We’ve talked before about the importance of legal analytics and legal technology for law firms. If you’ve already made the leap to using a cloud-based legal management system, you might be overwhelmed by all the data it’s collecting. After all, most lawyers don’t moonlight as statisticians.

It’s difficult for leaders to know what metrics are the most important for the firm’s success in the long term and how to use those metrics to make higher-level decisions that help drive law firm profitability. The best way to start is by tracking the metrics with a convenient and easy-to-use tool that keeps them organized all in one place.

That tool is called a dashboard. Every law practice can use dashboards to easily track financial metrics, make informed decisions, and grow their business.

What is a dashboard?

A dashboard is a customizable page that uses simple graphs and visuals to monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) in real-time.

Usually, a dashboard is a landing page and part of a larger cloud-based law firm management platform. Dashboards provide law firm management with an easy-to-digest snapshot of the metrics and relevant data for their goals. Instead of struggling to understand the big picture, dashboards provide much-needed perspective and turn raw data into actionable information.

Dashboards are a tool to help law firms increase productivity and stay on track. They empower law practice management to monitor progress and make informed decisions that drive firm strategy, hiring, staffing, pricing, and more.

Dashboards aren’t just for law firm management. They can also help lawyers and staff monitor appointments, tasks, and individual metrics. Access to dashboards helps employees stay on task and improve their collaboration while allowing management to do a deeper dive into individual employee productivity.

What are data points?

Data points are raw numbers without any context. Data points are the building blocks for the information that is displayed on the dashboard. Data informs metrics and KPIs and the graphics that appear on your screen.

Legal technology platforms constantly collect data. For example, when timekeepers input data (like their billable hours or completed tasks) into a case management system, it is automatically populated and incorporated into other aspects of the software and may also interface with other technology solutions.

A great example of a data point is the number of employees in your law firm, the number of daily website views, or an employee’s time spent on a particular task, like billing. Data points are different from metrics because you can’t influence them. Data is data, no matter how you spin it.

What are metrics?

Metrics add meaning and context to data sources and inform KPIs. Metrics measure the overall health of a law firm. Law firms track key metrics to create KPIs that measure progress toward achieving a larger business goal.

Some examples of metrics are the actual minutes or hours that lawyers spend on particular billable tasks per week (instead of just a raw number), the lawyer turnover rate in the office, or the percentage of new clients who view the website and request a consultation.

What are key performance indicators (KPIs)?

KPIs reflect a law firm’s progress (or lack of progress) toward achieving a particular goal. They are forward-thinking data collected to analyze productivity.

KPIs are based on specific metrics related to different aspects of a law firm’s functionality, including budgeting and billing, education and training, overall client satisfaction, and internal processes. The law firm’s leaders identify a goal based on the metrics and then use KPIs to measure progress toward that goal.

KPIs based on our example above include reducing the time that lawyers spend on billing processes by 25% each month, generating 30% more clients in the upcoming year, or retaining employees for at least 3 years.

Data points are the foundation for a metric, which gives data meaning. Then the metric (or multiple metrics) are used to create a KPI and monitor progress towards a particular goal.

What are the best practices surrounding dashboards?

Dashboards are only as helpful as the information that they display. Even though they are simple, dashboards require some forethought to set up. Legal practice leaders should take time to customize their dashboards to be the most practical and effective.

Define your KPIs

Before using your dashboard, you’ll need to have KPIs. A clearly defined KPI helps you achieve your business goals. It keeps everyone in the office on the same page and makes your dashboard more useful. A well-defined KPI is SMART: it is specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound, meaning that it has a specific deadline.

A great example of a KPI is to bill 25% more hours in the first half of the fiscal year. This KPI is clearly defined so that every timekeeper can get on the same page. It is a realistic goal that can be measured and tracked throughout the designated period.

Declutter the dashboard

A dashboard is designed to be a snippet overview of your progress toward reaching KPIs and the health of your law firm. Most law firms have many different business goals that change over time. It is important that you declutter your dashboard and only focus on the most important KPIs for your purposes.

If there is too much information on your dashboard, it takes away from the tool’s simplicity. The more data that’s displayed, the harder it is to quickly digest important trends and track progress. As time passes and you reach certain goals, you can re-evaluate your dashboard and add or subtract KPIs as necessary.

Use multiple dashboards

The great thing about dashboards is that you can have more than one. Instead of having a dashboard that tracks everything under the sun, you can set up different dashboards for each area of the business. For example, you should have a dashboard dedicated to financial metrics and a separate one dedicated to client metrics.

Using multiple dashboards also lets employees track the metrics as they relate to their own performance and responsibilities. To reach your law firm goals, you’ll need to rely on your staff. By giving timekeepers access to their own dashboard and the ability to track their own metrics, it keeps them focused and sets clear expectations for their work. Instead of nagging lawyers about how they spend their time, they can self-monitor and make adjustments along the way.

What metrics should my law firm track with dashboards?

Your law practice can use a legal dashboard to track just about any metric. Law firms should consistently track financial, learning and growth, client services, and project management metrics for every practice area. Each of these categories should have a dashboard that reflects the KPIs related to them.

Of course, many of these metrics tend to relate to a law firm’s financials. After all, streamlining internal processes, increasing lawyer productivity, and having happy clients all affect revenue. An easy way to start is by creating a dashboard to track financial metrics.

What financial metrics should my firm track?

Small and mid-size law firms that want to grow will benefit from tracking some combination of the following financial metrics:

  1. Billable hours by timekeeper
  2. Average billing rates
  3. Revenue per lawyer
  4. Revenue billed vs. revenue collected
  5. Realization rates
  6. Collection rate
  7. Utilization rate
  8. Law firm debt
  9. Operating account balances
  10. Annual costs
  11. Accounts receivable outstanding
  12. Net income as a percentage of the revenue
  13. Overhead
  14. Fee per ongoing matter
  15. Fee per new matter
  16. Revenue per employees

Just because law firms should track all of these financial metrics doesn’t necessarily mean they should all be included on the same dashboard. Law firms need to take the time to identify the metrics that are specific to reaching their financial KPIs. Law firm management may opt to have multiple financial dashboards that subdivide these metrics even further.

