Practice Management Software in 2010 - State Bar of Arizona

Practice Management Software in 2010

Edition 11.1

By:

Susan Traylor, Practice Management Advisor Law Office Management Assistance Program

May 2010

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Speaker’s Biography ........................................................................................................... i PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE in 2010 Demonstration of Leading Solutions

A Concise History of Technology in the Law Practice .......................................... 1 Why Do I Need Practice Management Software? .................................................. 3 The Benefits of Organizing Your Practice Using Some Type of Practice Management Software ............................................ 7 How Do You Know Which Practice Management Software is Right for Your Firm? ............................................................................................. 7 Screen Shots of Abacus Law, Amicus Attorney, & Time Matters ........................ 9 By 2009, Practice Management Software Had Moved Toward “Integration” of Software and Services....................................................................................... 17 Practice Management Software in 2010 ............................................................... 19 Foundation Features of a Good Practice Management Software.......................... 21 Distinguishing Features of Practice Management Software ................................. 23 Practice Management Software Products Demonstration..................................... 24

AbacusLaw ................................................................................................ 25 Amicus Attorney ........................................................................................ 29 Time Matters ............................................................................................. 35

Resources for the Practice Management Software Researcher............................. 41 Practice Management Software: Table of Software Products.............................. 43

BIOGRAPHY SUSAN L. TRAYLOR is the Practice Management Advisor with the Law Office Management Assistance Program (LOMAP) of the State Bar of Arizona. She is a certified consultant for Abacus Law, Amicus Attorney, and Time Matters practice management software. In addition to her 20+ years office management experience, she has worked for six years in sole practitioner law firms. Susan has extensive experience in computer technology administration, time and billing, accounts receivable and collections, database management, and legal-specific practice management software for the small and solo firms. As LOMAP’s Practice Management Advisor, Susan advises member attorneys on issues relating to the business of practicing law, including setting up a law practice, closing a practice, client relations, office management, trust accounting, efficient office systems, with a particular emphasis on selecting and utilizing appropriate technology. Susan travels throughout Arizona to help attorneys and their staff members implement Abacus Law, Amicus Attorney, and Time Matters, including initial and ongoing training and customizations. Ms. Traylor received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Arizona State University and completed certificate programs in both legal assisting from Phoenix College and mediation training from the University of Phoenix.

i

Practice Management Software in 2010: Demonstration of Leading Solutions

By Susan Traylor, Law Office Management Assistant Program

How might a day in the life of a busy law practice look if the attorney and staff used the power of practice management software? This program will explain what practice management software is, why law firms need it to compete in the field of law today and what practice management software products are available today. Although this program assumes the perspective of a solo, small and possibly mid-sized law firms, consideration is also given to the needs of corporate legal departments and public law offices. This presentation will conclude with a compare and contrast demonstration of at least three practice management software products, not from a software vendor’s perspective, but rather from the perspective of the law firm, based on the most important of the day-to-day functions in a law practice…case processing, from intake to closing the file1. The best way to fully understand what practice management software is, is to first review what software solutions came before it.

A Concise History of Technology in the Law Practice

Word Processing Software In the beginning there was word processing. No longer did the law firm need carbon copies, onion skin paper and Wite-out. Almost every lawyer’s secretary gladly learned to use WordPerfect (one of the first word processing software) to prepare documents. It was not long before lawyers, too, were using word processing. Then the big question became, “Should we use WordPerfect or Microsoft Word?” Today, a lawyer would not consider practicing law without using a word processing program. Billing Software If word processing could make lighter work of preparing documents, then why not use the computer to track time, send bills to clients, and manage the firm’s cash flow? Along came time and billing software to the rescue: Timeslips, Tabs 3 were a couple of the first time and billing software. Later came PCLaw, QuickBooks, Billing Matters, Juris and, more recently, Abacus Accounting, Amicus Accounting and EasyTimeBill and EasyTrust, to name only a few. Next to word processing software, billing and accounting software quickly became the lawyer’s next favorite software tool.

