The Indiana Lawyer recently adressed cloud technology in law firms in the article, "Clouds ahead for legal services".

The article does a good job illustrating some of the obstacles firms put up when considering new technology.

The top three concerns among lawyers when switching to cloud-based services are security, cost and reliability, according to the International Legal Association survey. Seth Wilson, an attorney with Adler Tesnar & Whalin in Noblesville who also helps manage the firm’s day-to-day IT services, said there are security risks no matter how information is stored.

The article does a good job addressing how cloud computing often compares favorably to other solutions in addressing these concerns.

In the end the real obstacle, as summed up by Drew Simshaw, clinical teaching fellow at Georgetown University Law Center:

“You need to talk about the benefits and risks of the use of technology,” he said. “New technology can be more secure than old technology, but there’s often a generational split. Older employees in the firm may be averse to adopting something that could be more secure, but younger people may be less critical of the risks involved. There’s not a right single (way to) approach to it, and with both generations working right now, everyone needs to be heard.”