Big Data Will Change Case Preparation

Initially, the Big Data trend hit the legal market with services focused on billing, time management, marketing and customer service functions, in keeping with similar tools in other industries. But Forbes reports that major changes are afoot as some companies are ready to leverage the massive amount of data on judicial rulings, precedents, and interpretations of legislature to transform case preparation. New technology firm Ravel Law is planning to challenge industry stalwarts LexisNexis and Westlaw by offering advanced analytical algorithms and services like Judges Analytics, which will allow lawyers to search every decision made by particular judges in pursuit of one likely to be sympathetic to their arguments. Ravel is also working with Harvard Law School to digitize its entire U.S. case law library and offer it online, for free, by 2017.