1 Excerpt from the CLE seminar, Systems to Make Your Office Hum, by Susan Traylor.

_____________________________________________________________________________ Practice Management Software in 2010 By Susan Traylor, LOMAP, State Bar of Arizona Page 2

E-mail The age of e-mail hit the world like a Tsunami. Now, lawyers not only could accomplish the task of communicating with clients and other lawyers, but at the same time they could be documenting that communication. What a marvelous technological invention for a law firm! It is difficult to find a law firm today that does not use e-mail. While there are many e-mail service providers, i.e. aol.com, yahoo.com, cox.net, qwest.net, etc., by far the most frequently-used e-mail software in law firms today is Microsoft Outlook. Contacts and Calendar

If a law firm had e-mail, it was likely that they used Outlook as their e-mail software. If the law firm using Outlook for their e-mail took the time to look more closely at Outlook, they realized that not only could they send, receive and organize e-mail using Outlook, but they could also make use of Outlook’s calendar and contacts. Imagine that. A computer program that could keep a list of your clients and other attorneys and, at the same time, keep a calendar! This was especially helpful for docketing due dates. PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) and Smart Phones

Now, not every law firm used Outlook. Some lawyers discovered there was a small, handheld computer that could keep track of their contacts, appointments and task list. Some of these products were Palm, Handspring, and Pocket PCs, to name a few. The great technology developers must have had attorneys in mind when they developed the PDA and, later, the Smartphone (cell phone and PDA combined, with internet and e-mail service), i.e.Treo, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and later, iPhone and Droid, among others. So long as the data on it could be backed up and kept secure, it was the lawyer’s “best friend” technology. They could take it to court, to the office and even use at home. Their calendar, contacts and e-mail was easily accessible at all times. Document Management By this time, law firms were starting to think, “If there are software solutions for preparing documents, tracking time, preparing bills, sending e-mail, tracking contacts and calendaring, there certainly must be a tool to help us organize our electronic documents.” Enter the document management software (DMS). Products such as PCDocs, Worldox, iManage, DocsOpen offered the solution. The development of DMS made it easier to save (put away) newly created electronic documents as well as to easily locate them (retrieve). As lawyers dared to abandon paper management altogether and test the waters of the “paper-less” law office, mail and other incoming

_____________________________________________________________________________ Practice Management Software in 2010

By Susan Traylor, LOMAP, State Bar of Arizona Page 3

documents could be scanned into the computer, then organized with the DMS. No more franticly searching files, cabinets, inboxes, lawyers’ desks for documents.

Document Assembly or Document Generation Reflecting back on the early days of technology in the law office, that is, the days of word processing, lawyers and their staff began to think, “Do we really have to type each document from scratch? Especially if it is a routine form that is used over and over again, like our fee agreement.” So they demanded more from their word processing software (WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, and others) looking to figure out ways to set up “form” (or template) documents. This way only the “variable” information, such as names, addresses, case reference, case number, etc. would have to be typed. WordPerfect and Microsoft Word did accomplish this. But what if the “variable” information was in Outlook or the Palm or the billing software such as Timeslips? Couldn’t that variable information just be “merged” into WordPerfect or Word form? And, “Isn’t there some kind of software that specializes in assembling documents this way?” Along came document assembly software such as HotDocs, GhostFill, Amicus Assembly.

Additionally, by this time, there were more demands on the software. “I want to be able to see, in one place, all the attorneys, witnesses, judges, courts,

insurers, etc. who are connected to a client’s file. Isn’t there some way to do that with a computer program?”

“I need to do a conflicts check. Is there some software that can do conflicts

checking?” “I do a lot of web research. I would like to save my research on the computer and

somehow organize it with my client’s file.” “Isn’t there some software that can help me manage my trust account?” “I use a time and billing software, but I need something to help me with my

calendar and due dates and my billing software does not do that.” “We use an electronic calendar at our office, but we can’t share it. We would like

one centralized, electronic calendar that all of us can see.”

You say, “I have all of the above computer tools I need. Why do I need Practice Management Software?”


If you have been practicing law for some time and, during that time, have accumulated some or many of the above technological tools, you might be asking this question.

What’s Wrong with this Picture?

Like a house that goes through years of remodeling, each time with a new add-on or room, software for in the law office was splintered. There was no flow. No continuity. That is, there was one software for word processing, another for billing, another for e-mail, another for the calendar and contacts, yet another for the PDA, and one for the document management system and even more for the document assembly. To benefit from all these wonderful tools, an attorney and staff had to become specialists in all these different software products. Not only that, there was duplication of work. One had to enter the client’s name and address and phone number in each of the different software products. This not only took more time, but there was more room for error, not to mention a lot of different software databases to keep up. There were more software licenses to buy, to upgrade, to keep trained on, to pay for support.

