There are countless reasons to look into automation for your law practice; but many attorneys don’t know where to begin. This article provides a background to automation and how it can maximize your practice’s efficiency. Automation is the use of computer programs to reduce the amount of time put into certain tasks.
As a lawyer your time is extremely valuable and best used doing essential and billable functions for your customers (researching relevant case law, interviewing clients and witnesses, etc.). Time wasted organizing your schedule or looking for that similar case you did in 2009 does not benefit you or your clients. Automation can take care of these chores, allowing you more time to focus on your clients’ needs. This results in better quality of representation and allows you to maximize your number of billable hours. A rare win-win scenario!
Because automating your law office may seem daunting, many experts believe that the “key is to start with one thing at a time” and to better yet “start with one thing that you don’t like.” You can make the process even more painless by beginning with products you have likely used before, like Microsoft 365 (Microsoft’s recently rebranded Office 365 suite). In fact, there are many ways an attorney can automate their work for no added cost in Microsoft 365. In Outlook you can create auto responses, create document templates in Word, utilize Excel to allow for quick changes of names in documents, and many others. Once you see the benefits of automation in Microsoft you will likely look for other areas to automate.
Conveniently, other commonly used management systems like Clio, Rocket Matter, and MyCase all have automation tools that can be utilized. While these tools take time to configure, the rewards last for years to come. Further, there are several programs that are specifically built for automation. While some require professional set-up, others can be setup on your own (or by a team member with moderate coding background). Automation is a valuable resource for any attorney that allows you to provide better legal services while also maximizing the number of billable hours.
Interested in learning more about automation, analytics, and innovation in law? Check out our Legal Analytics & Innovation Initiative page.
Written by Max Franco