CBA Record May-June 2020

How Practicing Plaintiff’s Personal Injury Law Has Evolved during the Covid-19 Crisis BY SARAH F. KING

• I have e-filed discovery and new case complaints using Odessey File & Serve. • I have collaborated on briefs using Microsoft Teams and Google Docs. • I have attended multiple CLEs on SeminarWeb and WebEx. • Keith and I have participated in a successful virtual mediation thanks to the efforts of ADR and the use of Zoom. Another is scheduled. • As for court, I have attended case management conferences and emergency motion hearings over the phone. Although I hope I will never experi- ence another pandemic (or any disaster) that forces me to work 100% remotely, I recognize this hope is naïve. The Covid-19 crisis has forced personal injury attorneys to accept technology that allows us to effectively practice personal injury law remotely; resistance is futile. Attorneys on either side of the aisle who refuse to adapt will soon find themselves without business and without a paycheck. Those of us who embrace these tools and diligently represent our clients during this crisis will survive and will thrive in the new virtual reality of personal injury law.

our unwavering commitment to continue to turn the wheels of justice. Defense attorneys resisted at first, espe- cially with depositions. Excuses as to why the depositions could not proceed varied from unfamiliarity with technology to a demand to be with the witness “in person.” However, as the General Administrative Orders were revised to clarify there was no moratorium on discovery, that resistance is less credible. Moreover, such excuses have begun to sound irresponsible. How do you explain to a client or to a judge that you did nothing on a case because you were “unfa- miliar” with modern technology while others diligently worked-up their cases? As a wise Illinois lawyer (Abraham Lincoln) once said, “the leading rule for the lawyer, as for the man [woman] of every other calling, is diligence. Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done to-day.” Using Technology I am happy to report that although my physical location during the Covid-19 crisis is different, my ability to represent my clients and perform my day-to-day duties continues with the use of technol- ogy and a commitment to making Honest Abe proud. • I have reached out to each of my clients by phone and/or Zoom video con- ference to assure them that I am operating fully remotely and diligently working on their cases. • My trial partner Keith Hebeisen and I have taken multiple depositions by Zoom of both medical and non-medical provid- ers. We have used RadiAnt viewer to screen share medical imaging and Dropbox to circulate exhibits. • I have daily calls with my team over Zoom or Skype to check on their progress with projects and to provide that social connection we all miss. • I have executed probate paperwork and signed-up new cases with clients using DocuSign.

For the most part, obtaining justice on behalf of injured and victimized people is generally not a desk job. A plaintiff’s attorney’s duty is to move cases forward by attending court appearances, taking depo- sitions, conducting meetings with experts, flying across country to prep witnesses, mediating cases, and visiting with clients in their homes. These duties involve being on- the-go and out-of-the-house. As Illinois shut down, the question confronting the lawyers at Clifford Law Offices was never which activity cannot be accomplished, but always how can each duty be accomplished virtually? On March 17, when the physical doors to courthouses and offices closed, attorneys busted open the virtual doors of their practice. Before the crisis, many plaintiffs’ attorneys were vaguely familiar with virtual and cloud-based platforms such as Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, Dropbox, Google Docs, etc. Some had used this technology occasionally, but most had never completely relied on technology to accomplish day-to-day duties. That changed very quickly. ABA Model Rule 1:1 requires that a lawyer provide competent representa- tion to a client, which is defined as “the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonably necessary for the representation.” As the Covid-19 shutdown began, the attorneys, administrators and leadership at Clifford LawOffices prepared to virtually represent our clients during this crisis, regardless of how long it would last. First, steps were taken to ensure that each attorney and staffmember had remote access to their desktop at the office, the server containing scanned case files and case management software. Next, attor- neys and staff were registered for webinars about various virtual platforms to ensure that everyone knew how to set up a virtual meetings, share their screen, send a docu- ment via DocuSign, or collaborate on a file using Microsoft Teams. And we affirmed

Sarah F. King, a partner at Clifford

Law Offices, is a trial attorney and litigator in the areas of medical malpractice, aviation matters, transporta- tion accidents, personal

injury and wrongful death.

Need MCLE Credit by June 30? See a list of on-demand seminars at www.chicagobar. org/cle

22 May/June 2020