By Daniela Aroche
A recent report has revealed that, as traditionally conservative adopters of technology, many lawyers simply have not had the time to consider the implications of social networking websites; others dismiss them as passing fads or consider them to have no lasting impact on the legal world.
Nevertheless, there could be much to gain if lawyers make the effort to embrace this new medium of communication - and it could also provide an advantage when it comes to career advancement.
"Lawyers are risk adverse, so they tend to be more conservative about putting themselves out there on networking sites. But one of the greatest things that a networking site can do for any particular individual - whether they be a junior lawyer or a partner - is raise their profile in the marketplace," said James Garzon, director and chief operating officer of Law Alliance, Hong Kong.
"The benefits are two-fold - people finding you, or you actively looking for opportunities/contacts. In terms of people finding you, networking sites are certainly one of the greatest tools being used now in the head-hunting arena. So for people that are looking for jobs, having a decent networking profile will definitely facilitate people finding them, instead of them necessarily being active and looking for jobs.
"It's also a good way to market yourself and a fast and a cheap way of raising your profile in relation to clients that don't know where to find the right person, so it's also excellent for reputation building and business development."
It is beyond dispute that the rapid growth on online communities and social networks is helping people connect in new and interesting ways. And sites such as Facebook, Twitter, XING.com, Plaxo, FriendFeed and LinkedIn can indeed provide a platform for legal professionals to raise their profile, promote skills, connect with prospective clients, employers and candidates and discover new markets and opportunities.
Other social networking mediums (see boxout below) specific to the legal profession allow lawyers to share their views and information on particular topics specific to law, highlighting the depth of their expertise through writing and describing the cases and transactions they work on.
These 'vertical social networks' which focus on specific professions in particular, offer a whole different level of resonance and relevance to legal professionals.
"Online networking is definitely a very good tool in terms of raising profile - no question about it. And certainly in terms of career advancement it's probably the best thing you can have out there at the moment, so [by engaging in online social networking] you are increasing your probability of people finding you and thinking of you when it comes to a job, so it definitely increases your opportunities over other jobseekers," said Garzon.
Garzon warns that, whilst social online networking can be used as an advantage in the job market, lawyers looking to expand their networks, source new employment opportunities or self-promote should be wary to do so via the right networks and use some discretion as to how much they reveal.
"It could be even more disastrous to join networking sites if you are not doing it properly or if you are not thinking about the implications of joining different networking sites and the fallout from what you put up on the net," he said.
"There are a range of networking sites out there - from those to 'make friends' to truly professional networking sites, so you should be choosy as to which sites you decide to engage in."
Source: Report by Headshift in association with ARK Group - Social Networking for the Legal Profession
Legal specific sites
* Blawg Review - http://blawgreview.blogspot.com/
* ALB online - http://au.legalbusinessonline.com/
* Between Lawyers - http://betweenlawyers.corante.com/
* Above the Law - http://abovethelaw.com/
* LegalOnRamp - http://legalonramp.com/
* Martindale-Hubbell Connected (MHC) - http://www.martindale.com/connected
* LexTweet - http://www.lextweet.com/
* Justia Legal Birds - http://legalbirds.justia.com/