Managing The Long Nine: Essential Software for the Modern Law Practice By You know when formerly avant-garde concepts begin to worm their way into the lawyers’ ethics canon, that it’s finally time to pay attention. So it is that technology has been awarded its moment, as More importantly,. It has been clear for quite some time that technology is essential to the modern practice of law — but now, the application of technology directly and formally implicates the more general question of a lawyer’s competence. Lawyers who have traditionally prided themselves on buying a local software application with a single log-in and using it until the wheels fell off now have to be at least thinking about upgrading their technology platforms.
If you have management responsibility within a law firm or legal department, then ALPMA is for you. ALPMA is the peak Australasian professional membership.
In addition to the dictates of the ethics rules,. I know, right?
Here, take this cold compress. Fortunately, options for law practice technology have proliferated. Driven chiefly by cloud-based options , the present-day state of law firm technology is robust, to say the least. In fact, the sheer magnitude of choice is probably overwhelming. To add to the mix, lawyers can choose between lawyer-specific and general business tools — to put flesh to that bone, consider that you could purchase a legal-specific case management system, like, or a general business management program, like, that is nevertheless used by lots of lawyers.
(To complicate matters further, you should For some reason, providers unfocused on this industry still think most lawyers have a lot of money. Suckers.) All of this combines to mean that one of the chief reasons law firms do not update their technology more consistently is because they’re simply paralyzed by the magnitude of the decision. If you have to choose among 100-plus options for document management, how do you effectively arrive at a decision — when you have a different full-time job?
Hell, this is my full-time job, and I can’t even keep track of it all. It’s true, the array is staggering. The Breakdown: Law Practice Management Software Now, I’m not, but even I’m not brave enough to try to build a buyer’s guide for law firm technology. In large part, that’s because such a guide would be outdated as soon as it’s written down, a paper book being worth less than the paper it’s printed on.
As it stands, I’m bound to receive urgent emails from each vendor I leave out of this post. Yes, to the subject of this post: Rather than dream, I will instead attempt a list of the types of products you should acquire for your modern law firm. Below, I’ve identified categories of software firms should use to take best advantage of the wide array of programs available for streamlining law practice management.
Productivity software. If there is one thing lawyers universally understand, it’s that they need productivity software to do all the basic things required of desk jockeys: emailing, drafting, creating presentations, building spreadsheets and databases. (Wherefore art thou,?) The archetypal example is the suite, now gone. But everybody knows that what you really need is (say it with me):! (I kid, because I care.) In real time, Microsoft Office is not the standalone version it had once been. The main challenger to the Office arrangement is, which features its own productivity suite, in league with Gmail.
( is Microsoft’s answer to the cloud.) A number of exist, for those stout of heart, and light of wallet. PDF conversion software. If you want to — and who doesn’t these days, let’s face it — a PDF conversion program is a must-have, since most law firms still, at least, receive paper documents. PDF conversion software allows you to scan paper to PDF and, where necessary, you can then apply to your scanned images — that renders the text, so you can edit it. Among other general features, you’ll be able to package PDFs; add encryption, remove metadata and build forms. Continues to be the leader in the clubhouse, but is a lower-cost alternative. Free conversion tools, with enterprise-level options, include. Any scanner you purchase is likely to include at least some level of built-in software.
Document automation/document assembly software. I shudder to think that there are not insignificant pockets of lawyers out there still dedicated to mail merge, or worse yet, typewriters. But clearly, there are better ways to build documents in this bright future. A document automation program allows you to customize existing templates in a number of ways, including by adding client information. Clause libraries let you insert non-generic/non-boilerplate clauses into documents requiring specialization. Many document automation tools feature plug-ins to Microsoft Word — so you can draft within a native interface. Some document assembly software offers a Q&A interface, which can be particularly helpful for training new associates.
Some vendors will add your templates to their system at no cost, or at some cost. If you start by using and, you’ll get a freeview of what document automation can do for you. If you wish to step up to the pay-for-play leagues, is an inexpensive product that integrates with Microsoft Word. Is probably the granddaddy of them all. Is a rising entrant in the marketplace. Is primarily a case management system; but, its integration with Microsoft Outlook and Word allows users to build and maintain documents, too., a new entrant in the United States, but already a big player for case management in Australia, offers, to boot., and are popular, not only but especially, in certain tight circles of Mac users.
Document management software. Although most document automation tools feature some level of document management control, generally speaking, standalone document management tools offer more robust versions of those features, or different features altogether. Major features common to a number of these applications include version control, check-in/check-out features (an additional level of access control), integration with existing folder systems (Google Drive, your server), integration with related software (Microsoft Word, Outlook), offline access/briefcase, matter management, labeling/tagging and global search capability (with in-depth search functionality) — alright, that’ll do. Law firms capture and reference documents more than any other sort of data — so, especially if you’re working with a team, it may be that a document management system is a requirement for proper organization and ultimate efficiency. Some major systems in this field include (reviewed, and very price-competitive), and iManage. At this point, many case management companies are building out better document management tools, so some law firms choose to utilize those features rather than buy a separate standalone package.
In some cases, integration between case management and document management software already exists (for example, ). Time and billing/accounting software. My intention was to break out time and billing software from accounting software.
The truth of the matter is, that’s a crooked road upon which to try to draw a straight line. Pretty much every accounting program has time and billing features, and many time and billing applications feature at least some semblance of accounting features.