What are the benefits of a good dashboard?

A well-thought-out dashboard can benefit a law firm by driving productivity and helping the overall business development. Dashboards help law firm leaders turn data into usable information to inform decision-making. They are an excellent tool to track financial performance and monitor the firm’s finances without wasting time staring at meaningless numbers. Dashboards can also be used in conjunction with other best practices, like reporting, to increase the bottom line.

Well-organized dashboards can also keep law firm management focused on the big-picture goals for the business instead of getting bogged down in the minutiae. Plus, dashboards can help keep everyone in the office on the same page about firm performance and give them the business intelligence they need to focus on their role in growing the firm.

As a lawyer, you’re no stranger to legal research and analytics. Data drives your practice and law firm as you review dockets, draft briefs, search SEC filings, and find deeds. But is your firm intelligently conducting research on and reviewing the analytics related to its bottom line? If not, it’s time to get started.

Your law firm likely already has some kind of reporting system, or at least a CRM, in place. The question to ask yourself now is whether your system is working and whether you’re taking full advantage of and properly reviewing all the data it produces. By putting the right tools and systems in place, your law firm and its administrators can have aggregated key performance indicators (KPIs) on important data at their fingertips. Reporting and legal analytics will give your law firm real-time, actionable insights into your productivity and profitability.

We understand that these concepts may be new to you. That’s why this article offers helpful tips that will help your firm maximize the value of your law firm data with the right legal analytics tools.

What is legal analytics?

Legal analytics is the process of collecting, organizing, and then applying data to the practice and business of law. The goal is to use the data you have to make more informed decisions that enable you to better manage your firm’s performance.

With the right analytical tools, your law firm can assess its own data and numbers to create helpful reports on all aspects of its business model and then take actionable steps to streamline workflows and increase its profitability. In sum, data analysis is a magic wand that can help your legal practice sort through the chaos and drive toward better performance.

How can analytics give my law firm a competitive edge?

Analytics gives your firm a competitive edge because you’ll be able to unlock the value within your data and gather business intelligence that you otherwise wouldn’t have. Your administrators will be given that magic wand to help maintain, improve and, if needed, transform your law firm.

For example, legal analytics can help you, your law firm, and your legal professionals and administrators forecast the ebb and flow of certain matters, strategize financially based on facts, and manage internal resources and teams more intelligently. You can view user-friendly data visualizations that graphically represent billable hours, money going in and out, and invoices.

We already know your next question. This all sounds great, but how does it apply practically to the nuts and bolts of my law firm’s practice and operations?

How can law firms use legal analytics and reporting?

Legal reporting software offers adaptive, real-time reports. Basic data points for legal reporting include billing, accounting, productivity, and compensation.

Through reporting and analytics, your law firm will be able to identify, for example, its highest paying clients and matters, figure out where the money is being made and where it’s being lost, manage staffing and track lawyers’ billable hours, ensure accuracy in origination credit and compensation matters, and use other raw data points to build complex spreadsheets and pivot tables to aid your firm’s decision making.

This translates to using legal analytics and reporting to set pricing, stick to realistic financial performance standards and targets, make informed hiring and employment decisions by knowing which specialty groups are growing and need more help and which are falling behind, track key client relationships, and allocate resources between departments appropriately. Financial reporting helps your firm reduce risk and identify cost-saving opportunities.

By reviewing internal data and creating customized reporting, law firms can use analytics in nearly all of their day-to-day operations, improving their profitability and functioning in both the short term and long term.

What types of reports should my law firm be running?

Each law firm has unique needs. A real estate boutique will need something different than a large litigation firm, and the types of reports run will vary based on those individual needs (and also show why customization is so very helpful).

Below is a list of examples of the types of reports your firm should consider when building out your reporting structure across all departments and practice specialties. For more detailed information regarding what these reports include and how often to run them, check out our legal analytics and reporting guide.

Legal analytics and reporting can support your law firm’s financial success

The right reporting and analytics will help your law firm administrators evaluate the health of your firm. They must be able to identify KPIs that speak specifically to the firm’s unique needs and determine how often these metrics should be monitored: weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually. Firm leaders will be empowered to make more strategic decisions because they’ll know just where the firm can and should grow and where it should scale back.

Legal reporting and analytics will undoubtedly help your law firm optimize its performance. Choosing smart legal analytics solutions and reporting tools makes it easy to develop a competitive advantage and keep your firm running smoothly all year long.

Once you implement the right analytics tools, you’ll find your firm is running smoothly and efficiently. To accelerate your progress, download our legal analytics and reporting guide, which will give you a deep dive into different types of reporting so you can choose the right reporting options for your firm.

It has been a challenging couple of years for the legal industry, requiring law firms to make unprecedented administrative shifts.

For many firms, business interruptions resulted in financial challenges that left leaders hesitant to invest in additional technologies. Far too many uncertainties remain and leaders recognize a need to be cautious with spending decisions.

Even with this reluctance, you can leverage legal technologies to your advantage by taking a critical look at your current usage and assessing what will be needed in the foreseeable future.

Every firm, regardless of size, can maximize its current technologies, but it takes strategy and analysis to make that happen. With evaluation, training, identification, and planning, you can get the most out of your current systems.

Evaluation

The first step for maximizing your current law firm technology is an evaluation of existing systems and how they are benefitting your firm.

