Legal
What is legal technology for law firms?
Legal technology simply refers to the systems in use by law firms and legal professionals to aide in the more efficient and productive practice of the law. Legal tech can come in many different forms, helping law firms to simplify the way they work, automate routine tasks and improve the service that they offer to clients.
The adoption of legal technology has revolutionized the legal industry, allowing law firms to streamline their operations and enhance their overall effectiveness. By leveraging these innovative solutions, legal professionals can optimize their workflow, access critical information with ease, and deliver faster, more accurate results to their clients.
Moreover, legal tech empowers lawyers to stay up-to-date with the latest legal developments and regulatory changes, enabling them to provide comprehensive and proactive legal counsel. As the legal landscape continues to evolve, the integration of technology has become indispensable for law firms seeking to stay competitive and provide exceptional legal services.
In this guide, we’ll discover the different ways legal technology can support law firms.
10 minutes
Written by Ryan Sparrow
What are the different types of legal technology for law firms?
Legal technology encompasses two fundamental categories: hardware and software, both of which are vital for the successful operation of law firms. Hardware refers to the physical equipment necessary to utilize legal technology, including computers, servers, printers, and scanners. Selecting suitable hardware is crucial, considering factors such as processing power, storage capacity, connectivity options, and security features. On the other hand, software plays a pivotal role in transforming how law firms manage their operations and deliver legal services. Practice management software, document management systems, legal research platforms, and eDiscovery tools are examples of legal software applications that streamline tasks, automate processes, and enhance collaboration within law firms.
Choosing reliable and secure hardware, as well as software that aligns with the firm's needs and workflows, is essential. It ensures smooth operation, enhances productivity, and protects sensitive client data. By building a robust and integrated technological infrastructure, law firms can empower their attorneys and staff to work efficiently, collaborate effectively, and provide exceptional legal services to their clients.
What hardware to law firms need?
As with any business, law firms will need computers or laptops for all of their staff, but law firms specifically benefit from digital dictation solutions that require Dictaphones or microphones for fee earners to record dictations along with foot pedals to assist legal secretaries in transcribing those dictations, by allowing them to quickly play, pause, rewind and fast forward the dictation. However, these functions are becoming more obsolete as digital dictation mobile apps and transcription software becomes more popular.
With many law firms adopting hybrid working processes, they may also benefit from improved audio visual equipment, such as a HD web cam, high quality microphone and/or a ring light so that online meetings with colleagues and clients are the best quality possible.
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What is a legal software system?
A legal software system refers to a specialized software or application designed to assist legal professionals, such as lawyers, law firms, and legal departments, in managing various aspects of their work. These software systems are specifically developed to meet the unique needs and requirements of the legal industry. They aim to streamline processes, improve efficiency, and enhance the overall practice of the law.
How does legal software work?
Legal software can be used either as a desktop application, with all data stored on servers located on the law firm’s premises, as a desktop application in the cloud, with all data stored in the cloud service providers servers, or as a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) product, whereby the product is accessed via an internet browser.
An on-premise solution allows law firms to have control over their own IT, but is resource heavy and can cause issues with budgeting when unexpected maintenance is required.
A dedicated cloud hosting solution for law firms usually requires a monthly fee and removes much of the IT burden from the law firms as things like maintenance and updates are handled by the cloud service provider.
A SaaS solution will also require a monthly fee and is even more low-touch for the law firm as they won’t be required to install any software on their devices other than the pre-installed web browser. This means that they can also easily access their software from any device, giving them the freedom to work from anywhere.
Why is legal technology important?
Legal technology is important because it saves law firms countless hours of admin work through automation and integrations. In the legal world where time is quite literally money, every second matters and by utilising legal technology to its fullest, law firms can ensure that they reach their full potential in terms of profitability, productivity and compliance.
What types of legal software systems do law firms use?
1. What is case management software?
Case Management Software (CMS) helps lawyers to manage their cases more efficiently, compliantly and effectively. Case management systems will often include a set of workflows that automate much of the routine legal and admin work to save law firms time and money.
A legal case management software system will usually have different workflows for each different area of the law, each utilising forms and following the processes required for that particular practice area. For example, the Access Legal Case Management conveyancing workflow follows the CQS Protocol, making it easier for conveyancing firms to comply with the CQS Standard.
Many case management systems will now also integrate with other third party tools to enhance efficiency and productivity by removing the double entry of data into multiple disparate systems and bringing all relevant documents and data into a single place. This provides a single source of truth, making compliance easier to manage and collaboration with other team members simpler.
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2. What is document management software?
Document management software (DMS) helps lawyers to manage their documents more efficiently. A DMS will often be used by large commercial law firms that have thousands of contracts and other documents that need to be effectively organised and stored securely.
A document management system will usually allow lawyers to easily find and amend required documents, with automated version control.
