By Philippe Cloutier

Fastcase, the new kid on the block who is growing up right before our eyes, ramps up its marketing and advertising game by highlighting some very special people in the legal community. The Fastcase 50 comes to us with this announcement:

“We are pleased to announce the inaugural class of the Fastcase 50, the fifty most interesting, provocative, and courageous leaders in the world of law, scholarship, and legal technology. From lawyers and judges to librarians and government servants, here are your nominees and our picks for 2011.”

The list certainly has recognizable names often found in mainstream and contemporary legal library issues. And perhaps the names we don’t recognize will lead us to discover other topics concerning our profession. My non-scientific count found 8 or 9 librarians and many quasi-librarians in the mix.  Boosts in image such as this are exactly what our profession needs. We are serious professionals with a deep passion for our field. While the Fastcase approach is very corporate in comparison to the Librarian Rock Star campaign, both serve similar and valuable purposes.

As you’d expect the list is brimming with accomplishment. I’m only too glad to see those who make profound differences and evolutionary changes in our field receive the recognition they justly deserve. A quick glance reveals the faces behind Public.Resource.org, Justia, Findlaw, Law.gov, and the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction. A deeper look reveals the bloggers and authors who shape policy and legal information dynamics. My concern for the Fastcase 50 is next year’s nominees. The 2011 list is new and captures those with years of service and experience. The pool will be more shallow and it will be interesting to see the list in years to come.