Law Technology Today From the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center
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It seems like technology is becoming more and more important to the daily lives of professionals, and the legal world is no different. While technology continues to develop, so do the ways it can be applied to more traditional workspaces. With new advancements, systems and processes, technology can make just about any job easier. If you’re an attorney, using technology to advance your career may not seem immediately apparent. After all, most of what you do involves face-to-face interaction with clients, courts, and judges. While this is still true, technology can make it easier or more efficient to get your work done. Let’s take a look at six ways you can implement today’s technology into your law firm.
Use a Scheduling App for Appointments
Whether you’re trying to coordinate internal meetings with employees of your firm or you’re looking to meet up with a client, scheduling meetings and appointments can feel overwhelming. While many people have been using calendar apps for years, the ways to schedule appointments online is changing.
Today, there are various apps you can use to set up your availability and simply let the other party select when they’d like to meet. This can eliminate a lot of back and forth and discussion about when to set the appointment, saving both of you precious time.
And, if you want to get super high-tech, there are even artificial intelligence assistants that will set up your meetings for you.
Track Your Time
When you want to know how many billable hours your firm is working, time tracking is crucial. While you can track your time with a simple clock and paper log, this isn’t always the most reliable method.
Time-tracking apps allow you and the rest of your firm to keep track of billable hours and time spent on certain cases within a software program. From there, you can do things like send invoices, merge employees’ times together, or just get an overview of which cases you’re spending the most time on.
Share and Store Files Digitally
As a law firm, you probably deal with a lot of files and documents. While emailing and printing documents may have worked in the past, it can be wasteful and not efficient. When you have to dig through old papers or your inbox to find the document you need, you run the risk of making a mistake, losing something important, or working off an old version of a document or file.
Storing your files digitally can make it easy for you and your team to get what you need almost immediately, no matter where you are. Whether you’re in the office or on the go, you can share documents easily with co-workers, clients, or even the court.
Use a Voice Recorder
Having accurate records, notes and briefs are crucial for legal professionals, no matter what industry you serve. However, taking the time to write out notes can be time-consuming and may cause you to miss some important details.
Voice-to-text and dictation recorders work like a mini-transcriptionist you can take with you wherever you go. There are even options available specifically for lawyers, so you can feel a little better knowing that the transcription software you’re using is more professional than some consumer-oriented ones.
Communicate Online
Communication is key for attorneys and law firms. Whether you’re trying to connect with your firm employees, talk with a client, or even chat with the opposing counsel, you want to have the most efficient conversations possible. Unfortunately, email or a traditional telephone call may not be the best option when you can’t talk in person.
Technology is always coming up with new ways for people to communicate online. With video chat services and texting apps, you can easily communicate with your network online. This ensures you’re able to have the conversations you need no matter where you or the other party is located.
Hire Remote Employees
A law firm’s success involves more than just lawyers. In order to run an efficient firm, you’ll also need marketers, assistants, paralegals, and more. However, you may not have it in your budget to hire in-house employees to fill each of these positions.
Thankfully, technology makes it simple for you to hire independent contractors or agencies that can take a lot of this work off your firm’s hands. Through hiring a remote marketing agency or even virtual assistants, you can get the tasks you need completed without having to go through the traditional hiring process.
It’s important for lawyers to stay up to date on the different advancements in technology. Through understanding how these different components can contribute to the day-to-day tasks of a law office, attorneys everywhere can work more productively and win more cases. To get the most benefit from technology, consider the unique needs of your firm. Feel free to get creative about the way you apply these advancements to your office and career.
