The Bottom Line
August 2001 Vol. 23, No. 1
Statements or expressions of opinion or comments appearing herein are those of
the editors or contributors, and not necessarily those of the association or section.
Contents
* Getting started on the road to getting organized
* PHONEslips ... your receptionist will love you for it!
* FinAlyst ... a powerful money management utility
Please note the following: as regular readers of this newsletter know, it has been a while since we have devoted as much of an issue to technology and products as this one. Alan Pearlman and Paul Bernstein, fellow LOE Section Council members are both experienced practicing attorneys and computer consultants. While it is hoped that these articles will be of use to you, the opinions expressed in them, however, are solely the author's. Please note, too, that one or more of these articles has appeared in previous ISBA publications, but they are presented here because they may be of benefit to you.
Product or service availability and pricing may vary at press time from what is contained in their articles. Also, no endorsement or warranty, express or implied, is made by The Bottom Line, its editors, the LOE, or the ISBA or any of its directors, officers, members, employees or agents or should be construed with regard to any product or service herein reviewed by the authors.
Getting started on the road to getting organized
By Paul Bernstein, Esq.
The fact is that lawyers deal with so much information, that often we are in a panic when it comes to "unexpected," overlooked or forgotten deadlines and details (ours and others in our firm). Our moment-to-moment administrative tasks, take up much-to-much time and create too much stress on everyone in the unautomated office. And, every minute we spend on such unproductive efforts is clearly an irresponsible waste of our time.
Our old ways must change
To be sure, some years ago, many lawyers were conceptual "hold-outs" when it came to using computers in their law practice--you know the routine--"I've always done it this way and I'll continue to do it that way." Today, every lawyer is (or should be) convinced that managing information in your law firm is essential to your being an effective representative of your clients' interests. Being organized means case management software.
Costs of computers at all-time low
Initial barriers some years ago to getting "automated" included the cost of the technology; however, today, prices for computers are at an historical low and continue to fall, while the power of computers continues to increase dramatically. Accordingly, cost is no longer a barrier. (My first word processing machine, purchased in 1975, cost me $20,000 and I ended up buying two of them for my six lawyer law firm.)
Lawyers' personalities and the automation process usually like oil and vinegar
In my April, 1996 article in TRIAL Magazine entitled Warts and All: Take a Look at Yourself, I discussed how lawyers have wonderful personality traits that are consistent with what we do in the representing clients, but how those are, at the same time, very poor traits for dealing with the business of running a law firm and dealing with our employees. Those traits include: aggressiveness; adversarial; quick to react; intimidating; fearlessness. (If you are an ATLA member, you can find that article on ATLA NET at the following, so-called Uniform Resource Locator ["URL"], which is the location or Internet "address" for this article. If you are not an ATLA member, send me e-mail at paulbernstein@yahoo.com and I'll fax a copy to you.) http://www.atlanet.org/publications/trial/9604/tr9604am.htm
However, having made the decision to move forward with the acquisition and implementation of a case management program, what I generally still see in many law firms is the lawyers' attitudes continuing to stop progress in the direction of creating order out of chaos. We procrastinate, delay, debate, form committees and time goes by and we never seem to "get off the dime." The hoped-for purpose of this article is to get you going.
Ten tips on getting started from the get-go
Here are ten suggestions on how to get "off the dime" and get started on the road to having the administrative tasks and information tracking tasks in your office under control so that you can spend your time being your clients' lawyer.
1. You'll never master technology--so, do some "networking"
We lawyers become the master of whatever subject we are dealing with. However, unless you are an electrical engineer or a long-time techy, the odds are that you will never, ever, yourself, know enough about computers, computer technology and software options, to be totally comfortable with the selection of the case management software product for your law firm. And, I mean never!
I've seen this happen over and over again. And, because the senior partner or one of the partners just can't make up their minds (lack of knowledge can and will do that to you), the result is that nothing happens! The same, old, day-to-day problems continue on and on and in a growing practice, only get worse. The solution? Get over it! Live with it! Accept reality! Yes, in this one and only area, someone or a series of someones know more then you ever will know or should want to know about getting your firm automated.
You can also do some "networking." Talk to other lawyers in your community to see what they are using and why. Have your staff do the same. Then, put your heads together and see what you find. You may learn that there is a strong favorite among available choices and reasons why that is so.
2. Hire a consultant and a "techy"
How do you get over that hurdle with comfort? One way is to hire a networking, computer expert to assist you if you don't already have one. And, either hire a person with the knowledge of case management software alternatives to assist you or read enough on the subject, and go to the bar association's mid-year and annual meetings to learn much more then you presently know. Look, listen and react with the idea that in this arena, you are the novice among experts. Like choosing a doctor for your medical needs, choose outside experts with care to be sure they are honest and know their business. Then, listen to what they have to say, and drop the cross-examination routines! This is a team effort and teams work best with supportive "fathers" and "mothers," "brothers" and "sisters" and not adversarial opponents.
