I'm a "transactional lawyer" who negotiates contracts, forms companies, handles regulatory issues, and advises on strategy. That's as opposed to a "litigator" who handles court cases. But I've actually seen practitioners outside my own specialty who've integrated newer technology much more deeply. Automated case assessment in some immigration practices, for example.

In my experience, there is some correlation between technology and age. But keep in mind that 55 year old lawyers were born in 1965, started coming out of law schools in the late 1980s, and became established in the early Internet era, before the bubble burst.

Part of what you're getting at might be down to how the role of older lawyers tends to change, especially in firms. I would say most older lawyers in transactional fields do far more advisory and strategic work, akin to consulting or even lobbying, than issue research, contract review, or routine drafting. If the senior partner's working pretty old school, but all the junior partners, associates, secretaries, and paralegals under them use their own tools, that's still a pretty newfangled picture, overall.

Part of it may also be certain specialties that deal routinely with government bodies, like court systems and regulators, with their own adoption curves. But don't jump to conclusions there based on standards for consumer technology. The websites may look clunky, and the interfaces may be pretty retro. But the databases involved are often functionally complete, resilient, and workable for the severely outnumbered public servants that use them most.