The Effect of “Splintered” Software on Medium and Large Firms

This splintering of software functions was not so much of a drawback for the large law firms. After all, they most likely had a fully-staffed, full-time Information Technology (I/T) department, a full-time law office administrator, or at least an office manager, a designated staff person to do billing, another staff person to do calendaring of deadlines, and staff dedicated to word processing or putting together documents, support staff to collect the attorney’s billable time and input it into a billing program. In short, the functions were splintered, so who cares if the software solutions are splintered. The attorneys and associates were typically able to focus the majority of their time strictly on casework, client representation. Except for the managing partner, they did not have the burden of the day-to-day firm administration.

The Effect of “Splintered” Software on Small and Solo Firms The smaller the firm, the more that is required of the attorneys and support staff to be multi-talented in their skills, in particular, administrative and management skills. When an attorney starts out, with no support staff at all, he/she must do it all: take calls, do intakes, prepare documents, maintain communication with clients, track time, do bills, schedule appointments and calendar deadlines, check for conflicts, open files, close files, everything! To have separate computer software for each of these tasks is a huge imposition on the small firm lawyer, and decidedly so on the sole practitioner.

What If There Was One Type of Software that Could Bring All of These Functions Together?

Actually, there is such a single software solution for these splintered functions. It is called practice management software (“PMS”). Previously referred to as case management software, the term “practice management software” has come to mean: one software that comprehends all of the day-to-day administrative and case processing functions of client representation and managing a practice…with the added bonus of being developed especially for law firms.

What Makes Practice Management Software

Special for Law Firms?

Practice Management Software is a relational database, starting with the Client’s contact information, then adding a case/matter for that client, and “relating” (or linking) all contacts, phone calls, time tracked, calendar items, e-mail, documents, etc., to the case/matter.

What Is a Relational Database?

Figure 1

(C ase, Project)PI M atter 2

(C ase, Project)B ankruptcy

(C ase, Project)PI M atter 1

(C ontact, C ustom er)C L IE N T = person

Link m any m atters to 1 C lient (Contact)

(Case, Project)P I M atter 2

(Case, Project)Bankruptcy

(Case, P roject)P I M atter 1

(Contact, Custom er)CLIENT = person

Figure 2

CourtReporter

JudgeWitnessOpposing Attorney

Client

PI Matter 1

CourtReporter

JudgeWitnessOpposing AttorneyClient

PI Matter 1

Link many contacts (client, attorneys, parties, ... people)

to 1 matter



So, being able to create one Contact card or record, then “relate” (or link) it to all the related matters or cases, means that if that Contact record changes (i.e. the client moves), that Contact record need only be updated once. Then, all the cases or matters that Contact record relates to will reflect the updated address. Likewise, being able to create one appointment or task on the calendar, then “relating” (or linking) it to a case or matter, means that not only will you see the appointment or task on the calendar, but you will see it in the linked-to matter or case. These are small, but important to understand, examples of the power of a relational database.

Combine the law-firm-specific benefit of a relational database with the centralizing of all the splintered functions in a law practice and you

get…Practice Management Software!

Contacts

Appointments

Reminders

Matters/Cases

Document Management Assemble Document

Track time

Phone calls

Organize web research

(Clients, Attorneys, Parties, People)

Calendaring/Docketing

Word or WordPerfect E-mail organization

Personal Digital Assistants (PDA’s) Remote access

CaseManagement

Program




The Benefits of Organizing Your Practice Using Some Type of Practice Management Software are…

deadlines easier to track; documents are always a few keystrokes out of reach; conflicts checking is more reliable; billable work is less likely to slip through the cracks because time keeping is

easier to do; attorneys can work with case and client files away from the office (remote); documents and information are easier to share with clients and associate

attorneys, in case of disaster, case and client files can be recreated from computer file

deadlines and appointments are on a calendar shared by the entire staff phone communications and e-mail can be saved with the file and with other staff

(if desired) increased attorney and staff productivity you go to one software each day to find information and store information

How Do You Know Which Practice Management Software (“PMS”)

is Right for Your Firm? Choosing a PMS for your firm is like finding the right house for you or your family. There are numerous PMS products available (see p. 43 for a listing of some of the products) from which law firms can choose. Most of those PMS products are more alike than different. Just as all houses have similar foundation features, i.e. bedrooms, living rooms, bathrooms, kitchen, closets --- places to live in and keep your stuff --likewise, all PMS products have places to keep information like client names, addresses, phone numbers, case or matter information, appointments, to-dos, events, and notes. All can accommodate several staff sharing information on the computer network. Most PMS will help manage your documents, assemble documents, and will work with either Word or WordPerfect programs. The PMS will synchronize (exchange) data with your PDA and can “launch” (open) other document types (spreadsheet, graphics) right from within the PMS. These are considered some of the foundation features of good PMS.