3. What is practice management software?
Practice Management Software (PMS) includes a combination of CMS, Legal Accounting Software and reporting software that together allows for the successful operation of a law firm. A PMS will often be used by SME law firms with the PMS in operation across the business allowing fee earners to handle cases effectively, accounts staff to manage payments efficiently and all data to be stored centrally so that Partners, Heads of Department and the Practice Manager can view their firms KPIs, Fee Earner performance and the firm’s financial metrics in a single place.
Read more about What is legal practice management software?
4. What is legal billing and accounts software?
Legal billing and accounting software enables the efficient processing of a law firm’s finances while remaining compliant with SRA solicitors accounts rules. It will usually be integrated with the CMS allowing for bills to be generated from within the CMS and passed through to the accounts system for credit control.
This ensures accuracy, while making the process more efficient and allowing for easy access to financial data. Firms can easily see their aged debtors and keep on top of their finances to ensure the smooth operation of the firm.
5. What is client portal software?
Client portal software grants a law firm’s clients 24/7 access to the details of their case that have been shared by the law firm. In the client portal, the client can track updates and milestones, securely send documents requested by their solicitor, complete forms and sign them digitally and communicate with their solicitor in a secure portal.
By using client portal software system, the legal process becomes much more convenient for both solicitor and client, reducing the time taken for documents and forms to be completed and returned to the solicitor and saving clients from taking time out of their day to visit the law firm’s office to complete or drop off forms or ID.
6. What is time recording software?
Time recording software allows fee earners to record and categorise the time taken for them to complete certain tasks. For those that operate on an hourly fee model, this is important as it allows them to bill their clients accurately, ensuring the correct amount of billable units are captured. Similarly, if the firm provides legal aid, it’s imperative that their work is recorded and categorised correctly to ensure that there are no issues with billing and to maximise profitability.
For firms that operate on a fixed fee structure, time recording is still important as it allows them to report on the productivity of their staff and ensure that fees are set correctly to provide the firm with an optimal profit margin.
7. What is digital dictation software?
Digital dictation software allows a fee earner to record dictations either using an external microphone or their mobile phone and save this dictation centrally where it is routed to the appropriate secretary for transcription. Most digital dictation software now automatically transcribes dictations and add them to the firm’s letter-headed paper ready for the secretary to update and amend before sending as appropriate.
8. What is conveyancing software?
Conveyancing software helps conveyancers complete property sale and purchase transactions more efficiently and productively, while ensuring accuracy and enhancing the customer’s experience. Conveyancing software will often sit within a CMS and include a workflow that simplifies each step.
There will also be some important integrations such as that with the Land Registry Business Gateway, allowing for the electronic retrieval and submission of documents to the Land Registry from the CMS. There will also be an integration with a conveyancing search provider, speeding up the search report ordering process and the time it takes to receive the report.
9. What are electronic signatures?
Electronic signatures allow for documents to be signed electronically, either by typing, drawing with a mouse, or if using a touch screen device, buy drawing with a finger or pen. Many electronic signature systems are able to also record details of the device used to provide the signature in order to verify that it has been signed by the appropriate person.
10. What is legal learning software?
Legal learning software provides law firms with legal specific training to help them meet their regulatory training and competence requirements. This training can come in multiple formats including written courses, a series of videos and animations, webinars, podcasts and more.
A legal learning software will also usually include a CPD or competence tracker that allows fee earners to record the training that they have completed to be able to show to their regulator what training they have done and give evidence of their competence.
11. What is compliance software?
Compliance software allows law firms to centrally record and track the firms risks and compliance metrics. This will include a risk register that records all of the risks identified by the firm and how they will be mitigated, file audits that records the results of all file audits completed by the firm, a complaints tracker and more.
All of these tools together allow the firm to report and keep a close eye on their compliance with regulatory requirements, which areas of the business provide a higher level of risk and to easily provide evidence to the regulator and to PII insurers of their compliance.
12. What is AML Software?
AML software makes compliance with anti-money laundering regulations much more simple and efficient for lawyers, particularly during the client due diligence (CDD) stage where the software enables the firm to verify the client’s identity documents (IDD) against multiple databases in seconds. This check confirms whether the client is on any sanctions lists, resides in or is connected to a high-risk third country, or is a politically exposed person (PEP).
AML software will now usually also include a biometric identity verification tool that helps to confirm that the client is the person shown on the IDD. This uses advanced biometric technology that scans the user’s facial features and compares them to the picture shown on the document.
Another common feature of an anti-money laundering software is source of funds (SoF) and source of wealth (SoW) checks that use open banking technology to identify where a client’s income originates and where their funds being used for a particular transaction have come from.
Read more about What is the difference between sources of wealth and sources of funds?
Summary
Legal technology helps law firms to operate more efficiently and profitably across multiple practice areas. There are a number of different pieces of software that a law firm should use to reach its fullest potential and maximise profitability, the most important of which is case management software that greatly enhances the efficiency and compliance of a matter.
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