Looking back in the archive for an old post, I realise to my astonishment that this blog is one year old. Granted, the years do whip past more rapidly as there are fewer of them left, but blimey, where did that one go?
One answer to where that one went is 165 posts. That’s more than one every three days, not including holidays. I begin to see what Charon QC meant when he described Nearly Legal as ‘a prolific blogger’. I really must get out more.
But it has been quite a year, both personally and for UK legal blogs.
The events of Nearly Legal’s year are all there in the archive. One of the benefits of a backup digital memory being no need to reminisce at length, I’ll say no more about it.
This blog seems to have started up at what was apparently the tipping point for a lot of people, as pretty large numbers of legal blogs began appearing soon afterwards. A lot of student blawgs, yes, but also some barristers, some fewer solicitors and a very few firms, the PJH and Impact blogs most notably. Of course, I claim the credit for all this. Apres moi, la deluge.
The success of Lawblog 2007, despite my absence, is an indicator that, although still pretty far from mainstream, this is a rapidly developing and expanding field. Whether the happy communality of the present will continue into an expanded and no doubt specialised future is, of course, doubtful. But I hope it does.
And for the next year of Nearly Legal? That is far too forward thinking. For the time being, I’ll stagger on and see what happens. Much like the legal system at present.
Congrats, NL.
I think I tipped slightly before you; my first post on http://www.conflictoflaws.net was on 7th April 2006. My personal blawg, of course, is much younger than that.
I do think we have a lot more growth to come. We still do not have what one might call a “super-blog”, like the Volokh Conspiracy or Instapundit in the US. I also think a QB/CA/HL blog along the lines of SCOTUSblog would be a good thing. We are certainly living, and blogging, in interesting times.
Damn, so I’m part of the apres Martin George deluge.
I agree completely on the possible growth to come. The lack of academic/commentary blawgs is notable, present company apart, of course. Someone should get a blog or two registered for the rquirements of the Research Assessment Exercise (Is that still going? I’ve been out of that world for a few years).
Happy Birthday – how does it feel to be 1 again?! Having only been going since February you seem like an ‘old timer’ to me! Hope you’ve had a happy day – chocolate cake and all of course. L2B :-) (PS I am reliably informed that the RAE is alive and kicking … don’t know that blogging would be sufficiently ‘high brow’ to satisfy the powers that be!)
The RAE beast still lives among us, yes (due out of hibernation in 2008). I don’t think I’ve got the willpower, or inclination, to do an RAEblog, however.
Even worse than being apres moi, by the way: Geeklawyer started way before either of us.
Birthday felicitations to Nearly Legal! Like the title of your post – great minds! :-)
L2B – Many thanks. No cake sadly. I think a blog could be RAE worthy, but not a personal one, obviously.
Martin – Oh yes, there were certainly people blogging before, Geeklawyer, Charon, Binary Law and of course, John at Family Lore spring to mind, but there has been a bit of an upsurge in second half of 2006/early 2007.
John – Ah but I capitalised the ‘One’. I’m no lazy plagiarist ;-)
Congratulations. Scary stuff. My blog will be a year old on June 26th, time certainly flies when you are enjoying yourself!
The years pass…. Charon is getting older… but… thankfully – not wiser
Many happy returns… keep on truckin…. as we used to say when I was a rocker / hippy…
Charon
Thanks, Lynne & Charon. There’s nothing like a looming sense of mortality on a Monday morning to perk you up.
Congratulations on hopefully the first of many