Using Blockchain to create trust in digital archives

Yesterday I was privileged to be part of a Blockchain workshop led by the “Digital Preservation Coalition” and hosted by the University of Surrey in Guildford. The UK’s National Archives at Kew are a big player behind the research, which goes under the clever name of ARCHANGEL. More here. I was made aware of the workshop thanks to a tweet from Alex Smith, Innovation Manager at Reed Smith in London.

The opening question that hooked me immediately was: “How can we assure the public that a digital record emerging from an archive is identical to that entrusted to it a century ago?”. Whilst not perhaps directly applicable to the legal profession it resonated enough for me to go and see what the answer might be.

Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology (i.e. a shared and mutually validated database) and I am not here going to explain how or if it can benefit lawyers, but I am unsure if the legal profession is the right environment for what is essentially a collaborative technology. What has been brought home to me, however, is how vital it is that businesses keep on top of what is developing around them to reap the commercial benefits as soon as possible. That is, to stay alive.

There is an on-going debate (largely in America) over whether lawyers need to code. Literally, do lawyers need to be techies? My answer is a most definite “No”, but like everyone they do need to be aware of emerging technical developments of potential benefit to them and their clients. Like it or not, with a dwindling arsenal of business differentiators IT is the new (-ish) USP and businesses need to be hunting for and bringing home the prizes to survive.

Although I’m not sure of the utility of distributed ledgers in the legal profession but the game ain’t over yet. I was quite vociferous during the workshop so I’m not sure they’ll want me back but I’ll be back like a shot if I can.

What yesterday reminded me of is how important it is to go and see the shiny new stuff. When you understand what it is being designed to do (often not what lawyers think they want or need) you can start the exciting process of working out how if can be applied to and/or adapted for the business and/or practice of law. This is the new Wild West, and it’s a very exciting place to be.