3. Get your staff involved
Your staff knows more about how your firm really operates then you do. Get their input, let them know they are on the "team" and be a good coach and team leader. And, listen to what they have to say. If everyone in your firm is involved in the process and they "buy-into" the program, you will see dramatic changes in interest, focus and the enthusiasm of your team members.
4. Set irrevocable deadlines for decision making
Over and over again I hear: "We have to continue the meeting to choose the software--I'm out of the office at that time." Or: "We will have to set another date down the road, as my partner is at a client's office and she must be there." These excuses, and that's all they are, mean that the time-table gets set back and back and back. You can avoid this by setting irrevocable and unchangeable dates for decision making. And, to be sure, if emergencies come up, then stay late one night, or meet sometime on the weekend, or give your "proxy" to someone else who can be at the meeting. Making progress on getting order out of chaos in your office is as important as any case you have in the office.
5. If you have partners, appoint one to be the "point-person"
If you are the "rain-maker" in your firm, flying here and there, attending this meeting and major events, then you may have to appoint a trusted person in your firm as the "point-person" to represent you in this process for a good part of the effort. You clearly have a choice here--change your schedules and be at the technology meetings, or continue with those golf games and fishing trips. Make informed choices and deal with downsides, up-front.
6. Listen to your partner's and office staff recommendations
Having put this plan in place, never, ever, let it be the fact that this was mere "cosmetics" for you and only you will make the decisions! This will destroy whatever enthusiasm you have created with your team and you will let them know that it is "business as usual." And, in today's world with low unemployment, you can be certain that your best people will, at some point in time, take off on you and go to another law firm that can and will treat them with more respect. Again, you have options--have meetings on weekends, paying staff to attend, or, delegate and heed the advice of your law partners (if you have any), paralegals and staff.
7. Budget for the expenses involved
You must budget, up-front, for all of the costs and expenses. That includes not just outside consultants and the software, but: possible hardware and networking upgrades; installation of the software; training costs, and the lower productivity your staff will provide while learning the new product. Be realistic. Better to over-estimate the costs and come in lower, then budget too low and have the project fail due to the inability to push the football over the goal line.
8. Training is imperative--plan for it
Training and more training is imperative. And, that includes you, counselor! Yes, you must learn to type a bit, learn how to use the "mouse" or other pointing devices, learn about the Windows (or Mac) environment, your Internet-Web browser and how to tool around with your case management software of choice. This takes time, effort and some professional training dollars. Do not think a staff person has the time to be a moment-to-moment teacher of other staff persons. You get what you pay for, and you must budget for training.
9. Down time during the ramp-up
As a reasonably good business person, it is most likely that your staff is under constant pressure to deal with each day's work loads. Under such circumstances, there is no way staff can learn a new product as complex as a case management program without something giving somewhere. That "something" is lower, day-to-day productivity as to the normal business processes, during the ramp-up time to learn the new program.
Understand that this is coming down the pike and plan for it. You might hire a temp, or pay some of your staff for overtime or you might do more of some kinds of work yourself ... each firm must find its own way here, but know that finding your way and planning for it is an important task.
10. The result/benefits are worth the effort--do it!
Why are you doing this? For many reasons:
* You will have a centralized, case management software-based rolodex. No individual rolodexes in each office and on each desk. The same is true for calendars, appointments and "to-dos."
* You will have all client-related, matter-related information, opposing counsel, referring attorney information, and all other information in your computer, only a key-stroke or two (or three) away.
* You will not need the physical file very much, if at all, until you are on the way to court for a pre-trial or trial or to your client's office.
* When you are on trial or out of the office, your staff can access a client's files when they call and tell them the status of their case.
* You can review files at any time without having the physical file in front of you.
* Properly and fully implemented, you can ferret out not-such-terrific matters and try to settle them on a fair and equitable basis before spending much too much time on them.
* You can either handle a larger case load with less effort, or decide to cut down the number of cases you handle and go for the larger and more substantial matters.
* You can get reminders about critical and important dates. Another neat reminder is to remind you to call your clients from time to time--clients, we all know, love to hear from their lawyers without being bugged to do so by the clients.
* Your accounting, bookkeeping, tax and other accounting records will be instantly available.
* There is much, much more that case management software allows you to do and that allows you to have both your "back office" and "front office" under control at all times.
So, the reason to make this significant investment is to get your house in order and to allow the law firm to be efficient and productive--yes, to operate your law firm as the business it, indeed, is. At any time you wish, you can access information in your firm and have it instantly available to you. If you use a remote, telephone dial-up, you can even access this information from home and while you are on the road. The goal is to have that operational infrastructure in your law firm that allows you to review potential new client's matters, focus on the handling of present clients' matters, to prepare your clients' matters as completely as possible and to make ready for a total awareness and preparedness as to each and every matter in your office.
In other words, if your house is in order, you can practice law! Now, wouldn't that be nice for a change?