For the majority of solo and small law firms, a time and billing/accounting program needs to do four things: offer a convenient time-capture method, include an invoice construction feature, provide robust reporting tools and allow for trust account reconciliation management — or, at least, be customizable to that end. Obviously, having the ability to track time, and to export that time log to an invoice template that can then be finalized is a good thing. Reporting tools I speak of broadly; but the thrust of the matter is that you should be able to filter for certain information, review accounts receivable, determine billings for individual attorneys, manage collection status, etc. The tools you choose will, in large part, depend on your tolerance for the DIY lifestyle. The fallback position of lawyer is to use paper timeslips, a notebook and paper invoices — don’t do that. The next rung on the ladder would be a computerized spreadsheet tool of some kind.
Is a personal account management tool that many businesspersons use, and is ’s enterprise version software. ( is a QuickBooks competitor based out of New Zealand.) In between are business accounting programs like (which is free) and (which is not). This is before one even arrives at the doorstep of legal-specific time, billing and accounting tools. Continues to provide some of the best focused trust accounting features around, and is a basic, Windows-based product that a number of small firms use. Is sticking around. Most case management software systems include some level of accounting functionality, whether built into the systems or integrated with them, potentially through the fulcrum of an. The maintains a list of time and billing products, which includes some of the traditional standard-bearers.
And, if you like your time tracking separate from your billing, there are a number of, including those that. Case management software. Case management software (sometimes referred to as practice management software) purports to be, in that it will wrap the majority of common features for law firm management into a single, accessible package. Generally speaking, case management software includes:. Contact management (with global search for conflicts checks). Email archive. Document management.
Calendar management (with sync options for your existing email/calendar system). Time, billing and accounting Some of the major vendors have built APIs allowing third parties to write applications for their programs — so, if you want to use QuickBooks, for example, you can use it within your case management system. Some vendors eschew the use of APIs on the theory that a case management system should provide (internally, natively) whatever features the law firm will need, such that there is no need to purchase any additional software. Many of the primary case management vendors operate cloud-based systems, and those running local applications are adding cloud-based features or access options.
There is a clear and ongoing shift to the cloud when it comes to case management. In fact, some providers, including and, already offer remote desktop technology infrastructures, including case management.
Now, since I have had a great deal of trouble keeping track of all of the case management systems, I’m going to try to this bad boy. These are providers of which I am aware:,. I told you there are a lot of these.
Now, onto the crowdsourcing. Here is my challenge:. If you are a vendor I’ve listed, post your very brief product pitch in the comments section at the end of this post. If you are a vendor I have not listed, heavily curse me under your breath for several minutes, then place your very brief product pitch in the comments section, and I will add you to the above list.
Sorry, there’s nothing I can do for you, Rita. You should know better by now. Data backup tools. Since that’s the case, it makes good sense to back up the data you already have. Because no one system is fail-safe, though, you may set your mind far more at ease by using two systems in conjunction — and it probably makes sense to pair a local backup with a cloud version. Customer relationship management (CRM) software. Using data to drive marketing decisions is next-level law firm management.
Allow you to better render the data you take in — assuming you take it in effectively in the first place. If you do, a CRM will provide basic contact management tools, including the ability to add notes to files, and more robust features that will walk you through the many pathways from leads to conversions. Gaining a better understanding of how you close business will help you to close more of it, when you learn what tactics are successful, and which ones are not. Default and custom reporting features facilitate running reports across the collection of your data.
This reporting functionality (including, potentially, charts and graphs) gives you a visual window into your progress. Integration with information from web and social tools, as well as phone call-tracking functionality, combine to make a CRM your one-stop shop for analysis of your marketing platform.
(reviewed and ), and are the only legal-specific, standalone CRM products of which I am aware. (Again, source me crowd!) Some case management systems feature CRM tools as well, but those are in the most nascent of development stages.
While there may be a lack of legal-specific programs, a number of general CRM apps can easily be converted to law firm use, including free products like,. Is the big kid on the playground, in terms of a general service CRM. Other paid programs of note. Internal communication platform. (Even Yeah,.) That’s what’s so vexing about unfiltered spam — you don’t have to reply, but you still have to delete it. Many law firms are turning to restricted-access, internal communication systems, sometimes referred to as enterprise social networks. Programs with calendaring features allow you to assign tasks and make notes on those items.
(Of course, are available — is a free one — and a reasonable argument can be made for including project management as a separate category here. At the moment, though, I don’t know that there is a lot of adoption or even realization of a need for adoption in solo and small firms.) The staggering rate of adoption of, an internal conversation engine, underscores businesspeople’s perceived need for products like this. (These are kind of like the spiritual, less perverse descendants of ) With, abound, including,. Is an internal communications platform, with additional case management features, that is focused on the legal vertical. What Did I Miss? Is there is a of law practice management applications?
Let us know what you think! Corrected Feb. Illustration ©iStockPhoto.com.
Correia is CEO of, which offers subscription-based law firm business management consulting services for law firms, bar associations and corporations. Red Cave also works with legal vendors to develop programming and content.
Jared is also COO of, which offers intelligent messaging and predictive analytics software built exclusively for law firms. A former practicing attorney, Jared has been providing services to lawyers and law firms for over a decade. He is a regular presenter at events and regularly contributes to legal publications, including his Attorney at Work column, his for Lawyerist and his for Above the Law focused on legal technology startups. He is host of the podcast and teaches for,. He loves, but respects.
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