Introducing a New Series – Exploring the Impact of Technology on Legal Issues

Almost 11 short years ago, the first iPhone made its debut on June 29, 2007.  This inaugural version featured the ability to take photos but not videos, maxed out at a whopping 16 GB hard drive and 128 MB of RAM.  The phone also lacked a GPS, digital compass, and forget about touch ID.  Fast forward to the iPhone X, Apple’s newest iPhone.  The X has 256 GB  of storage, 3 GB of RAM,  and unlocks using facial recognition technology.  And as for those videos the first iPhone couldn’t manage?  The X features 2 cameras that boast more features than most digital camera and offer 4K quality video recording at 60 frames per second.  Today a person can operate their business from the palm of their hand while on the go.  And it is not just our phones that are advancing leaps and bounds.  Cars have self-driving features and refrigerators can plan your meals and text you a shopping list.  The speed of technological advancements is mind blowing and getting ever faster. 

Whether you are embracing these break neck changes with open arms or trying to cling to your old flip phone for dear life, technological changes impact nearly every aspect of life.  These changes are also creating new concerns in the legal community as well.  As lawyers, we must now discuss smart use of mobile devices with clients, scour social media for incriminating evidence, advise on proper email usage in the workplace, and warn of the perils of automatic bill pay.

Over the next several weeks, Matt Landis and I, with a little help from our fellow bloggers, will explore the impact of technology on various legal issues and ways to help protect yourself from potential problems. While not intended to be an exhaustive list, our hope for this series is to get you thinking about how technology impacts you and to help you develop some ideas on how you can mitigate legal risks associated with technology.  Some issues that we will cover include: divorce and devices, bequeathing your digital assets, stopping automatic bill pay for the deceased, workplace policies, and expectation of privacy on employer devices and networks.  Subscribe to our email list on the right of this page to receive our posts in your inbox, or check back regularly to stay up to date!

Lindsay Schoeneberger is an attorney at Russell, Krafft and Gruber, LLP in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She received her law degree from Widener University School of Law and practices in a variety of areas, including Estate Planning.