Google Glass helping local law firm’s clients

PHOENIX — A local law firm is using the latest technology to help make its clients’ lives easier and get a first-person view into some of the challenges they face.

Phoenix law firm Fennemore Craig near 24th Street and Camelback has recently begun giving pairs of Google Glass to injury clients, which attorney Marc Lamber said has had a noticeable impact.

One example of such a client is Gary Verrazono, who lives in Nevada and is a double amputee after losing an arm and a leg in a forklift accident.

“Losing two limbs, I have a hard (time),” said Verrazono. “Things seem simple to some people, but like me washing dishes, folding clothes (and) driving is very difficult now.”

Verrazono said Google Glass has made completing his daily routine easier, as well as staying on top of his lawsuit.

“I can communicate with my attorneys easily (because) it’s voice activated,” he said. “I can connect to them 24/7, I can stream videos to them or I can pull information from the cloud so that I can see it immediately.”

Using technology to help its clients is nothing new for Fennemore Craig. Lamber said they have been using iPads to help clients better communicate with them for a while, but Lamber said Google Glass has taken the benefits to a whole new level, especially for disabled clients.

“It really is a remarkable tool for someone that has the limitations that Gary does,” Lamber said.

One of the most important things Google Glass can provide for attorneys such as Lamber, is a first-person view into the lives of clients such as Gary, which can then be relayed in court. Sometimes that is video of the difficulties in Gary’s routine, or the difficulties of simply being different than others.

“What is it like to be a double amputee? Do kids stare at him, do other people stare at him?” asked Lamber. “You’re going to see people looking at him; you’re going see when his head starts to turn away how other people start to turn toward him to look at him.”

But it’s more for Gary than just a camera strapped to a pair of glasses, according to Andrew Clawson, personal injury practice manager at Fennemore Craig.

“What we love too about Google Glass is that it’s integrated with all of Google’s services,” said Clawson. “It’s integrated with the cloud so it’s different than if Gary just had a GoPro (camera) strapped to his chest, or a GoPro strapped to his head … he would have to take the memory card out and put it into the computer, but when Gary shoots a video (on Google Glass) it’s automatically uploaded into the cloud.”

Clawson said there is a slight learning curve for clients using Google Glass, but most people seem to pick it up quickly.

The firm currently has about four or five pairs of Google Glass that it has bought from third party sellers. Lamber said the technology will continue to improve and they will look to buy more when Google releases a consumer model.

“This is not even the first generation, this is in beta testing,” Lamber said. “The fact that it can do these things now, image what it’s going to do in the future.”

Video courtesy of Lambergoodnow.com.