Adobe Acrobat 8 for Legal Professionals 7
whole documents are familiar paper-based tasks that have intuitive counterparts in Acrobat 8.
e typewriter tool provides a simple and eective mechanism for adding text to any PDF le.
Using Acrobat 8, these familiar tasks are performed more eciently, more eectively, and with
greater mobility than can be achieved with paper-based information.
e Comment & Markup toolbar in Acrobat 8 includes sticky notes (think 3M Post It™ notes),
highlighter, stamp, callout, and shape drawing tools. Each tool provides a unique method for
conveying information. e drawing tools—rectangle, oval, arrow, line, etc.—allow you to
visually mark an area of a PDF document with a graphic. Sticky notes, like their paper counter-
part, provide a familiar way to add information to PDF les. Acrobat catalogs all comments
added to a PDF le for yet another way to rapidly nd information. Acrobat 8 and PDF les are,
like text printed on paper, a way to display, organize, and annotate information. Acrobat 8 does
not replace the word processor. e information on paper documents cannot be changed other
than by adding markups; the same limitation applies to PDF les and Acrobat 8. While the real
work of text editing remains in the domain of word processing applications, Acrobat 8 provides
an application and operating system of neutral means for people to provide editorial markups
directly on works-in-progress.
Enhancing PDF les with Acrobat 8
Bookmarks, one of Acrobat’s easiest to use features, have many uses for legal professionals. PDF
bookmarks act like a paper-based table of contents, but with the power of electronic hyperlinks.
Just as a table of contents informs the person viewing a document what information can be
found at a given location within the document, so do bookmarks in PDF les. A bookmark in a
PDF le creates an electronic link; when the reader clicks on the bookmark, the referenced
information instantly appears. Consider a paper-based trial notebook where a change in content
requires rewriting the entire table. In contrast, the addition of new material to a PDF le requires
only the addition of a new bookmark. Remove content from the notebook and the corresponding
bookmark can be removed with a stroke of the delete key. If content is relocated within the
notebook, the electronic link remains intact and nothing further need be done; in other words,
bookmarks are sticky. A PDF trial notebook with bookmarks oers instant access to information
during trial without the distraction of physically turning pages.
Bookmarks bring order to otherwise unruly collections of discovery documents. When many
documents are combined into a single PDF le organized with bookmarks, Acrobat 8 acts like a
three-ring binder that holds the pages together with an electronic table of contents that links
table entries to the equivalent of divider tabs. Acrobat 8 also provides the sticky notes and
highlighters for calling attention to specic information on the pages.
Links are the essence of electronic briefs; they let the reader jump to other locations in the same
PDF le, to other electronic les, or to websites. Legal professionals should use links when they
want their readers to have immediate access to related information. Links can also initiate
actions, such as playing a sound or movie le. With Acrobat 8, documents led electronically
with a court can be much more than converted word processing les. You can add bookmarks,
highlights, and links to increase the persuasive power of your documents and provide better
advocacy for your clients. Links are not limited to static documents, such as cited authorities, but
can include connections to images, audio, and video les. Legal professionals can now provide
courts with briefs that permit immediate access to cited materials, regardless of whether the
citations are to legal authorities or exhibits. Electronically led documents, created with Acrobat
8, can be more persuasive by providing courts with more information in a format that facilitates
review and enhances the decision making process.
Search and nd information
Legal professionals oen need to nd information fast. Searching for and nding the informa-
tion you need faster, using Acrobat 8, means greater eciency and cost-eectiveness. Looking
“Adobe Acrobat and Adobe
PDF are easy to use and have
enabled us to advance the
way we research and build
cases. Adoption across the
rm has been rapid, even by
lawyers who are resistant to
new technologies.”
Scott Thomas
Director of Technology
Thomas & Kampsen Law Firm
