Seven Reasons Why Law Firms Need Law Practice Management Software

Attorneys that want to keep their law firms competitive need With all matter-related information stored in one to get better at managing them. One way to do that is by centralized location, attorneys have instant access to adopting law practice management software. These types any matter information they need. If a client calls with a of solutions let firms leverage their internal information question related to their matter, simply open up the matter and streamline their workflows. Not only does it make legal in your practice management system to quickly find the work a lot easier, it also provides multiple benefits at a very answer. If you need to find a document you were working on reasonable cost. Let’s look at them more closely. last week, run a quick search to find exactly what you need. This can all be accomplished within a single application. 1. At the Outset of Your Matter Law firms often scan everything, then repeatedly print 3. Track Contacts out those scans as they create different versions for their Enter contact information once, and the law practice files. A law practice management system provides tools management system will store it for easy access when you for saving and working with electronic files. So, instead of need it in the future. If you work with the contact on another having a file with 10 or 12 versions in it, you have a single matter, you don’t need to reenter their information; just document that tracks changes. note their involvement in the matter file, and the matter management system will automatically insert their details The potential for human error inherent in handling paper files is also eliminated. For instance, if an electronic This comes in handy when you’re working with the same document is saved to the wrong matter, you can easily find person on multiple cases. You’ll be able to see every it by running a quick search with a fact or name. That’s not matter that involves the person, so you can discuss them possible with a misfiled piece of paper. all in a single communication, saving multiple emails and phone calls. 2. Efficiently Manage Matters The best law firm practice management systems provide 4. Streamline Time and Billing and Financial robust legal matter management to ensure that all of the Performance Reporting information related to a given matter is easily accessible in Too many attorneys are still using a notepad, index card, one location, including: or Post-it® note to track hours. They then pass those • The parties and their contact information haphazard “records” along to their assistant to compile • Emails and other communication invoices every month. Heaven forbid that they want a • Documents financial report, because that means the assistant must • Notes and tasks spend hours scouring and compiling records in order to • Matter calendar build a single spreadsheet. • Research Tracking time in the legal billing software component • Time records and expenses of the firm’s law practice management system is quite • Invoices liberating in comparison. With the click of a timer on the • Matter financial information practice management system’s online dashboard, you can expensive and time-consuming for you to attain on your record time and activity. These time entries, along with any own. This can include a built-in secure client portal that expense entries, can quickly be added to a professional encrypts documents and messages, so you can securely invoice in a few clicks. In addition, you can easily edit and exchange information with clients. Furthermore, it can update the invoice before it goes to the client. track every action taken regarding this information, so if a client insists that they never got a response, you can easily Because time record, expense, and invoice data are all access your time-stamped records from the client portal to stored in the practice management system, you can easily get a definitive answer and address their concerns. view and create financial reports, including total billed dollars, total collected dollars, aging accounts receivable, and write-offs, to name a few. This makes tracking and 6. Make Collaboration Painless understanding the profitability of your matters—and your The unexpected can happen. If someone is suddenly out firm—so much easier. of the office or a disaster strikes, can you easily access everything you need to keep matters moving forward? With 5. Reduce Malpractice Exposure law practice management software, you’ll be able to move forward almost as if nothing has happened because all the Missed deadlines: Many malpractice insurance providers matter details will be organized and updated in a single give discounts to firms that use automated rules-based online location. legal deadline calculator technology, which is a convenient component within some law practice management In addition, keeping the entire matter team up to speed systems. Discounts are offered because these tools virtually is effortless. You can stop wasting time sending multiple eliminate human error in calculating legal deadlines. The emails and manually tracking drafts and edits. In law legal calendaring component allows you to automatically practice management software, updates on documents calculate legal deadlines for every matter. If any deadline and calendars happen in real time so everyone is always on rules change, you receive proactive notifications that alert the same page. you to them, and you can choose to update your dates to accommodate the new deadline rules. 7. Expand Your Workplace Conflicts of interest: You also can reduce the risk in your Cloud-based law practice management software allows conflict-checking process. Too many conflict-checking you to work from anywhere there’s Internet access, whether methods depend on memory. In contrast, conflict checking that’s the courthouse, your home, or the airport. And you with a practice management system is much more can access the system from your smartphone or any other reliable, because a simple search across the entire practice Internet connected device. You don’t have to struggle management database—including files, text documents, and with logging into virtual private networks that are only images that have undergone optical character recognition— accessible from computers. will provide you with a list of potential conflict results. Because of all these benefits, it is clear that law firms Data breaches: Malpractice suits around cybersecurity would be wise to invest in a practice management were unheard of not too many years ago, but now law firms system designed especially for a legal practice. Making are being sued for not doing enough to protect confidential the investment now will pay off several times over. You’ll information. Always remember that you are a target stop duplicating effort, and you’ll stop wasting time because you have information that hackers want, from and resources by manually completing work that can Social Security numbers to merger details, so cybersecurity be done automatically and accurately within a practice needs to be one of your top priorities, if not the number- management system. As a result, it will be much easier for one priority. Good law practice management software can you to thrive under the unprecedented pressures all firms instantly provide world-class security that would be too are facing today.