Many firms implement technologies with a “set-it-and-forget-it” mentality without an ongoing evaluation of utilization, but important questions need to be asked on a regular basis, such as:

Technologies like legal practice management and legal billing software offer users a variety of features related to various aspects of law firm management. They also routinely introduce new features as innovations develop. One legal practice management software may include more than 20 features relating to everything from timekeeping to document management. With so many options, it's quite possible that many law firms only use a portion of what these platforms have to offer.

You should review each of your current technologies and their individual features. That information should then be compared with your firm’s needs to ensure that each technology is being utilized to its fullest potential. Upon doing so, administrators may ultimately find no use for additional technologies.

Another boundary to maximizing current legal technologies is a lack of usage among law firm personnel. There can be any number of reasons behind these discrepancies, including a lack of proper training, discomfort with new technologies, or an unwillingness to change traditional processes. Whatever the cause, firms can maximize current technologies by identifying usage obstacles and addressing them.

A technology analysis may reveal that some platforms are no longer vital to a law firm’s success. For instance, a recently implemented software may offer a feature that law firms once relied upon another platform to provide, making the older software no longer necessary.

Analysis may also reveal that a firm is still paying for technology acquired years ago even though it is no longer being utilized by firm members. This may occur because payments are automated or the firm administrator may routinely approve payment with no knowledge that staff members have stopped using the system.

Under both of these circumstances, firms may be able to find substantial financial savings by leveraging the most useful software and ending subscriptions for unnecessary platforms.

Training

Inadequate training creates another impediment to maximizing legal technologies. Employees cannot effectively use technologies if they do not understand how to navigate them. Law firms need systems to evaluate the employee skill base for each of its technologies. When deficiencies are identified, a training strategy should be implemented that addresses the need in a way that empowers employees to leverage technologies.

One of the first determinations that a firm administrator should make is from what source the training will commence. That includes who will conduct the training, the time commitment, and how much money will be allocated. The most cost-effective and timely resources for employee training are often found with the technology provider, where employee training programs may be included within the subscription packages. This is a useful resource for training staff members on a specific technology platform.

Training takes time and, especially in a law firm setting, time is a precious commodity. Administrators need to determine how much time will be set aside for necessary training, as well as how it will be managed among employees. Firms must be cognizant of their members’ already-full plates and develop a training schedule that does not overwhelm employees. Details such as training techniques and rollout methods should also be considered under the training umbrella.

The final consideration for the training piece is the cost of the training. Firms must recognize this expenditure as a necessary expense for maximizing current technologies. It is an investment in the firm’s growth that pays off with greater efficiency and increased productivity.

Identification

Part of assessing current technologies is identifying trouble spots that may be getting in the way of full maximization. The problem may lie in employee training, but the following impediments may also be at play:

Firm administrators should acknowledge these concerns and find ways to address them. Messaging is key when dealing with this type of pushback. Leaders need to understand the benefits of legal technology and how it can better position the firm for financial success.

Planning for Future Needs

After completing a detailed assessment of current technologies, you will have a more accurate view of your firm’s needs moving forward. You may determine that weaknesses identified during the analysis are best handled through new technologies, or law firm forecasting may demonstrate a future need that will require a different tech specialty.

Armed with the information gathered from evaluation, training, and identification, you can thoughtfully plan and make decisions about moving forward while also maximizing the firm’s current technical resources.

The billing department is the lifeline of a law firm, ensuring that the practice effectively bills and collects compensation for services rendered. Its reach extends from the time tracking phase to reporting on key financial metrics. If the billing department proves unsuccessful at fulfilling its duties, the entire firm may suffer fiscal losses, including inadequate cash flow and an inability to manage overhead costs.

Law firm billing departments typically have two major goals in mind. One is to streamline the invoicing process, so that timekeeping administrators can spend more hours on billable client tasks. The other is maximizing billing accuracy to promote timely payments and reduce client disputes.

Unfortunately, three common challenges may get in the way of these goals:

  1. Billing departments often lack the level of skill and functionality necessary for effective invoicing because billing experience can be spread throughout the firm. The billing department may have some limited expertise, as well as the administration and some of the attorneys. Even the highest level of experience can be useless when it's scattered and disorganized.
  2. Inadequate billing technologies lack the necessary tools and structures that firms need to maintain an invoicing process that meets the needs of their most sophisticated clients. Law firm billing departments require resources that match or exceed the demands made by their clientele. Particularly for firms working with corporate or third-party billing clients, comprehensive technology is vital.
  3. E-billing is still a relatively new concept for some law firms, requiring a level of knowledge that many firm members have not previously acquired. Therefore, billing departments are constantly seeking ways to strengthen critical skills and keep their staff members up-to-date with new technologies.

Practice management software can play a significant role in helping law firm billing departments overcome their challenges and meet firm goals. Keep reading to learn how.

Maximizing Department Manpower

Many law firm billing departments rely solely on a limited number of people to manage the entire invoicing process - from time tracking to invoicing and payment collections. If that handful of people becomes overwhelmed or unable to fulfill essential tasks, the entire invoicing process can suffer, creating a financial risk for the firm. This type of narrow setup is also vulnerable to personnel changes. The separation of even one member of the billing department could mean that a vital piece of the billing machine grinds to a halt.

Law firms cannot afford to trust such an important, business-critical process to only a couple of employees without safeguards in place that standardize the processes so that they can be learned and applied by other members of the firm when necessary. Tools like automation and e-billing help law firms create a systematic process that can be understood by managing partners and administrators, as well as easily taught to new members of the billing team.

Practice management software provides law firm billing departments the level of flexibility they need to maximize even the most limited staffing capabilities. It provides mechanisms for simplifying processes, eliminating the need for multiple software services, and systematically managing department tasks. Once firms set their billing processes in place using practice management software, they can ensure that their billing processes will successfully proceed, no matter what changes or limitations may occur within the billing department.

