In my previous column, I highlighted a number of iPad apps that I thought would be of value to the legal profession. Here is the second round.
Legal texts
• Criminal Code of Canada — This app puts the Criminal Code, the Canadian Bill of Rights, the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the Criminal Records Act, the Canada Evidence Act, the DNA Identification Act, the Extradition Act, the Firearms Act, the Identification of Criminals Act, the Interpretation Act, the Motor Vehicle Transport Act, the Sex Offender Information Registration Act, and the Youth Criminal Justice Act onto your iPad. With an Internet connection you can access CanLII to find case citations and decisions for each section. ($9.99)
• Canada Income Tax Act — This iPad pocket book includes the Income Tax Act, the Income Tax Application Rules, and the Income Tax Conventions Implementation Act. ($9.99)
• The Government of Canada also has similar apps for a variety of other statutes including the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, Canada Labour Code, Canada Business Corporations Act, and more.
Mortgage calculators
(These are all iPhone apps)
• AM Canadian Mortgage Advisor — This app is described as a mortgage calculator, debt analyzer, and debt-management tool. (Free)
• Canadian Mortgage — This app will allow you to determine what monthly loan payments are likely to be for a fixed loan amount, given a particular interest rate and amortization period. The app will also calculate the total paid on the loan, including the total interest paid. (Free)
• Canadian Mortgage Payment Estimator — This app estimates payments for several payment frequencies for a given purchase price, down payment, rate, and amortization period. (Free)
• iMC — This app calculates monthly, bi-weekly, and accelerated bi- weekly mortgage payments when given a loan amount, interest rate, and amortization term for Canada and U.S. mortgages. The app will also produce a monthly payment schedule that can be produced or e-mailed. ($0.99)
News apps
• Canadian Newspapers and Magazines — This app allows you to use your iPad to automatically sync with 140 newspapers and magazines at launch. ($1.99)
• CBC News — Read and watch the latest CBC news from your region, across Canada, and around the world. There is also a CBC Radio app that lets you stream radio and a CBC TV app to watch “the hottest CBC programs.” (Free)
• CTV News: iPad Edition — This app lets you watch CTV News right from your iPad. (Free)
• CNN App for iPad — Use this app to watch live CNN Television, video coverage of live events, and video clips. (Free)
• The Globe and Mail: News — This app delivers up-to-the minute breaking news as well as access to the full range of content from across the Globe. Globe2Go offers an exact replica of the print edition of the paper. (Free)
• Free Press News for iPad — This app provides up-to-date news coverage from Canada and around the world. (Free)
• Radio Canada — Use this app to listen to Radio Canada. (Free)
Research apps
• Safari — This effective and innovative search browser is preloaded onto the iPad. It is by far my favourite iPad browser.
• Google Search — This app brings the power of Google to your iPad (Free).
• iLawyer — This app from Canadian Legal Resources allows review and research on Canadian Supreme Court documents. (Free)
• LexisNexis Quicklaw — Allows you to do quick law searches from your iPad. The app is free but you will need to pay for the searches as you would if conducting them from a computer. When downloading your case law, consider downloading the cases in pdf. You can then use one of the pdf programs (PDF Expert, Google Reader, ReaddleDocs, or iAnnotate) to highlight, mark up, or add notes to the cases as you go through them. If you are concerned about overloading your iPad, or wish to make the cases accessible from some of your other computers or for others, you can also use these apps to store your cases in the cloud.
• Thomson Reuters ProView — This app allows access to an increasing library of e-books available from Thomson Reuters, including books from Carswell. The reader app is free but e-books must be purchased. (Free)
Social Networking apps
• Facebook — This app allows you to use your iPad to log onto and use Facebook. (Free)
• Twitter — Allows you to use your Twitter account from your iPad. (Free)
Telephone Communication apps
• Skype —This app allows you to Skype directly from your iPad. (Free)
• Google Talk — Similar to Skype, but free for calls to landlines in Canada and the United States. (Free)
• Talkatone — Unlimited free calls and texts to anyone in the world using Wi-Fi or 3G/4G. (Free)
Timekeeping apps
• iBillable Hours ($9.99), Time Sheets ($1.99) — These apps allow you to record your time.