Selecting case management softwareis like buying a...

PMS differ from each other in ways similar to the ways houses differ from one another. Just as houses can be distinguished by characteristics such as how the rooms are laid out, where the house is located in relation to people or places important to you, special features such as a pool, Jacuzzi, family room, outside patio, additional parking area, a big yard, so can PMS Products be distinguished by how they are laid out, how they relate (or interface) with other programs, what special features they offer. The following list of

1. How each PMS Product performs some of the above foundation features might be different. In other words, some may allow you to color-code your appointments, or let you set a priority on your to-dos. Some PMS Products may limit the flexibility of the program, often in an effort to keep it simple to learn and operate. Other PMS Products attempt to provide several ways to accomplish a task to accommodate individual work styles, i.e. in adding a new contact, you might have the choice of using the point and click of a mouse or a keystroke, and you might have the choice of creating a new contact from various places in the program.

Figures 3, 4, and 5 on the following pages, give a comparison example of the default “Matter” screen from three products that do PMS. Note how differently the Matter information is presented from one program to the other. It is important to remember that all the programs have “default” settings, that is, layouts and text that ship with the program. To a greater or lesser degree, the PMS Products can be modified (or customized) to include fields and field labels better suited to individual firms’ needs. The question you need to ask is, “How easy will it be for me to modify the default screens for my needs,” and “Will the end result of modifying truly meet my needs.”


Figure 3 – Abacus Law “Matter” screen



Note the basic, clean look approach of AbacusLaw. The Matter screen does not come “shipped” with a lot of fields in which you can input data, i.e. Matter, File/Case#, Attorney, Case Code, Court, Opened, Closed, etc. Do not misunderstand all the empty space on the Matter screen to be simplistic. The screen is your palette. You have endless capability to add more fields, of your own choice. Such as, if you practice personal injury, you may want to see the insured’s policy # here, the policy limits, the Date of Incident, the Statute of Limitations, the claims adjuster, etc. All of these fields could be added here. If you want to see the Client Name, address, phone number or the opposing attorney’s name, address, phone number, or anyone else who is associated with this Matter, simply select the “Linked Names” tab to reveal a drop-down list.

Figure 4 - Amicus Attorney Premium Edition “File/Matter” screen

Amicus Attorney Premium Edition takes a different approach to the Matter screen. Notice the “file folder” design and the way the Client (Gary Berwood) and Opposing Attorney (Douglas Brackman) contact cards are related (linked) up at the left side of the file. Because Berwood Construction is the Client, and is highlighted, the Berwood Construction contact card is revealed below to see the address and phone number. To add more fields of information, Amicus Attorney 2009 provides “custom pages” and “custom records” capabilities.


Figure 5 – Time Matters (by LexisNexis) “Matter” screen



Time Matters’ approach is to give you everything, lots of fields for information, then permit you to hide what you do not want to see/use, edit what you want to change, and allow you up to 80 fields of information to customize for your own needs or preference. Notice the way Time Matters’ Matter screen relates/links in the “Primary Contact”, Barry B. Able, showing his entire address and phone number in Area 2. If you want to see the Client name, address, phone number, or other persons related to the file, you may either select the “Related” tab to produce a drop-down list, or you may set up Time Matters to “link” in the Contact information directly on the Matter form (For an example, see the Adjuster, Nigel English, his office, address, phone, etc.)


So, you see how differently each of the three software products handles a Matter screen.

2. Billing/Accounting Software: You need to ask yourself, “How am I going to bill my clients, manage their trust funds, pay the firm bills?” If you are currently using software such as Billing Matters, Amicus Accounting, Timeslips, Quickbooks Pro, PCLaw, Tabs3 or Juris, Microsoft Small Business Accounting, to name a few, then you may to ask yourself, “Do I like using this software? Does it work well for me? Do I want to keep using it?” If so, then you may also be wondering if the PMS can “talk” to your billing/accounting software? Or, you may be asking if the PMS has billing/accounting software “built-in” to the PMS. There are pros and cons to each type of arrangement. If your firm has been using a time and billing program prior to installing a case management program, you would not need to invest the time and money it would take to change to a new billing program in order to gain the functionality of case management. Contrarily, if your firm is not tied to a billing/accounting program, you may have more options available and may want to consider a full-service PMS (“Front Office” and “Back Office”) or select a PMS and billing/accounting software that work well together.