Improve Billing & Accounting Efficiency

Law firm billing departments take on a variety of responsibilities under the watchful eyes of firm managers, partners, and administrators. After all, every single firm member relies on the billing department to ensure that money earned translates into actual revenue (and payroll). With such high stakes, billing departments need streamlined processes that result in timely and complete collections.

Practice management software assists with this goal in a number of ways:

Another huge benefit of practice management software is the inclusion of trust accounting resources. Trust accounting is one of the most important law firm billing department duties. Inadequate practices can place firms at risk of potential ethical violations, but the right tools help billing teams handle trust accounting accurately and in compliance with jurisdictional requirements.

Legal practice management platforms offer all of these billing and accounting solutions in cloud-based software, which provides a level of remote accessibility that has become absolutely essential within today’s law firm environment. When unexpected business interruptions occur, law firm billing departments need the ability to continue invoicing and collecting payments. Cloud-based practice management makes that happen.

Accessing Billing Data

Law firm administrators and partners want detailed billing data that helps them keep a pulse on the fiscal health of the firm. Without this information, they cannot make informed decisions about the firm’s direction. Legal practice management software helps billing departments generate the reports that the partners need.

It only takes a few clicks to generate data-specific matters, practice areas, or the general ledger. Year-over-year reporting provides detailed comparisons between current and past years, while month-over-month reporting offers shorter timeframe reviews.

Practice management software allows law firm billing departments to customize their reporting and generate data sets relating to:

With comprehensive reporting, partners and law firm administrators can gain deep insights into a variety of additional firm details, including average hourly rates, budget compliance, law firm efficiency, and more. The modern e-billing solutions of practice management software give billing departments the ability to extract rich data from invoices and generate detailed reports that would otherwise take an inefficiently unreasonable amount of time.

Legal Practice Management Lessens the Workload of Billing Departments so Law Firms Get Paid Faster

The expansive responsibilities placed on law firm billing departments necessitate a system that streamlines processes and promotes maximum efficiency. Legal practice management software provides the features that improve processes and drive law firm revenues.

The dictionary defines real estate as property comprised of land and/or buildings. Just as that broad definition can include various types of transactions, the practice of real estate law encompasses a variety of different matters. While some real estate attorneys primarily focus on litigation cases, others may spend the majority of their time negotiating land sale contracts. These variations make customizable legal practice management features a must for real estate law firms.

A Look Inside Real Estate Legal Matters

There is a lot to consider when it comes to real estate law, including land use, purchase, rental, and compliance issues. To get a better feel for this expansive practice area, let’s take closer look at some specific real estate practice areas:

Residential Real Estate Transactions

These matters center around the sale of single-family homes between individuals or families. Attorneys working in this area tend to focus on assisting home buyers and sellers through the transactional process of buying or selling a home. They may also represent client interests when disputes arise over contracts, titles, financing, permits, or zoning.

Commercial Real Estate Transactions

These matters focus on the sale, rental, and purchase of commercial properties. They include issues related to contract review and drafting, construction and buildout, land use, easements, and restrictions. Commercial real estate attorneys may also offer advisement about financing issues.

Property Management

These matters may involve residential or commercial properties. Law firms usually represent the property owner and assist with conflicts over nonpayment of rent, lease term violations, and property use. Property management law firms may routinely appear in court for eviction or nonpayment procedures.

Agricultural Real Estate Transactions

These cases generally involve commercial or small family operations that are primarily used for agricultural needs. Attorneys working in this practice area may provide legal counsel to farmers and other businesses working in production agriculture or other farm operations.

Green Real Estate

This emerging area of real estate law reaches the residential and commercial sectors. Attorneys may focus on environmental issues related to contaminated land, or environmental restrictions, real estate cleanup, and the protection of buyers and sellers.

Collaboration Within Real Estate Law

A single real estate matter may have numerous components. For this reason, real estate firms may organize their cases into projects, where attorneys and support staff work on teams to handle matters in a more efficient manner. When promoting a collaborative working environment, law firms need practice management features that support communication and help keep everyone on the same page. Here are some of those features:

1. Workflow automation

With workflow automation, law firms can better organize and manage the most complex real estate cases. Workflow refers to the individual steps that go into the completion of a legal matter from beginning to end. When law firms attempt to manage workflows manually, they often end up wasting valuable time and fostering inefficiencies within the practice.

Many practice management platforms include workforce automation solutions. These features help law firms streamline the complexities of real estate matters. From purchase offers to escrow details, automation tools assist with the assembly of relevant documents, the management of closing dates, and the successful completion of real estate matters.

Real estate law firms benefit from workflow automation through the minimization of errors and reduction of risk, data collection and reporting capabilities, and opportunities for continuous workflow improvements.

2. Document management

When law firm team members work in various locations, and at different times, they need the ability to collaborate remotely on documents, contracts, and forms. Cloud-based practice management systems typically offer document management tools that allow members to access and work on documents from virtually any location with unlimited data storage.

Real estate often involves vast and frequent negotiations. Attorneys need to see all matter details in one centralized location so they can create notes, track various versions, and share documents internally or externally, when appropriate.

Quick document search tools save time by making it easy to search databases and documents for specific details. Real estate lawyers can quickly locate a variety of documents, including such items as disclosure agreements, purchase contracts, or inspection certificates.

With the complexities of their matters, real estate law firms must have tools that help them organize, edit, and maintain all relevant documents.

3. Calendaring

Real estate transactions typically involve numerous deadlines and important dates. There may be mediation appointments, contractual targets, court appearances, or scheduled closings. A comprehensive calendaring system helps real estate law firm administrators keep everyone informed and on track to meet all matter deadlines, from an individual attorney to an entire project team.

Features like automated notifications and secured client portals also help real estate firms keep clients informed about upcoming events and deadlines. These tools allow attorneys to spend more time on profitable tasks while meeting their professional duty to keep clients in the loop.

