IT services for law firms

All organisations rely on basic IT systems – computers, printers, emails etc. However, the effectiveness – or otherwise – of these systems affect different companies in different ways. For many, a slow computer or broken printer connection is inconvenient and frustrating but does not necessarily have a big effect on the bottom line.

However, when it comes to IT services for law firms, not having a fit-for-purpose IT system could cost thousands of pounds in terms of lost fees. When you are in a business that relies on fee earners’ time, can you afford for them to be twiddling their thumbs for a few minutes while they are waiting for their computer to boot up? Or spend their time doing unnecessary tasks when technology could automate the process?

Fixed fees

Many law firms are moving towards a fixed-fee client system which is understandably popular with most people as it allows them to stay in control of their budget. If your company is heading towards this structure, then your fee earners’ time is more precious than ever. The quicker they can process documentation, the more clients you can take on.

Documentation

The legal industry is historically inefficient when it comes to the production of its documents. IT managed services companies can help by observing your firm’s work and recommending systems that will save you time and increase overall efficiency. For example, time recording is normally done on a platform management system, but you need to ensure you have the right program that works efficiently with your other systems.

Other aspects to take into account are:

• Case management. Every client will require different fee earners to work on a number of matters. With the right system in place, you can easily collate all the information you need for billing, such as time recordings, time management, document production etc.
• By using speech recognition platforms such as BigHand, or external transcription services such as Dictate Now, transcriptions can be done swiftly leaving your support staff free to undertake other tasks.
• The law produces a huge number of forms, for example land registry forms when selling or buying property. Systems such as OyezForms can be programmed to automatically complete forms with the correct information in a similar way to how you use mail merge in Word.
• Transactional data. It is possible to automate your workflow so that as soon as you have a client instruction, all the tasks and timescales etc will be generated automatically.
• Document comparison software. It is important to know if any changes have been made to your documentation at any point. The right software can do this swiftly and comprehensively, meaning you never miss anything.
• In light of GDPR, the challenge with discovery is that a subject access request can take up a lot of time. The right software will help you get all the information you need quickly and comprehensively.
• This is a vital requirement for technology in the legal world. You must be confident in the confidentiality and security of the platform and platform providers, especially as you often have to send large documents back and forth.

Speed

Law firms also need to take computer speed into account. We typically find that the cost of new systems is more than recovered in terms of efficiency savings. And once we have upgraded hardware, we often get feedback that the client wishes they had done it sooner.

If you would like to discuss legal IT services, contact us to find out more.