Translation apps
• Google Translate — This app allows you to translate words and phrases in more than 60 languages. With this app you can speak your phrase and hear the corresponding translation. (Free)
• Translator with Voice — With this app you can translate a sentence into a variety of other languages. ($2.99)
• Multi Lang Dictionary and Translator + Text to Speech — This app uses an online dictionary and translate services. (Free)
Utility apps
• Air Sharing for iPad —This file-sharing app lets you transfer files to and from your iPad to other devices by basically turning your iPad into a wireless hard drive. You connect to the devices over a Wi-Fi network or through a web browser. Once connected, you can drag and drop files between your computer and iPad. ($7.99)
• Desktop Connect — This app allows you to use your iPad to connect to and control another computer whether your other computer runs Linux, Mac OSX, or Windows. ($14.99)
• mSecure - Password Manager and Secure Digital Wallet —This app is a password manager that uses encryption to protect personal information such as usernames, passwords, or any other personal information. ($9.99)
Weather apps
• WeatherEye HD, Weather+ Free, Celsius - Weather & Temperature, Weather Live Free — Each of these apps lets you find out the weather conditions and forecast for a particular area. (Free)
Word Processing and Note Taking
• Audiotorium Class & Meeting Notes — This audio-recording app allows you to record, organize, and share your audio and text notes. ($5.99)
• Documents To Go Premium — This app allows you to use your iPad to edit Microsoft Office files. It allows for iCloud storage using Box, Dropbox, Google Docs, iDisk, and SugarSync. ($16.99)
• Dragon Dictation — This easy-to-use voice recognition app allows you to speak and almost instantly see your text or e-mail message. It is surprisingly very accurate. (Free)
• Keynote — This presentation app allows you to do PowerPoint-like presentations directly from your iPad. If you have a PowerPoint presentation already created, you can import it onto your iPad for presentation via this app. Like PowerPoint, the app allows for a presentation mode which means you can have your personal speaking notes shown on your iPad while the slide only shows on the presentation screen. It also lets you store your presentation with iCloud. ($9.99)
• Numbers — This app allows you to create and work with spreadsheets that can be saved using iCloud. You can use the app to edit spreadsheets previously created using Excel. Likewise, you can export spreadsheets created with the app into Excel format. ($9.99)
• OmniOutliner — With this outlining program, you can organize your thoughts and ideas into a logical hierarchy. I could see this app being effectively used to organize briefs, legal opinions, witness examinations, meeting notes, speeches, or legal arguments. ($19.99)
• Pages — This word-processing app is specifically designed for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod. Once the document has been created it can be stored using iCloud so your document stays up to date across all of your Apple devices. ($9.99)
• SpeakWrite — This app allows you to record, transcribe, dictate with photos, and record telephone calls. Once you have made your recording, you submit the audio to SpeakWrite for transcription and it is returned within a few hours. There is a fee for the transcription service but the app itself is free.
• Penultimate — This app turns your iPad into a notepad. By using a stylus or your fingertip, you can write your notes or sketch a diagram directly to your iPad. Once you have taken your notes, you can save them, convert them to pdf, or send as an e-mail. ($0.99)
• Quickoffice Pro HD — This app allows you to organize, view, and edit all Microsoft Office files/formats as well as view pdfs. The file managers let you access, transfer, and manage files on your iPad via Evernote, Dropbox, Box, Google Docs, and more. The sharing feature allows you to publish your content using e-mail and social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and Scribd. ($19.99)
This list of apps is by no means meant to be exhaustive. There are literally thousands of available apps, many of which could be of particular value to lawyers in their law practice. If you are looking for a particular application, it is likely out there and ready for download.
Before downloading a particular app, read the reviews and see what other users have to say about it. Some apps are buggy and not worth having. Some apps may have some of the features you are looking for, but not all of them.
Be careful not to overload your iPad. You don’t necessarily need to have more than one app for the same function. As with any computer, you can overload an iPad and slow it down or otherwise cause it to malfunction.
Finally, as with any electronic device containing confidential information, make sure your iPad is password protected. To do this, tap the Settings icon. Next tap the General tab and then Passcode Lock. From there tap Turn Passcode On and set your password.