4. Managing Billing and Client Funds

Real estate law firms may offer their clients any number of payment structures and arrangements. From flat fee options for simple contractual sales to hourly billing options that require client retainers. Firms need legal billing systems that can handle these variations and promote the efficiency of invoicing procedures.

Whether the firm is billing with a flat fee for a simple matter or through a retainer arrangement for more complex cases, real estate law practices need to ability to customize the billing systems quickly and easily in a way that efficiently addresses these billing options. They need a legal practice management system that can manage them all.

The Takeaway

Real estate law includes a wide range of specialties, from residential sales to multi-million-dollar commercial transactions. To be consistently successful, real estate law firms need practice management tools that can be tailored to the specific needs of these complex undertakings.

Complex client demands and frequent policy changes drive the priorities of an insurance defense law firm, particularly in the areas of administrative and matter processes. Handling these challenges requires comprehensive legal practice management software that offers the features necessary to successfully handle all the pressure points of insurance defense legal practice.

This post will delve into some of those issues and suggest how the right software features can help firm attorneys and administrators effectively address them.

The Unique Challenges of Insurance Defense Law

Insurance defense generally involves the representation of various legal matters related to the insurance industry. In more specific terms, these firms are retained by insurance companies to represent their insured clients who face lawsuits related to their insurance contracts. For instance, an insured restaurant owner is sued by a customer who allegedly slipped and fell inside of the restaurant. The insurance company hires the law firm to represent the restaurant owner.

While this may seem like a pretty straightforward legal arrangement, it can quickly become complicated because of the three-sided relationship that exists. Unlike other practice areas where attorneys typically further the interests of one easily identifiable client, insurance defense attorneys are forced to balance their responsibilities to the insured with their responsibilities to the insurance company.

This situation begs the question, “Who is the client?” The insurance company pays the legal fees for representation, but the firm has a professional responsibility to the insured. Oftentimes, the interests of the insurance company differ from the interests of the policyholder, leaving the law firm in the middle of the conflict. Faced with these unique challenges, in addition to standard administrative and client tasks, insurance defense law firms need specialized tools that will help them manage complex matters while maximizing productivity and promoting profitability.

Billing Tools

Billing poses a challenge to insurance defense practices due to the variety of specific guidelines and restrictions that insurance companies may place on invoicing processes. For example, insurance defense law firms may be forced to contend with restricted billing rates or fixed fee billing arrangement requirements. These types of constraints make efficient billing processes extremely important.

When working with numerous insurance companies, an insurance defense firm may need to navigate numerous billing arrangements. One insurance client may require the firm to work under a fixed fee arrangement, while another may allow for traditional hourly billing. These variations require a legal billing platform where firms can easily invoice for a variety of arrangements by customizing billing options for each individual matter.

Insurance companies often require law firms to use Legal Electronic Data Exchange Standard (LEDES) invoicing codes, which can be a difficult task without the right legal billing software in place. This type of billing is primarily used to promote uniformity within the legal industry and assist insurance companies in their processing of law firm invoices. Insurance defense law firms need systems that offer the ability to easily generate LEDES invoices in .dat or .txt file formats for proper online submission. They should also have UTBMS codes already in place and LEDES formatted templates for faster invoicing.

Document Management & Automation

It is not unusual for a single insurance defense matter to include volumes of documents. From medical records and witness statements to policy documents and insurance company communications, these case files can be quite extensive. This is why insurance defense firms need document management software that helps them easily store and organize all matter-related files and documents in one central location.

With the right software, credentialed users can efficiently view, edit, and share documents as needed. This makes collaboration internally within the firm, as well as externally with the insurance company, much easier to accomplish. Some other useful document management tools include:

Using a legal practice management software that integrates with a cloud-based document management system, like NetDocuments, allows insurance defense law firms to organize, secure, and find all of the documents they need right from the practice management platform.

Case Management

The intricacies of insurance defense law require a superior matter management system that tracks every aspect of these complex cases. When choosing a legal practice management system, law firm administrators need to look for features that address the specific needs of their practice area, such as:

Under some circumstances, insurance companies may call in a third-party auditing firm to conduct an audit of a particular matter. Having an organized case management system saves the extra time and resources that would otherwise go into preparing for the audit. It also presents every aspect of the matter, from intake to final billing, in an organized and structured manner, increasing the likelihood of a successful audit.

Client Management

This goes back to the most complex aspect of insurance defense law. Competing interests between the insurance company and the insured can bring up ethical uncertainties for the firm and its attorneys. The appropriate strategy for handling these sticky situations largely depends on state rules. For instance, the North Carolina State Bar deems the insured as the "primary" client in an insurance defense case, whose "best interest must be served at all times." According to the Bar, the attorney owes the insured a heightened duty of communication and loyalty at the least.

To best serve their clients and protect themselves from potential allegations of wrongdoing, law firms need a foolproof method of managing, storing, and organizing all client communications. Tools like in-app text messaging, client portals, and conversation tracking help law firms securely maintain and manage client communications directly within the matter for future reference at any needed time.

Intuitive email management is another tool for elevating client management. With email integration options, firms can save client emails to matters in a matter of seconds. Advanced email search tools help firm members quickly locate emails using properties like subject, sent/received date, or email content without the hassle of manually searching through a crowded inbox. Billing is also made easier with an email management feature that automatically creates billing entries for sending or reviewing client emails.

The Takeaway

If you're an insurance defense firm or you're looking to expand into the practice area, the goal of your operations should surround agility and organization. Specialized tools will help you manage complex matters while maximizing productivity and promoting profitability.

For more than a year now, the practice of law has looked vastly different than any other time in history. From Washington DC to Arizona, courthouses were shut down to the public and attorneys for common proceedings, greatly affecting the traditional law firm environment.

For some firm leaders, less time in the courtroom resulted in more time spent on administrative tasks, especially in situations where downsizing needs impacted support staff numbers. Attorneys found it necessary to take on a larger percentage of law office management duties.

