A reader called the other day to propose an idea for a feature in the Gazette. Usually our features editor is a tough nut, but on this occasion he was impressed enough to invite the caller to email the piece in. Except it turned out that the reader, a practising solicitor, didn't have email. ‘I’ve got a computer but I don't connect it to the internet,’ he explained. ‘I asked a friend in the police force whether I should, and what he told me put me right off.’ Our reaction was a blend of astonishment and admiration that members of the profession are still resisting the online world. As long ago as 2001 (1 May), the Gazette reported confidently that ‘the age of the legal technophobe seems to have gone for good’. Back then, 77% of solicitors had access to the interweb thingie – although there were still a reasonable number who viewed the electric typewriter as a major step.

And our colleague may not be alone. The government announced last week – on National Get Online Day – that a third of Britons don’t use the internet. Apparently one in ten suffers an alarming condition called ‘deep exclusion’. Sound like anyone you know? We’d love to hear if any more solicitors are holding out.