Evolution of law students, law blogs and social media

I was in Chicago this week, speaking at a couple of law schools.

The topic? How law students can use blogging and social media for learning, building relationships and building a name.

The more I speak at law schools, the more I realize law students and law schools are much like lawyers and law firms when it comes to blogging and other social media.

There is the understandable fear of doing something that will leave an indelible mark, the fear of not knowing perfectly what you are doing (learning by trial and error is not usually done in the law nor promoted in law school), and the difficulty of being openly real and authentic.

It’s hit and miss from law school to law school as to whether students are receptive to the message of networking through the Internet via social media and blogging.

Those schools with law professors, deans and career development professionals acting as role models on social media and blogging and with educational programs in this regard are way ahead of the game. The students at their schools are receptive, want to learn and want to get started.

And unfortunately, just like lawyers, most law students are not willing to put in the time to distinguish themselves. That’s real disappointing as the need to develop a personal brand and be seen as willing to assert oneself is ever increasing.

My visiting school to school, repetitively, doesn’t really scale. It’s going to take boots on the ground in the form of knowledgeable and experienced law students at the law schools with the support from the mothership in Seattle – LexBlog.

Westlaw has had student reps, and so has LexNexis. We’re seeing newer legal tech companies such as casetext with student reps.

LexBlog student reps could be at a law school to help a fellow student spin up for a free professional blog in minutes through the expedited LexBlog system. They could show fellow students the social media to use from Twitter, Facebook, to  LinkedIn and how to use these networking tools effectively.

I raised the idea of a LexBlog representative at one of the schools yesterday. The idea was very well received by a law professor. In fact, seen as possibly more valuable to students than services from other organizations with student representatives.

It will be very special to see the progression of law students building a name and relationships while in law school by networking through the net.

Who knows? Maybe they’ll teach lawyers and law schools a thing or two.