3. What Other Software or Hardware Devices are Used at Your Firm? Most up-to-date PMS Products can be linked with other popular software and devices, i.e. personal digital assistants (PDAs) such as Palm Pilots, Handspring, Blackberries, Treos; document management systems such as WorldDox or iManage, DocsOpen; document assembly software such as HotDocs; scanning software such as PaperPort. For the most part, all PMS will integrate with both MSWord and WordPerfect, as well as read graphics/picture files, audio files, and other multi-media type information such as video. Make a note of which of the above software or hardware your firm uses. Then check to see how your PMS of choice will work with them.

Microsoft Outlook has become such a standard that most all PMS is compelled to work with it in some way; however, you should confirm specifically how the PMS works with Outlook. For instance, if you mainly use the e-mail function of Outlook, check to be sure the PMS can read Outlook e-mail into the PMS and, thus, save2 the e-mail in the PMS. If you also use the calendar and tasks in Outlook, check to see if the PMS “syncs” with Outlook calendar

2 By 2005, e-mail has come to be a standard mode of documented communication for lawyers. Likewise, Outlook has grown to become a favorite of many lawyers for organizing e-mail. It is easy to learn and use. Yet Outlook falls short for the lawyer in that it is contact-specific, rather than case-specific. When a lawyer wants to save an e-mail message for the file, he/she typically will save it as a .txt file on the computer network or print it out and put a hard copy in the client’s



4. Remote Access Options: Does your firm have branch offices? Do you and/or your staff wish to work from home at times? Do you wish to have access to your PMS data while in court? Do you want to use a laptop and take the PMS database with you on your laptop? If you answer yes to any of these questions, you will need to ask how does the PMS allow for remote access. Some PMS can be housed, or hosted, on your computer or server at the office, allowing you to log on via the web which will take you directly in to the PMS (this is termed “browser based” access). Similarly, a PMS may be housed, or hosted, on the web via an application service provider (ASP), where the ASP maintains the database for you (there are definite pros and cons to this option). Whereas, some PMS may require you to have your network technician set up a “VPN” for access to your firm’s computer network. While you still must go to the Internet to log in, you are actually logging into your firm’s network, then opening the PMS. It’s as if you are sitting in front of your computer in the office. Similar to the VPN, are remote access options such as GoToMyPC, PCAnywhere, or LogMeIn, which allow you to go to log in via the Internet, taking you directly to your computer desktop as if you were sitting in front of it, but the difference here is that you set an account with the vendor and typically pay a monthly fee. In any case, you will need to consult with your firm’s computer network technician in choosing the PMS and remote access option.

5. Special Features (“Bells and Whistles”): A PMS Product may offer features which set it apart from the other PMS Products. For instance;

a. a particularly user-friendly way of merging the data into document forms (document assembly); or

b. a particularly powerful document searching and indexing capability (document management); or

c. a partnership with a legal research vendor which streamlines the integration of legal research integration; or

d. a partnership with an online service, such as e-filing, which streamlines the filing of pleadings; or

file. This is not efficient. What the PMS does that Outlook cannot do, is save the e-mail, digitally, with the digital case file. If desired, the e-mail can still be printed out, but at minimum it can always be found. Additionally, the typical means for organizing Outlook e-mail is to set up folders in Outlook where the e-mail can be dragged and dropped. The disadvantage is that this typically is a private folder. The e-mail cannot be shared with other members of the firm. By saving the e-mail into the PMS, the e-mail becomes available for other members of the firm to access as a part of the client file.


e. a partnership or with another software vendor to add rules-based (from local rules publications) docketing/calendaring capability of the case management program; or

f. flexibility for customizing the way data is entered in the PMS Product for the specific needs of a law firm;

g. browser-based access option

h. availability of SQL database, frequently referred to as Enterprise version. While most solo and small firms may not initially need this, it is a good idea to consider whether the PMS you select at least has this version available in the event your firm grows larger, thus placing a bigger burden on your PMS database.

6. Practice-Specific PMS: Although many good PMS Products are designed to

accommodate the needs of firms which practice diverse areas of law, some PMS Products are designed for use by specialized practice areas, such as immigration law, workers compensation law, family law, plaintiff litigation, general litigation, public law, personal injury, corporate legal departments, criminal defense, insurance defense, etc. These specialized case management programs would also include custom fields for that particular specialty. For personal injury, for example, it might have a section to include names of medical providers, medical records, whereas, the litigation-oriented program might have fields for witnesses, litigation timelines, etc. If you practice one specific area of practice, it is recommended that you check first to see if there is a PMS product already customized for your practice area.

