This is the first book to explore the broad influence of computers and television on the evolution of the American legal process. Katsh asserts that the electronic media have had an increasingly powerful impact on all facets of American law - its methods, values, and societal role. These changes, he argues, are related primarily to the appearance of new means of storing, processing and communicating information. Highly publicized legal cases, such as those involving libel verdicts, obscenity prosecutions, the First Amendment and other areas of media law have focused attention on only one part of the new media's impact on law. Katsh broadens the debate about the relationship between law and the electronic media, explaining the critical role of information in many different aspects of the legal process and arguing that the influence of new modes of communication can be seen in changes occurring in goals, doctrines, concepts, and beliefs that underlie our system of law. In the history of law, fundamental change has occurred very infrequently. This book looks at law in an evolutionary and historical light and explains why these new forms of electronic communications may be the trigger for one of these rare transformations.

This book is about how the legal profession has been and will be revolutionized by technological change. Katsh examines the nature of the new technologies for communication and provides insights into what the legal future will look like. Throughout, he considers what kinds of law-related interactions are becoming possible in the new electronic era, and how legal interactions (e.g. contracts, copyright) are being changed.

Highly publicized legal cases, such as those involving libel verdicts, obscenity prosecutions, the First Amendment, and other areas of media law have focused attention on only one part of the media's impact on law. This study, the first to explore the broad influence of computers and television on the future of the legal process, explains the critical role of information and argues that the influence of the new modes of communication can be seen in changes occurring in many areas of the law. These areas include the goals and purposes of law, the doctrines and rules of law, the processes law uses to settle disputes and shape behavior, the legal profession, and the values and concepts that underlie our system of law.