Leading lawyers from across Northern Ireland and the UK convened this morning for the start of the British Irish Commercial Bar Association (BICBA) conference.

The conference at the Royal Courts of Justice will examine the use and relevance of technology in the courtroom and in litigation.

Speaking ahead of the conference, Michael Humphreys QC, chairman of the Commercial Bar Association, said: “It is often perceived that the legal profession is resistant to change and slow to embrace new technology. However, in the field of commercial law, there is a growing awareness of how such advances can enable lawyers to better serve their clients’ interests.

“The British Irish Commercial Bar Association (BICBA) is meeting in Belfast to consider how the opportunities created by the digital age can be harnessed to make dispute resolution more efficient and effective.”

He added: “As well as impacting upon the practices and procedures of lawyers in and out of the courtroom, the technological age has also created whole new areas of litigation. The BICBA Conference will also focus on some recent developments in the field, including groundbreaking litigation against Facebook and Google.

“The BICBA Conference aims to address how lawyers should best adapt to the ever-changing expectations and demands of legal service consumers. The focus will be on how lawyers can best meet those demands in the 21st century whilst being cognisant of the risks and challenges presented by the digital age.”