7. Look and feel: While this should not be the sole factor for choosing a PMS

Product, it should be given consideration. A law firm “moves into” and “lives in” a PMS Product much like a person “moves into” and “lives in” a house. The PMS Product needs to be a good match to the people in a law firm and they need to be able to get around in it comfortably. A good way to help people feel comfortable in their PMS Product is to provide them with training.

8. Support and Training Available: For the do-it-yourselfers, PMS vendors

typically provide a hard copy manual and/or an electronic form of the same manual, and free technical support for a limited time after purchasing the software. After the free technical support period has expired, you would be charged for calls you make to technical support, either on a per-call basis or on an annual basis per a maintenance agreement. It is a good idea to consider subscribing to one full year of technical support at the time you purchase the software since you can usually receive a discounted price for this if you sign up at the time you purchase it and you are most likely to need technical assistance during your first year’s use. The PMS software vendors frequently post



“Frequently Asked Questions” pages on their websites, as well as white papers addressing particularly difficult-to-learn features of their programs.

Technical Support: The technical support will help you with problems you encounter, as will any self-study you do, but neither should be thought of as the only form of training. In order for you to learn to use the full capability of a PMS Product, proper training is essential, otherwise, the PMS Product ends up being used as a glorified card index and digital calendar, thereby wasting a majority of its true benefits. Online/Web-based Training: Most of the PMS vendors offer affordable, convenient, online or web-based training. Be sure to inquire about training at the time you purchase the software, as many of the classes are pre-set according to a calendar. You may want to plan your PMS software installation and setup in coordination with the training schedule. Training Consultants: Most online training/classes are standardized presentations because the classes often have users from many law firms attending. Although these classes are well done because they are given by the vendor who knows the PMS product the best, you are then left with the challenge of how to interpret that training into the specific needs of your own firm with your staff and their unique set up skills. This is where a live person, on site, meeting with you and your staff can be most effective. Many PMS vendors certify independent persons as consultants for their PMS product. These consultants are frequently independent of the PMS vendor, although some PMS vendors train and certify their own employees as consultants. The certified consultant will come to your firm and typically provides on-site training, either in a lab format, one-on-one format, or a combination of both, and will not only teach you how to use the program to its fullest potential, but can also help you adapt the program to your specific needs (setup and customizing). The availability in your geographic area of a certified consultant for your PMS Product is an important factor to consider when selecting a PMS Product. Those law firms which have hired consultants at the time they purchased their PMS have been able to implement their software in an efficient, timely manner with much less stress to employees and attorneys. Remember, moving from a manual system to an automated case management system is not too different than moving from one house to the next – there is a time when procedures are disrupted (even if for but a brief period), everyone must get used to putting information away in a different place and looking for information in a different place.

PMS for your firm is also like buying a house in several other ways. Although the cost of PMS is now where near the price of a house, like a house, you will expend money and effort up front, taking time to “move into” it. PMS ownership, like


home ownership, is a responsibility. You will need to maintain it in the form of inputting data, customizing the design/layout and learning new features. You must either learn to maintain it yourself or pay others to maintain it for you. The payoff for your efforts is in the return you get on your investment. This is not to say that PMS appreciates and you then sell it like a house. This is to say that, after settling into your PMS product, the money and time you spend on PMS will be recouped soon by way of easily tracking billable time, finding information quickly, saving time looking for mislaid documents in the office, automating document preparation, cutting down on the duplication of data otherwise kept in card files, client files, in Smartphones or PDAs, or in multiple places throughout your office. You may even discover an immediate savings in the form of a discount on your malpractice insurance premiums since some malpractice insurance carriers have been known to a discount to encourage attorneys to use automated calendaring procedures.



