The cost of airplane travel, accommodations, and meals, as well as lost attorney and staff time, can make one question the traditional method of holding client meetings, conducting discovery, or providing training. Lawyers using conferencing are on the inside track with their clients. With these tools, lawyers are available immediately in a way that is almost as effective as a face-to-face meeting.

Now real-time collaboration or conferencing tools are available to assist lawyers and their clients to work real-time on a legal issue from different locations. Real-time collaboration tools include text based chat, audio and videoconferencing, and application and data sharing. All of these tools work over the Internet or over a local area network using standard Internet protocols.

There are several legal applications for real-time collaboration tools:

• Client conferences, working on contracts, business meetings, etc.;
• Preparing for depositions or trial testimony;
• CLE training;
• Viewing legal proceeding testimony;
• Interviewing prospective employees.

Essentially any interaction that used to be done in person can now be accomplished remotely by using audio, text, and application conferencing. For example, you can share a word processor real-time over the Internet, which would permit you to work on a contract with your client from different locations.

There are several different types of real-time conferencing available today.

• Traditional flipboards and whiteboards. These tools provide an economical means for brainstorming and are non-threatening, which is not always the case with computers and other equipment. However, distributing and sharing the thoughts of the group to remote locations real-time is not available with these traditional meeting conference tools.
• Text based chat. One of the earliest forms of real-time remote collaboration is text based chat. Users can type short messages to each other that appear in a common chat window. Today, the most popular text based chat systems are Internet Relay Chat (IRC) and America Online’s chat rooms.
• Video conferencing. This is a video communication session among two or more physically separated individuals.
• Data conferencing. A critical part of video conferencing is data conferencing or the sharing of data and documents, such as deposition exhibits, by the participants. These data and document collaboration tools can be used with audio on the Internet. Make sure and have a quality audio connection. Though a document being sent may be slightly delayed, it is not nearly as annoying as poor audio or video quality. Other data sharing components that you may wish to have available for sharing are a scanner and a graphics tablet and pen for witness annotations.
• A whiteboard is the equivalent of a chalkboard. All participants from different locations can simultaneously write on the chalkboard that is viewed by everyone. For example, a document, drawing, map or exhibit can be pasted onto the whiteboard and annotated by all litigation participants.

Quality of Video. Video can be transmitted over WAN (wide area networks), LANs (local area networks), plain old telephone lines (POTS), ISDN (integrated systems digital networks), and communication systems such as DSL (digital subscriber lines). The quality of the transmission is determined by the bandwidth. The slowest and most widely used video transport is POTS (plain old telephone line). The bandwidth is low, but supports consistent connection up to 56,000 bps. For tolerable video, one should use an ISDN connection that generally is 128,000 bits per second transmission rate. 

At 768 Kbps, digital video conferencing is like analog TV. At 384 Kbps it is quite usable and at 128 Kbps is respectable. The standard for fluid videoconferencing is 24 frames per second. There is also a tradeoff between the video window size and the available network bandwidth capacity. The more pixels in a video image, the more network bandwidth required for the transmission. A smaller video window allows more conference members to be viewed simultaneously. The more we move down from the 24 frames per second picture, the jerkier the pictures become. As ISDN, DSL, cable modem, satellite dishes, and microwave bandwidth connections increase, the world of video conferencing will increase dramatically.

Multipoint Conference - A point-to-point conference is between two people, and it is relatively easy to establish a connection. A multipoint conference is between three or more parties and involves the use of a MCU (multipoint control unit) to switch between the parties at the appropriate time. Some common carriers have specified conferencing network services that handle the multipoint control.

Videoconferencing Equipment. There are several types of videoconferencing systems that one should consider.

• Permanent Installations. These systems are installed in a boardroom, conference room, auditorium, training center or other gathering place. These systems are generally connected using a satellite or digital T1 line. They generally are of the highest quality.
• Group Systems. These self-contained cabinet mounted videoconferencing units are also called roll-about or room systems. They contain a camera, monitor, microphone, and network interface and are generally hooked to an ISDN line or greater. These systems can be wheeled to whatever area is convenient for the videoconference to occur.
• Compact or videophone systems. These easy to use self-contained systems are generally connected to your phone system. They are about the size of a traditional phone and incorporate a built-in camera, microphone, video display, and dialing buttons. It offers two way interactive video. Videophones are still waiting to be effective on a larger bandwidth. Since the picture is based on POTS transmission, the video is not very good.
• Desktop systems. Desktop systems use a small camera, special hardware and software to display a small videoconferencing window on your computer screen. They can be hooked to a regular POTS line. Desktop systems generally come with a camera and computer boards for video capture, video compression, and ISDN hookup. WAN systems generally run around $1000 a system, LAN systems using and Ethernet hookup instead of an ISDN line run approximately $500, and standard telephone systems are much cheaper. ProShare from Intel is one of the leaders in this product line
• LAN based systems. These systems are built around a videoconferencing server, software, and desktop PC’s. LAN based systems allow for enterprise videoconferencing. Digital videoconferencing over the desktop and within a LAN (local area network) generally uses the H.323 (LAN) communications protocol and H.324 (regular telephone). The Internet uses H.323 based products with the IP protocol. Intranet videoconferencing generally delivers on performance if you have a 100 Mbps system.
• Internet-based systems. These systems deploy video streaming technology to squeeze video through a modem, onto the Net and deliver it real-time to end-users.

Some additional features to consider:

• Will it hook up to any monitor, TV or LCD projector?
• Is it easy to set up?
• Is a computer necessary?
• Does it provide 30 frames per minute, non-interpolated?
• Does it operate at bandwidth rates at 128 Kbps or greater?
• Is the microphone omni-directional?
• Is there a delay with the audio/video transmission of the pictures?
• Will it link to a document camera, computer or other presentation equipment?
• Do you have local and remote camera control?
• Is it portable for travel?
• Is it compliant with H.320 and T.120 protocols?
• How many and what kind of video inputs and outputs are there?