With the world starting a slow return to normal, court systems nationwide are beginning to open up, welcoming attorneys and the public back into courthouses for in-person appearances and other court-related business. While some jurisdictions remain at partial or limited capacity, others have made the transformation to 100%, forcing many attorneys to make a quick transition.

For attorneys handling more of their firm’s administrative duties, returning to the courtroom can feel stressful. They may worry about balancing an increased workload and more time away from the office with their increased administrative duties. But legal practice management software offers these attorneys the help they need to provide clients with quality legal service while also handling law office administrative needs. With tools like automation and legal billing, attorneys can stop worrying about their long list of administrative tasks and focus on a successful return to the courtroom.

Here are some specific ways that legal practice management eases the transition back to the courtroom:

Accounting

Many law practice management software options contain accounting features, but not all platforms are the same. Law firms should have accounting tools that can manage both general firm finances and client billing tasks. General firm accounting needs help law firms with:

These tasks are typical to most accounting software and don’t necessarily require an accounting system specific to the legal industry. However, attorneys returning to the courthouse need maximum efficiency and a software that goes beyond the accounting basics to handle client invoicing.

Invoicing takes up a significant amount of valuable time when not handled efficiently. It can also lead to troublesome inaccuracies. Maximum law firm efficiency requires legal practice management accounting that saves valuable time during the invoicing process and promotes billing accuracy. Other useful legal accounting features include real-time financial insights that provide law firms with data about the firm’s financial wellbeing and vendor tools that help automate third-party vendor payments.

Trust/IOLTA Accounting

Trust/IOLTA accounting is another extremely important law firm duty. Firms need a legal practice management system that streamlines the various trust accounting processes and promotes compliance with state regulations. Accurate trust accounting requires the ability to keep record of client funds held in trust and accurately track all deductions from these accounts, including payments automatically applied to bill balances.

Some necessary duties specific to trust/IOLTA accounting include:

Calendaring

A return to in-person court hearings makes accurate calendaring an absolute necessity. Some attorneys have been attending virtual court hearings for more than a year. Making the transition back to physical appearances requires some challenging adjustments.

A firm-wide calendar helps keep all firm members in sync and on the same page, even those working remotely or temporarily away from the physical office. Personal viewing options allow individual firm members to view the day ahead with a single glance. Lawyers need a legal practice management software that offers a variety of calendaring features, such as:

Matter Management

Legal practice management software makes it easy for law firms to track all things related to each firm matter. Real-time dashboards provide accurate updates pertaining to trust balances, billed fees, billed expenses, and outstanding accounts receivable. Spending reports and email alerts help keep matters within established budgetary limits. Firm leaders can also review work completed on a case by various categories, including specific timekeepers, fees, or expenses.

With some legal practice management software options, law firms can work within the system to build out a matter. The system can then automate the case by assigning tasks or even completing some tasks. This adds up to valuable time savings for the entire firm, and especially attorneys returning to the courtroom. Legal practice management workflow systems can also keep law firm teams updated, as well as clients.  Firms can set automated emails to be sent to clients as their matters reach specific milestones.

Document Management

Moving away from the office and back into the courtroom means that firm attorneys routinely need remote access to documents. Law firm management software can maintain firm documents in a safe and secure environment while also allowing for easy sharing with credentialed parties. Firms can organize documents by matter and save administrative time by creating standard folders to be generated for every new matter.

There are also document management options that allow clients to securely upload documents to the firm, which clients appreciate because it saves them time and effort as well. The legal practice management system notifies the appropriate firm members when clients upload documents, as well as when they download documents shared with them.

Other useful document management features include:

The Takeaway

Navigating the legal landscape since the start of the pandemic has not been for the faint of heart. From work from home to Zoom, and virtual courtrooms, firms are having to quickly learn to balance a different kind of workload.

The functionality and purpose of legal practice management software are to offer attorneys and their firms a means to provide their clients with the quality of service they expect while also juggling the back office, behind the scenes needs in whatever environment they may be faced with. As we begin to focus on a successful return to the courtroom, you can rest easy knowing that no matter where you are, you will be able to get your job done and keep your clients happy.

The cloud has become a standard part of our lives. From streaming video platforms to smartphones and smart home devices, we rely on cloud computing to make our days exponentially more convenient. But individuals are not the only benefactors of cloud computing. Over the last 10 years, business leaders around the world have incorporated cloud-based technologies, recognizing their greater efficiency and cost savings potential. Though it has taken a little longer, the legal industry has also started embracing the cloud.

As reported by the American Bar Association’s 2018 Legal Technology Survey Report, less than 55% of all surveyed law firms utilized some aspect of cloud computing. The hesitation among law firms typically stems from three main reasons: worries about security, limited understanding about how the cloud operates, and ties to traditional methods of practice management. Many of these law firms still rely on filing cabinets and in-office servers, but the disruption of service that took place over the last couple of years made the drawbacks of this decision painfully clear.

Legal Practice Management Meets the Cloud

Legal practice management software helps law firms keep all aspects of their practice organized and running efficiently. Firms have been using them for years to handle such needs as document storage, contact management, calendaring, and task management. They become the backbone of a practice, and when they are not available – whether due to a server crash or office inaccessibility - firms can experience debilitating process failures. After all, practice management software is only beneficial if a law firm can actually use it.

With in-office options, the practice management software is installed on a local computer or server located within the physical office space. Those servers are usually only accessible from computers also located within the same space, which limits the capabilities of the practice management software.

Cloud-based legal practice management software is not installed locally on your office server. Instead, it is web-based, using a remote server maintained by the software provider. Access occurs through the internet, which makes the software convenient and virtually 100% available for use.

If you are a law firm leader or administrator who is frustrated with the inconvenience of premise-based software, this post is for you. It will explore 4 reasons why your law firm needs cloud-based legal practice management.