By 2009, Practice Management Software Was

Moving Toward “Integration” of Software and Services Fully Integrated Solutions for Practice Management: With the Practice Management Software as the “anchor” application, the software vendors have set their sights on integrating with the PMS other routine functions of a law office, such as court filings, standardizing forms generation solutions by practice areas, making more seamless the flow of information between the “front office” and “back office.” Electronic Filing (E-Filing): The courts’ steady push toward electronic filing keeps the software vendors constantly searching for ways to help the practitioner meet the demands of the “paperless” practice. Software such as AbacusLaw and LexisNexis Front Office powered by Time Matters (“Time Matters”) offer e-filing features, making it easy to prepare your document for filing, then send it electronically to the court for filing. (Note: The courts have developed procedures for e-filing that do not require the purchase of PMS software.) Practice Area Forms Integration: Software such as Time Matters is available in a modified package of applications, functions and services such as LexisNexis’ “Total Practice Advantage” which essentially combines legal research, case management, forms generation (LexisNexis research, Time Matters, LexisNexis Forms). Billing/Accounting Integration. By 2009, one could not contemplate PMS without some discussion of time and billing or accounting software. If you refer back to the diagram on Page 6 of this booklet, you will notice the absence of a few important functions of a law firm: billing, invoicing, collections, trust accounts, paying bills, general financial management. Yes, the PMS can track time for billing, but historically the PMS was not actually able to perform these functions. This is where the terms “front office” and “back office” evolved to make reference to the software. The front office, or PMS, software was where the entire staff worked on a daily basis: calendaring, phone calls, e-mails, time tracking, document preparation, etc. However, because of the sensitive nature of the accounting, billing, collections, trust accounting, or back office, only select members of the staff (bookkeeper, office manager, managing attorney) worked there. Consequently, for years PMS, or front office, software was separate and apart from the accounting, or back office, software. The “bridge” between these two “offices” was the timekeeping entries or timeslips. The time was tracked in the front office (PMS), then, by way of a manually setup “link,” the time was sent digitally to the back office (billing/accounting). Another reason for allowing the PMS and accounting software to remain separate was that many law firms had been using their preferred accounting software long before the popularity of PMS. For example, accounting programs such as Timeslips, Tabs3, PCLaw, QuickBooks, Juris, Omega, Peachtree, were commonly used


by many law firms. If a firm decided to add PMS, it was easier to simply add-on the front office function to their existing back office software, rather than move all of their existing accounting data from their old software to a new software.

Today, since many law firms are starting out using PMS, there is greater demand now to find a PMS product that includes back office, or accounting, function built right in with the front office. Hence, LexisNexis Time Matters/PCLaw; AbacusLaw Gold (front office and back office); Amicus Small Firm or Amicus Attorney Premium with Amicus Accounting; LexisNexis Back Office powered by PCLaw (combines accounting and practice management software capabilities); ProLaw; Trialworks, to name a few.

Just as PMS can add accounting, or back office, function to better

integrate all the software needs of a law practice, likewise, an existing accounting software can add PMS, or front office, function to do the same. For example, PCLaw, a legal-specific accounting software which has been in existence for many years, has taken the approach of doing just that. While its main focus is timekeeping, billing, trust accounting, general ledger accounting, etc., it now has familiar PMS features such as calendaring, phone communications, document assembly, document management. Software Vendor Acquisition by Legal Research Publishers: PMS has done an excellent job at aiding the law firm in the day-to-day practice management tasks of calendaring, communications, timekeeping, e-mail management, document assembly, document management. The next step in its evolution was developing partnerships with frequently used third-party software such as billing/accounting (Timeslips, PCLaw, Quickbooks, Tabs3, etc.), document management (Worldox, iManage, DocsOpen, etc.), document assembly (HotDocs, GhostFill, etc.), PDA’s and Smartphones (Palm, Blackberry, Treo, Windows Mobile, iPhone, Droid, etc.). It is one thing to “partner” with a third-party software, where the PMS and the third-party software can share data or communicate with each other. In some ways, it is even better3 if the PMS and third-party software are owned by the same vendor company. Since about 2003, the PMS industry has seen a move toward vendor-integration. The legal publishing giants, Lexis and Westlaw, both have entered into the practice management arena. For example, Lexis-Nexis acquired Time Matters (PMS), PCLaw (accounting software), and Elite (formerly Thomson-Elite aka Thomson-West aka WestLaw) acquired ProLaw (PMS) in 2003. Currently ProLaw is under the vendor umbrella of Elite (legal publications and law firm accounting).

3 If a PMS and third-party software have a “link” with or integration with each, and there is a problem with that integration, the lawyer can sometimes experience difficulty knowing which vendor to contact regarding the problem. By having both programs under the same vendor-umbrella, the lawyer can look for improved continuity of service and tighter integration between the applications.



