cryptography eliminates lawyers?

As a follow-up to the article reference I posted, I pose the
following question:

Will cryptographic technology and information (communication)
technology reduce the need for legal services in the future?
(especially regarding contracts, buying/selling, patent law, etc.)
Will legal services just look different?  Will they be more
efficient (cheaper)?

Put bluntly, will cryptography put lawyers out of business?

Any comments would be appreciated.

Cort.

We wish!  We really wish!

==========================================================================
 + ^ + |  Ray Arachelian | Amerika: The land of the Freeh. |   _ |>
  \|/  |sunder@escape.com| Where day by day, yet another   |   \ |
<--+-->|                 | Constitutional right vanishes.  |    \|
  /|\  |    Just Say     |                                 |    <|\
 + v + | "No" to the NSA!| Jail the censor, not the author!|    <| n
==========================================================================

> Will cryptographic technology and information (communication)
> technology reduce the need for legal services in the future?
> (especially regarding contracts, buying/selling, patent law, etc.)
> Will legal services just look different?  Will they be more
> efficient (cheaper)?
> 
> Put bluntly, will cryptography put lawyers out of business?

I certainly expect the world of business to change and reflect the use of 
crytographic tech as soon as it becomes an acceptable practice to use it.
This may take awhile as the media and current administration continue to 
paint black anyone who wants to use such tech for any reason.

Should there come a time, however, when crypto is a fashionable and 
accepted thing, I would expect to see law offices offering to send and 
recieve documents using such tech, as well as generating and maintaining
keys off-site for clients. With such a legal hoopla being made over 
crypto, I can not fathom lawyers not getting in on the action.. 

While the need for lawyers may decline with the increased use of crypto, 
I do not think they are about to become an endangered species. Those that 
are smart will find a way to profit from it, while those that can not 
adapt will be left behind (and who says lawyers are not part of evolution 
<g>)

RobL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                          SANDY SANDFORT
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

C'punks,

On Wed, 6 Sep 1995, Cortland D. Starrett wrote:

> Will cryptographic technology and information (communication)
> technology reduce the need for legal services in the future?
> (especially regarding contracts, buying/selling, patent law, etc.)
> Will legal services just look different?  Will they be more
> efficient (cheaper)?

The U.S. legal system is in free fall, and lawyers are almost
totally to blame.  ("Lawyers" as used here includes all judges 
and most legislators.)  This does not mean, however, that 
cryptographic/information/communications technologies can forgo
the use of advocates and arbitors.  There will always be a place
for people who can fulfill these functions.  They may or may not 
be called lawyers, but most of the same folks who now go into 
law, will be the dispute specialists of cyberspace.


 S a n d y

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~