Forget Virtual Law Offices; Say Hello to Virtual Reality Law Offices
Imagine this, if you will: You wake up in the morning, have your breakfast, take the dog for a walk, sit down on your sofa, grab your VR headset from the wireless charging pad, put your VR headset on, and commute to the office at the speed of the internet. The virtual reality office could be a real boon for law firms and clients, big and small.
Early adopters may be chanting "take my money," but sadly this is still in the fantasyland of early production. A San Francisco based startup, named Meta, however, is keen on getting us to the fantasyland dream of showing up to court as a fully suited up lawyer hologram, while really just eating cereal in our pajamas on the couch. Meta makes an augmented virtual reality office space to transform office empty spaces into offices filled with every necessary piece of software, hardware, scale models, and more.
How Close Are We to Virtual Reality Offices?
As we sit here today, it is actually possible to set up a virtual reality office. Unfortunately, it will be costly and likely not that accessible to clients, or useful for showing up to court. But, the fact that the technology exists and is starting to see use holds some promise for the lawyers of tomorrow.
Luckily though, if privacy is what you are after, a virtual reality room of your own might be just right for you. Another company, Envelop VR, has developed a headset that puts you in an immersive world of the all too exciting Microsoft Office Suite.
All Geeked Out and No Place to Go?
Did you run to the closet and get your Oculus out of the box while waiting for the page to load (even though you're on a lightning fast connection)? If you did, good news, there's a place you can go online to have VR meetings and not have to shell out thousands to have something custom built for you. There's probably a few more services or platforms as well, if you want to go googling for yourself. And you can expect more to keep popping up as AR and VR continues to grow in popularity.
Related Resources:
- Tron Meets Justice: Virtual Reality in the Courtroom (FindLaw's Technologist)
- What's It Like to Be General Counsel of a Virtual Reality Company? (FindLaw's In House)
- Myths About Lawyers Working From Home (FindLaw's Strategist)
