositions is synchronizing the video and transcript.

Simply put, “video-sync” links each line of a deposition transcript with the video deposition so they play simultaneously. As you might imagine, video testimony and the written transcript scrolling side-by-side is a one-two punch of credibility!

In addition, the video-sync software has multiple features that make it a convenient, economical, user-friendly method for organizing, sharing, and presenting testimony before and during trial, arbitration, or mediation.

Read more

SoCalPROS - Anthology Event

Submitted by Hutchings Court Reporters, SoCalPROS member

SoCalPROS San Diego chapter hosted their fourth annual “Evening at Anthology” for members of the San Diego legal community on Thursday, March 31, 2011. Guests enjoyed a fabulous evening of food, drink, and “Fine Tuned Music” at Anthology, one of San Diego’s premier dining and live music establishments. All proceeds from the auction go to the Tariq Khamisa Foundation which provides comprehensive school-based nonviolence programs to middle schools. Over $1,000 was raised at the silent auction.

GOLF GOLF GOLF -- The Season is Here

Hutchings Court Reporters was a proud supporter of two recent tournaments.

San Diego County Bar Association held its Annual Golf Tournament March 31 in Rancho Bernardo, California, and this event benefitted the San Diego County Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of the SDCBA.

The Easter Seals' Annual Invitational took place March 7, 2011 in Yorba Linda. In its 12th year, proceeds from the long-running tournament help support the many services Easter Seals provides locally for people with autism and other developmental disabilities.

Hutchings Supports ASCDC's Annual Seminar in March, 2011

Hutchings has been a proud supporter of Association of Southern California Defense Counsel (ASCDC) for over 15 years.  Another successful attendance by Hutchings Court Reporters at their 50th Annual Seminar March 10-11, 2011 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.

Hutchings Presents Deposition Tools & Technology

submitted by Jeff Koller, Client Services || General Counsel - Hutchings Court Reporters

Hutchings presented at the California State Bar's staff counsel litigation committee seminar on March 25. The focus of the joint presentation was technology in the office and courtroom. Presenting along with myself was Andrew Buckley from Nuance and Ursula Jimenez from Executive Presentations. The focus of Hutchings' segment was online deposition transcript and exhibit access, deposition exhibit linking, functionality of PDF full and condensed transcripts, videosynchronization and realtime technology utilizing Stenograph's free deposition realtime software, CaseViewNet. Hutchings provides complimentary State Bar approved CLE presentations throughout California.