1. Consistent Availability

With cloud-based legal practice management software, law firms can access all of their data at any time and on any device. This includes everything from documents and emails to time tracking tools and invoices. It eliminates the need to be located within the physical office because all data is stored in the cloud, which can be accessed remotely with the right credentials.

Even when a firm member makes changes to a client file or administrative document, other firm members maintain access to the most recent version. Working with a cloud-based legal practice management software gives attorneys and legal support staff the ability to retrieve case data and work on matters in a secure environment without the need for those antiquated network connections that confine them to the four walls of the office. Remote work becomes easier, with greater efficiency, productivity, and accountability.

2. Decreased Downtime and IT Issues

Law firms need an IT infrastructure that they can consistently rely on to meet their practice management needs. Recurring problems and excessive downtime limit productivity. They can also threaten a firm’s ability to maintain confidential client data in an adequately secure environment.

In-office servers are notorious for their unreliability. They break down often, especially without regular maintenance and updates. They are also known to be extremely glitchy which frustrates firm members as they try to complete time-sensitive tasks.

Firm administrators that choose an on-premise legal practice management software must prepare for continuous maintenance needs and repairs. Many firms find these tasks so challenging that they either keep an IT expert on staff to address server problems, or they contract with an outside IT consultant. Yet, even with the most proactive measures in place, servers can still go down, leaving firm members unable to use them.

Cloud-based practice management platforms obviate all of these headaches. There is no requirement to manage expensive servers because the software provider automatically performs all necessary updates, regular maintenance, and backups. They also quickly address any repair needs, often before firm members even recognize that a problem occurred. Every technical task related to cloud-based practice management software is supported by one centralized team solely dedicated to its performance.

3. The Right Tools for Internal Changes

Changes within a law firm require a practice management system that is flexible and quick to adapt. Whether you are the administrator of a mid-sized firm that is scaling up or you are downsizing your firm’s physical office space, cloud-based legal practice management software adjusts with the changing landscape of your law firm.

Cloud-based practice management software offers a variety of modules and features, and many providers allow administrators to choose which options best meet the needs of the firm. This means that as the firm grows, so can its practice management software. There is no need to start from scratch with a new system when you can easily make adjustments to what already works.

It’s no secret that office relocation can be a pain in the neck. But it’s even more challenging with an on-premise server. Moving the server from one location to the next will likely require the assistance of an IT technician. It can also result in a period of inaccessibility to important firm and client data.

With a cloud-based system, your firm’s practice management software remains intact and ready to access throughout the entire move. Unlimited storage capabilities alleviate the need for heavy file cabinets and multiple servers. With everything stored in the cloud, firm members can settle into their new digs and get right to work without costly interruption.

4. Improved Security

Many lawyers still doubt that cloud technologies can offer the level of security that they are ethically obligated to provide their clients. Yet, the real dangers of theft and security breaches are much more prevalent with in-office systems. A single fire or natural disaster can decimate physical documents in a matter of seconds. In addition, the responsibility to protect an on-premise server from cyberattacks falls on the firm, and that can prove very expensive. Cyber experts and server updates cost money, but law firms must take on these costs to keep their physical servers secure.

When using cloud-based legal practice management, data is continuously saved and stored within the cloud, protecting it from physical threats like fire or natural disasters. Law firm leaders also control which members of the firm have access to the software. Some systems even offer security measures that limit the accessibility of induvial cases or firm records.

Cloud providers maintain a team of security experts who are on constant guard against cyber threats and attacks. They take on this expensive responsibility so that law firm administrators feel comfortable trusting them with their law firm data.

Law Firms Need the Power of the Cloud

Law firm administrators that understand the power of cloud-based legal project management provide their firms with a valuable resource that streamlines and protects numerous aspects of legal practice. When choosing the right cloud-based option, look for features like:

As your law firm evolves, cloud-based legal practice management software can provide the continuous support and stability that your firm needs.

As law firms prepare to turn the corner and head back to normalcy, flexibility is playing a major role in the execution of their plans. Return-to-office announcements from the nation’s largest law firms range from a 100% workforce return to continued remote working arrangements, but they all include a higher level of flexibility than traditionally seen within the legal community.

Over the last decade, remote working arrangements became quite commonplace within corporate America. A growing number of companies began offering their workers the opportunity to work from home, recognizing the financial savings and employee satisfaction that resulted from these arrangements. Even federal and state government agencies made significant strides towards remote work in recent years. Yet, even as these changes took hold, many members of the legal community routinely resisted the widespread move to remote work preferring a more traditional view of the legal practice.

While recent changes are partially driven by the pandemic, they also stem from evolving attitudes about what law firm offices should look like. An increasing number of law firm leaders and administrators have recognized the value in accommodating at least some level of flexibility within the workplace. They found that productivity actually increased instead of the decline that they anticipated. For years, law firm leaders centered their objections to remote work on declined productivity assumptions, but for some, seeing it in practice debunked that theory.

In addition, a growing number of law firm employees feel more comfortable voicing their preferences for flexible working conditions. With negative views that clouded remote working arrangements, many firm members felt it best not to make these requests, even though they wanted these options. Now that real-world experiences have changed leadership attitudes, attorneys and support staff feel empowered to request and advocate for greater flexibility.

Lastly, many law firms have enjoyed the overhead savings that resulted from reduced in-office use. Leaders are increasingly questioning whether, and to what extent, physical office space will be necessary for their firms to sustain going forward.

In a recently published email sent to employees by one of the Am Law 100 ranking law firms, a co-managing partner stated, “A key takeaway from the survey we conducted last year is that you want flexibility in where you work. We are working on the parameters and protocols for our return, including developing a flexible work policy that will address the expected number of days in the office per week and many other details. We are planning for our attorneys to be able to work some days in the office and some days remotely on average each week. Where roles and responsibilities permit for our staff, we are also developing flexibility arrangements.”

