Greentree Articles
Practice Management that Wont Break the Bank
For about 14 years, we have been serving the legal community by selling and supporting billing software; namely Timeslips. That is the case today and will continue to be the case until the end of time: We do Timeslips for lawyers!
However, we are also well aware that as technology moves forward, man/woman does not by Timeslips alone survive. In today’s competitive legal climate, many firms, especially smaller ones are looking for ways to maximize their resources and gain added value from every dollar spent. This is why firms often look to practice management software that can deliver:
• Centralized matter and contact management
• Centralized calendaring and calendar rules/chains
• Centralized email and document management
• Document assembly that works with matters and contacts
These are features that can greatly enhance the productivity and efficiency in any firm, but especially a firm with limited staff. Undoubtedly most law firm owners have an expectation that such a formidable piece of software can be prohibitively expensive. We say it doesn’t have to be!
We have recently become certified in the use, installation and configuration of PracticeMaster which is made by STI and is part of the Tabs3 Suite of software. Without going into much detail about the excellent track record of STI, we will suffice by saying that STI has been in business since 1977 selling software to lawyers. Never the hare, this company has slowly and methodically plodded along relying on the strength of their products and word of mouth to succeed; and succeed they have. This is especially true with PracticeMaster. This powerful yet inexpensive program compares with and supersedes many other more expensive applications currently on the market. For the sake of illustration, we have created a price comparison of the leading practice management applications on the market; based on a five user network.
|
Name |
No. of Users |
Price |
|
PracticeMaster |
5 |
$895.00 |
|
Amicus Attorney Small Firm Edition* |
5 |
$2,095.00 |
|
TimeMatters |
5 |
$3,000.00 |
|
Abacus Law* |
5 |
$3,988.00 |
|
ProLaw |
5 |
$5,000.00 |
We’d love to show you what this little speedster of a case management system can do for your firm in a no cost, no obligation demo. We can do this online using GoToMeeting so you never have to leave the comfort of your desk.
Norman Calderon, 2010
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How to Buy Legal Billing Software
It is inevitable that when lawyers venture out on their own they will have to buy software. There is no other way in today’s climate to keep up with the demands of a busy practice. You can choose from software to keep your calendar, or track your documents and emails, or even help you write a brief. However, the single most important piece of software that will have to be purchased is a billing program. There are many programs out there to choose from and most of them do a lot of the same things. Here are a few guidelines that can help you make a more informed decision.
Besides being an extremely versatile and easy to use accounting program, QuickBooks® also provides the ability to prepare and send invoices and even do some time tracking. If you are working by yourself and sending out 10 or 12 bills a month, this will probably work in the short term. However, it does not offer so much in the way of reporting or keeping historical data. Consider this a temporary solution to keep you going meanwhile you take time to explore and compare the more specialized alternatives out there.
The use of QuickBooks is so prevalent and it is preferred by so many CPA’s that it is probably going to stay with you for a long time to come; even after you’ve moved on to a full-fledged billing program. Therefore, in order to avoid duplicate data entry down the line, it is important that you select a billing program that interfaces well with QuickBooks®. There are a couple out there that do this; some better than others. In practice you want something that keeps you from having to type everything twice.
Also it is important that you consider the future growth of your firm. Initially Outlook® should be sufficient to keep track of your clients and important dates. However, as you get busier and hire associates, you more than likely will want to install a law-firm specific case management tool. Again, in order to avoid duplicate data entry, you are looking for ways in which your billing program will integrate well with your practice management program. Most do this, but some do it much better than others.
Ultimately the best solution would be a fully integrated program that does everything: billing, accounting and case management. They also exist, but are really too much for the lawyer starting out from both perspectives of usability and cost. There are some programs out there that can be purchased modularly as your firm grows. They are designed to work in concert to automate many of the repetitive tasks found in a law firm. Moreover, you can start with billing, and add accounting and practice management components as you need them. Because you are not buying the entire suite at once, the cost is not astronomical. However, because the suite is all designed by the same company, it is generally much easier to work with than trying to combine software from different companies. This is where the smartest money goes.
Norman Calderon, 2009
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