ExhibitView: Trial by iPad
Thursday, December 22, 2011 at 10:40AM ExhibitView were kind enough to let me have an evaluation copy of their new iPad app.
For the uninitiated, ExhibitView originates from the USA and it is aimed at trial attorneys (which means I am not really the target audience as I never go to Court).
It replaces the traditional paper bundle of exhibits and allows the laptop (or iPad) wielding attorney to hook up to a large screen or projector in Court and walk the Judge and Jury through the relevant exhibits.
I don't know how IT savvy the UK Courts are (maybe one of my readers can answer this), but I presume that the same setup would be possible over here.
The iPad app allows documents or folders to be imported from a DropBox acccount, but I understand that the PC version of ExhibitView will be updated shortly to allow presentations created on the PC to be saved to the iPad.
I mainly tested the iPad version using documents, but it will also display images and audiovisual media in the same way.
It was fairly straightforward to get ExhibitView up and running on the iPad... just hit the familiar DropBox icon and import whatever files you need.
There is no need to own the desktop version either as you can simply import files in Word, PDF or whatever format. This isn't just a "companion" app and could be used as a standalone product.
Once you have the files imported you can re-order and annotate them using the various tools available.
However, ExhibitView really only comes into its own when you use it with an external display (it is worth noting that you need the appropriate adaptor for the iPad's dock connector to achieve this - luckily I have my Apple VGA Adaptor to hand).
When you connect the iPad to an external screen or projector and fire up ExhibitView it launches in "projector off" mode, which simply displays the ExhibitView logo on the external display (a nice touch as you know the connection is working and it keeps the projector powered up!).
Everything else is displayed on the iPad screen only until you hit the (red) button to switch on the display. I quite liked this as you can shuffle through documents or mark them up behind the scenes and display them only when you are ready.
You can see the basic interface and how it looks from the iPad end in the screenshot (click on the image for the full-sized version).
;)
One issue I had is that when the external display is enabled the document on the iPad screen shrinks to a tiny size which means it is hard to read or annotate (this could be something to do with my external display setup).
You can pinch to zoom in or out in the normal way, but this also affects the document on the external display. It would be useful to be able to zoom just the iPad screen so that you choose text to annotate or magnify without affecting the external display.
Once a document is loaded (and either before or after it is displayed) you can highlight text using a marker tool or draw lines or circles around it. You can also choose a specific area to zoom in on and fill the screen, which is very useful where only part of a document is relevant.
I would like to also see a laser pointer feature using the iPad screen (as featured on Apple's KeyNote iPad app) so you could point to specific pieces of text. I also couldn't figure out how to change the highlighting colour although I'm sure there is a way to do so.
Generally I thought the iPad app was intuitive and easy to use and I can see how it would help a trial lawyer to work more efficiently.
I would really like to see a review of the package from a UK lawyer who specialises in litigation who could shed a bit more light on how it would work in practice in Court.
I also tested the PC version. The basic principles are fairly similiar, but it is clear that the desktop version is more powerful, but inevitably more complex.
It does come with a wealth of tutorials and documentation though which I'm sure would help to get to grips with it quickly.
I did have real problems with my monitor setup as I use a dual screen system with Ultramon. For some reason I found it impossible to prevent ExhibitView from treating my second screen as an external display and blanking it out. I'm sure some time spent with the documentation would sort this out.
The PC version would also benefit from a UK-centric review from an actual trial lawyer. Whilst it was impressive at first glance I really don't know enough about the use case in Court to give it a fair crack.
All in all, ExhbitView seems like an impressive tool for the forward thinking trial lawyer.
Personally, the simplicity and bulllet-proof nature of the iPad app is very attractive. This is the same reason why I like using the iPad to present using Keynote... it is "plug and play" in the true sense with none of the worries about settings, compatability etc. which I always seem to get when using a laptop.
However, the power user may well find that using the PC app to create presentations and then saving them to the iPad makes more sense.
If any readers who are involved in litigation work would be interested in producing a more detailed review then do give me a shout and I will see if I can hook you up with the developers.
ExhibitView for the iPad is available from the App Store priced at $29.99.
Peninsulawyer
A quick follow-up from the developers on a couple of points I raised:-
The size shrink when projecting is an iPad issue (which they hate too) and are looking at workarounds.
On the PC version you can get your second monitor back by hitting Alt+F12
Reader Comments (6)
Thanks for the review Jon.
I do litigation in the employment tribunal. Everything is paper-based, and the documents will all be held in a ring-binder file, with the tribunal panel, witness and advocates having their own copies.
There is no tradition in the employment tribunal of displaying documents on a projector screen. I imagine in the US this is useful in jury trials so that you can be sure that everyone is "on the same page", where you may have a jury, witnesses, judge and advocates.
I can't see this kind of app being used in the employment tribunal in the short or medium term. If it did come to be used, I'd have thought it would be of most use in the cases that have bundles of 1,000+ pages of documents, and with that amount of documentation I wonder if the iPad would struggle to keep up.
It looks like things are moving in this direction in criminal trials, though, if this is anything to go by.
Laurie
Does this work on portrait mode ?
Yes it does. You can rotate the iPad to portrait in the usual way or there is a software screen lock built in to the app to lock it into portrait mode.
Useful as otherwise you would have to switch out of the app to use the iPad software rotation lock which would mess up your external display.
Hi, I enjoyed the review of ExhibitView, for which I am the UK reseller. (www.hassnet.co.uk)
My experience to date is that solicitors are using this type of technology more in conferences with their client, than the courts. It gives them a safe practice ground. Business clients are already up to date with technology and have an expectation that their solicitors will be too. Simple tools like this create a powerful image with the clients.
ExhibitView was used in June this year in Birmingham Crown Court, in a money laundering case, where the defence advocates did their own presentation throughout the trial. This was a first for the criminal courts as generally the CPS engage trial consultants on their behalf and the defence teams are ignored in the process. ExhibitView gives the defence teams parity of arms and was a lot simpler to operate than the CPS solution.
I spent the first morning with each advocate (1 barrister and 1 solicitor advocate) to make sure the link up to the court system worked and to provide a safety net for the first few hours. After that the defence teams ran with the tools. This was a 6 week trial, so it was well tested. The teams involved are hooked and will be ready for the 1st April deadlline of the all electronic courtroom.
The reason why I selected ExhibitView to resell, is that it is so easy to operate, even the IT novice can operate it, and as ipads appear to be accepted by even those who fear technology, this match works.
Jacintha
You need to look at TrialPad. It is the leading iPad app for legal professionals. It's been out about a year and was ranked the Number 1 new legal product of 2011.
Thanks Lawrence.. I have read some good reviews of it. As it isn't really an area I work in it isn't something I have focussed on as it would be hard to justify the $89.99 price for something just to test.
I guess there will be more reviews from proper litigators as these apps start to filter into the Courtroom.