By Paul Bernstein
The ABA Tech Show in Chicago in March, 2001, for me, confirmed existing trends in law office automation and technology and provided visions of the near-future. Here's what I saw that really interested me. Remember, this is all one person's opinion.
IBM in the law office
Many years ago there was a saying when it came to an employee authorizing the purchase of typewriters for an office: "No one ever got fired for choosing IBM." And, it was true. IBM has had its share of problems dealing with the microcomputer revolution, but IBM has been a mainstay of "bricks and mortar" companies for a very long time now. What I saw at the ABA Tech show in March, 2001, was a significant exhibit space taken by IBM and almost every other major vendor/exhibitor seemed to be using IBM computers and monitors in their booths as well. I am not necessarily an expert on computer-pricing; however, it did seem to me that IBM's pricing was reasonably competitive with others selling computers and computer technology.
IBM always had the best keyboards in the industry and, as noted, was always a very responsible company with excellent, working products. It also seems that IBM is working with major vendors, such as West Group, in various ventures of one kind or another. And, noted a bit later is their "killer" notebook product that you will want to buy NOW (so, stop reading this article if you want to save about $3,000 quickly).
Those of us who have been in practice for a long time, welcome back IBM as a major player. While the dot.com companies suffer and implode and where other microcomputer vendors are cutting back, IBM slimmed down long ago. Welcome back, IBM!
For a look-see at how IBM has tailored Web pages to cater to the ABA lawyers, go to:http://www-1.ibm.com/businesscenter/us/smbusapub.nsf/detailcontacts/SBCenterA25B
Visioneer "OneTouch"™ 8650 scanner and automatic document feeder
If you are not yet into scanning technology, you will be when you see more about the Visioneer "OneTouch" 8650 Scanner and Automatic Document Feeder. It's a "killer product" at an unbelievably low price.
Most of us have heard of the Visioneer products. I bought early on the "Paperport Strobe Pro" that is about the size of ruler and sits on your desk between your keyboard and monitor. That product could scan a sheet of paper ... hand fed only ... and you get an image in about ten seconds. Now, you have both a flat-bed scanner (for books and magazines) and a 50-page sheet feeder as well. The product lets you scan, OCR, email and fax, right out of the same machine. The added power of the OneTouch makes scanning a bit slower, and so only expect three to five pages per minute...but, that's more then enough for the average day-to-day needs of most law firms. (If you have greater requirements, look for scanners that cost thousands of dollars-- much needed if you have cases with thousands of documents and you do not want to out-source the scanning efforts.)
I was amazed at how the software that comes with the product scans pictures! Remarkable from the get-go, and must be seen to be believed. It's really easy to scan any kind of document and/or picture and automatically attach the file you just created to an email message. The ease of use is remarkable.
How any company can sell a product that does this much at the low price they do is unbelievable to me. I had not seen the product previously and fell in love with it at the show. And, in that they had a $50 rebate if you bought at the show, I ponied-up my credit card and bought the machine at the $299.99 price ... a heck of a bargain even without the rebate.
I still remember the first time I came in contact with scanning. To publish my then product, Automated Legal Forms, I scanned existing documents from my law firm via a service bureau that had invested in a Kurzweil scanner ... a huge machine that cost $150,000 in about the mid-1970s. My impression is that this fantastic Visioneer OneTouch provides more features, functions and resources then that ancient Kurzweil machine.
If you are not into scanning yet, you should be. And, if you want to get started with the right product at the right price, this product is for you.
To learn more in the way of general information, go to their Web site at: http://www.visioneer.com/dynahome.html
To learn what you want to know and then purchase the product, go to: http://www.visioneer.com/products/flatbed/8800usb/
The new IBM Thinkpad® Transnote™ Notebook Computer--you could die for it!
Most lawyers, even those who presently use laptop or notebook computers, continue to use a yellow pad, whether in a meeting, at a deposition and even at trial. It's just too hard and too distracting to try to type almost all the time. But, unless you have a disability of one kind or another (and there are solutions there too), most of us are accustomed to taking notes with a pen or pencil and our infamous yellow pad.
The new, exciting, now-being-delivered, IBM Thinkpad, Transnote Notebook Computer provides you with the ability to write on regular paper with a special pen and ink that takes your written text and creates a file on your computer! Yes, it really works. So, now, imagine that you are at that deposition or in trial and want to have your notes become a part of the permanent files in your computer system and also to transmit those notes, ASAP, to others on your team. This notebook computer does that for you.
Yes, I know many folks like the PalmPilot and its competitors for pecking in those notes, and still others have those portable and fold-out keyboards for such purposes and I am not saying they don't have their place, but this notebook computer is a killer product that is catching fire in the legal profession and properly so. Only the price stopped me from buying one on the spot and my spouse jumping up and down all over me for making such a significant, "impulse" purchase decision without her approval.
As noted, this is also a full-featured notebook computer that does all you want for a notebook computer and this marvelous "more." The Web site to take a look and learn more (hide your credit card while doing