This sentiment echoes across the legal industry, indicating a major shift from traditional law firm standards. The following are direct quotes from return-to-office policies being put forth by some of the largest law firms in the country:

From the minimization of in-person interaction to the continuation of 100% remote work, these variations exemplify the different perspectives and interests of law firm leaders. The traditional law office environment will continue to look very different over the coming months.

Law Firm Administrators Need Practice Management Tools in A Flexible Work Environment

Law firm administrators will most certainly bear the lion’s share of responsibility as firms implement these flexible work arrangements. To do this in an effective manner, they need technologies that support firm members, promote consistency in the face of transformation, and ensure the uninterrupted continuance of client services.

Practice management software offers law firms the resources and capabilities they need to continue operating at a high level in spite of various phases of office returns. As many firms moved to remote work arrangements in 2020, cloud computing and storage were integral tools for the continuation of business through these transitions. These same technologies will also drive firms into their new normal in the months and years to come.

Here are some ways that legal practice management will help law firm administrators meet the needs of a flexible work environment:

Many of these cloud-based technologies include document storage, which minimizes the need to transport physical files back and forth between work locations. It also makes remote collaboration seamless, which is especially useful with firm members working staggered in-office schedules.

With custom, real-time dashboards, firm administrators and members can quickly view a variety of case details. From matter ledgers with complete billing histories to matter budgets with customizable budget alerts, these tools help law firms stay on top of client matter details even in the midst of transitioning back to the office.

With court rule and deadline management tools, firm members no longer have to rely on the manual calculation of court rules and deadlines. Court date calendaring systems calculate litigation, transaction, or administrative deadlines and automatically add them to the firm calendar. This promotes greater organization, planning, and accountability throughout the entire firm.

The Takeaway

As law firms announce their respective return-to-office strategies, flexibility appears to be a common theme. To best handle these transitions, law firm administrators and members need a comprehensive practice management system that promotes consistency while minimizing potential roadblocks.

Staying current with technology can be an expensive undertaking. Software is constantly improving, and firms that continue to use server-based software are finding it impossible to keep up with advancing technology. If a firm wants to take advantage of the latest and greatest, it must be willing to adopt a cloud-based system. By asking the right questions on the front end, your firm can rest assured that a cloud-based system is a safe and viable option.

Advantages of Cloud-Based Systems

There are innumerable advantages to a cloud-based system that goes above and beyond the fact that you will always have the most updated version of the software you select. It is impossible to list all of the advantages here, but below are a few:

Economical

The use of a cloud-based system allows the firm to pay-per-user fees in a monthly fashion – there is no longer the need to shell out tens of thousands of dollars in order to purchase a server-based software that will soon be outdated. There is also no need to pay for IT support to maintain servers, address security concerns, and stay on top of software updates.

Low Risk

With server-based software, the firm spends an enormous amount of financial resources to put the software in place. While it certainly performs its due diligence before making a software selection, firms are still faced with holding their breath and hoping for the best, sometimes finding that once the software is in place it does not perform as the firm had hoped. While no one wants to make a change once a decision has been made, with a cloud-based system where the firm is paying for the system in small monthly increments, if the software does not meet the firm’s needs as expected or the firm outgrows the software sooner than expected, there is the ability to pivot if necessary.

Scalability

Cloud-based systems can expand as the demand increases, so as the firm grows, it only has to pay for an additional user license. There is no need for the firm to purchase additional servers, etc. to accommodate growth.

Increased Flexibility

As we all learned this past year, the ability to access our files from any location is imperative to today’s practice. By having all file information hosted in the cloud, firm attorneys and staff can access the files from any location. Firms that were paperless before the pandemic were able to continue their practices without missing a beat. This advantage is valuable even outside of a pandemic, though. The mobility of your case files allows your attorneys to access the entire file wherever they are – in court, in a client’s office, etc. In addition, multiple individuals can be working on a client file at the same time. In the old practice of paper files, only one person could have access to the file at one time.

Increased Efficiency and Productivity

One of the most valuable advantages of using current technology is your ability to perform some tasks faster. Good case management software can lay out the steps of certain types of cases, provide you with the status of a case at a glance, and provide a list of follow-up items and checklists. The billing side of your software can make it easy for your attorneys to enter their time, encouraging concurrent timekeeping, which will always be more accurate and prevent lost time.

Asking the Right Questions

It was not that long ago that many law firms were leery of taking their technology to the cloud. Despite Ethics Opinions of the American Bar Association and many state bars that approved the use of SaaS systems in law firms, firms were hesitant to move in this direction. There were many concerns that contributed to this hesitation to jump on board with other industries, but with the appropriate due diligence on the front end, firm partners can rest assured that they can take advantage of cloud-based systems and their many advantages. Here are some questions you should ask:

Who Owns the Servers that Will House Your Data?

Does the provider own or lease the servers? The more companies that are involved in the storage of your data, the greater the risk that security may be compromised.

Where Will Your Data Be Located?

It is important that your data does not leave the United States. Otherwise, you run the potential risk of your data being held “hostage” in the EU.

How Is Your Data Backed Up?

What is the frequency of backups? Where are the backups stored? Are there multiple locations? (If a natural disaster occurs at the location of a backup supply, is it geographically distant from another location so that the data is not lost?) Are there redundant power supplies?

How Is Your Data Encrypted?

The provider should use SSL encryption to ensure that communications between your computer and the cloud server are secure.

Who Owns the Data?

Your agreement should clearly state that the firm owns the data. You will want to know how the data can be extracted should you decide to change services in the future. In what format will the data be provided? Will it be readable by other programs?

The Takeaway

It is not as foreign for law firms to use cloud-based software today as it was even five years ago. By asking the right questions, you can ensure that you are confident in the security of the software you choose and take advantage of the many benefits of having a cloud-based system.