# Coding for lawyers `kaal:entity:coding-for-lawyers` **Status.** derived This node is assembled mechanically from the 10 claims that carry the concept tag `coding-for-lawyers`. It is a roster of what the corpus says under this term. It is **not** an adjudicated definition: no single statement here has been ruled canonical, and no first-appearance call has been made. Read the claims and judge for yourself. ## Every claim under this term 10 claims across 2 works, 2017 to 2018. **2017** - [2939127-037](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/2939127-037) [condition/argued] -- Advising on blockchain contracts requires that law students and lawyers become familiar with the technology and learn at least basic coding as it pertains to Ethereum smart contracts. > In order to advise on blockchain contracts, law students and lawyers have to become familiar with the technology and learn at least basic coding as it pertains to Ethereum smart contracts. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P. M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in the Blockchain Revolution (2017). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2939127 **2018** - [3227967-002](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-002) [mechanism/argued] -- Lawyers have historically been most effective and most socially useful when acting as transaction engineers who facilitate new business and social relationships, and the engineering of the near future will largely be code based. > Historically, lawyers have been at their most effective – and socially useful - when they operate as "transaction engineers," i.e., facilitating new forms of business and other social relationships.6 It seems obvious that the "engineering" of the near-future will, to a large extent, be code-based. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-003](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-003) [condition/argued] -- The ability to understand and communicate with coders, as distinct from professional coding competence, is a necessary skill for the lawyer of the future, so law students benefit from grasping the basic concepts and power of coding. > However, we do believe that the ability to understand and communicate with coders is a necessary skill for the lawyer of the future. As such, we think that law students will benefit from understanding the basic concepts and power of coding. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-011](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-011) [condition/asserted] -- Legal tech will profoundly disrupt the legal profession, and because these technologies are code based, lawyers must be able to understand and talk about code in order to participate in designing them. > "Legal tech" will profoundly disrupt the legal profession18 and since these technologies are code-based lawyers need to be able to understand and talk about code to participate in the design of such legal technologies Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-012](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-012) [mechanism/argued] -- Since companies are increasingly managed by and run on software code, facilitating transactions, that is, acting as an active transaction engineer, now involves coding. > Since all companies are now increasingly managed by and run on software code, facilitating transactions – i.e., being an active transaction engineer - involves coding. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-015](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-015) [condition/argued] -- Contrary to commentators who predict the end of lawyers, the authors reject that claim but hold that lawyers of the future can only function as effective transaction engineers if they understand the power of code. > We certainly don't make this claim, but we do think that if the lawyers of the future are to function as effective transaction engineers, they are going to need to understand the power of code. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-026](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-026) [condition/argued] -- Because the new solutions rewarded by the future labor market will be code based, an understanding of code and coding will be essential to participate effectively in the digital world. > And since these new solutions will be code-based, an understanding of code and coding will be essential to participate effectively in our digital world. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-030](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-030) [condition/argued] -- Building lawyers' capacity to think about the social and ethical implications of code is both essential and inevitable, but saying anything sensible about the ethics of technology first requires understanding coding and coders. > Building the capacity of the lawyers of the future to think about the social and ethical implications of code is both essential and inevitable. But, to say something sensible about the ethical aspects of technology, it is necessary to understand both more about coding and coders. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-037](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-037) [definitional/asserted] -- The Coding for Lawyers course is not about teaching students how to code but about making them realize how important it is to think about their relationship with new technology and with technology experts. > It is not about teaching students "how to code," but about making them realize how important it is to think about our relationship with new technology and technology experts. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 - [3227967-040](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3227967-040) [mechanism/argued] -- Co-creation partnerships between developers and non-developers will be crucial to building a better digital future, and understanding coding is what enables lawyers to engage constructively with coders, programmers and other software developers. > "Co-creation" involving partnerships between developers and non- developers will be crucial to building a "better" digital future. And understanding coding enables lawyers to constructively engage with coders, programmers, and other software developers. Mark Fenwick, Wulf A. Kaal, Erik P.M. Vermeulen, Legal Education in a Digital Age Why 'Coding for Lawyers' Matters (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3227967 ## Verify Every claim above resolves to a record carrying a verbatim source quote, the sha256 of the source PDF, and a preformatted citation. Nothing here asks to be taken on trust. curl -s https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/coding-for-lawyers.md | sha256sum **Canonical form.** This markdown file is the canonical hashed representation of this entity node. Its sha256 is the content hash.