Practice Management Software in 2010 Software-As-A-Service aka “in the Cloud” All the PMS software discussed so far in this booklet is installed on computers in your office. The database is usually installed on the server (a dedicated, computer which hosts all the data and files shared by everyone in the firm). Installing software on a server, and all the computers in the office networked to that server, requires technical skill and time to make sure the software is always current and the data is secure and backed up. Additionally, lawyers and their legal professionals have become more mobile in their work style. Working on client files no longer demands that the lawyer be in the physical office. So long as the lawyer has a smart phone, a laptop and/or a desktop computer elsewhere, with a remote connection to the office, they work can still get done. Imagine then if the PMS with its database was installed on a server, but that server was at the PMS vendor’s office, and all you had to do was go to website and log in as a user with a password, and voila! You are using your PMS software with your own database. You have complete remote access to your PMS whether you are in the office, at court, at home, at another office, at the airport, anywhere where you can get an Internet connection, but the big difference is that the vendor is responsible for keeping the software up-to-date, making sure it is always functioning properly, and is backed up. It does not matter whether your computers are laptops or desktops or PCs with Windows O/S or Apple computers with Mac O/S. All you have to do is pay a monthly subscription fee to the vendor to use the software. The database belongs to you. If you are using PMS which is of this type, you can say you are managing your practice in-the-cloud. This concept is not new. Ten years ago it was known as Application Service Provider (ASP). There were several PMS products available as an ASP. But with the .com bust of 2000, many of the ASP vendors went out of business and, with that, so did the customers’ databases. Lawyers which had used ASP products found themselves without their client file data. Because of the bad reputation of the ASP, a new term was developed. It became known as the “thin client”, where the term “client” referred to the software installed on the workstation as being minimal or not at all. (This did not mean your client was skinny.) This term was slightly technical, if not too abstract, for the consumer. Eventually, the concept became known as Software-As-A-Service or SaaS, which label is still used today. But the most memorable term is “software in-the-cloud.” Despite the many advantages of PMS “in the cloud”, there are obvious concerns. How is client data maintained confidential? What happens if the PMS vendor


goes bust as did the .com companies of 2000? It is not the purpose of this booklet to prove the legitimacy of the “in the cloud” software. Suffice it to say, though, that lessons have been hard learned from the problems of the ASPs that went bust and, this time around, the many of the vendors are sure to explain first their care of maintaining confidentiality and security of client data as well as to provide methods for transferring your database to you at any time you request, especially should the vendor company go out of business. The issue of maintaining law firm data “in the cloud”, is currently a hot topic in many ethics discussions at the ABA and state bar associations around the country. In an attempt to address the issue, as well as storing electronic client files online, the State Bar of Arizona’s Ethics Committee issued an opinion No. 09-04 re Confidentiality; Maintaining Client Files; Electronic Storage; Internet (12/2009) which should give you guidance on the question of, is it ethical for me to use PMS “in the cloud?” If you are a technology pioneer, and you do your research, you may wish to investigate further two in-the-cloud PMS products which have been getting good reviews from the legal community: Clio and Rocket Matter. (See the Table of Software Products at the end of this booklet.) These applications have most of the basic functions/features of the traditional PMS products which are installed on your local computers: contacts, matters, calendar, phone records, notes, time tracking, document management. As of this writing, the in-the-cloud PMS products do not have document assembly (document generation) and they are still working to improve the Outlook e-mail integration and calendar synchronization. To their credit, they have integrated basic time and billing, and trust accounting, function. Microsoft Outlook “Add-On”to Practice Management Software Credenza is the name of a new PMS-lite product on the market as of January 2010. It is not a traditional PMS and it is not PMS in-the-cloud. Rather, Credenza was developed for those people who are deeply tied to their Outlook software, for e-mail, appointments, tasks, and the many other functions of Outlook. It is not a software to be installed on your computer or on the vendor’s computer. It is what is called a software “add-on”, and it is added on to Outlook. It is like Outlook on steroids, adding Files records, Timesheet records and Phone records to your Outlook. In short, it gives Outlook the ability to do something that has always been a shortcoming for Outlook in a law firm…the ability to organize Cases or Matters or Files. Credenza is not intended to compete with the full-featured PMS products such as those mentioned earlier and many of those listed in the table of software Products at the end of this booklet. Rather, it is more like a starter-PMS. For instance, it is limited to three users, it does not have document assembly (document generation), and it does not have automated calendaring.



FOUNDATION FEATURES of Good Practice Management Software

Contact database: Clients’, attorneys’ names, addresses, phone

numbers, e-mail addresses, etc. Case/Matter information: Case type, parties, notes, etc.

Grouping/Classification: Contacts can be classified in more than one way, i.e. client, attorney, judge.

Calendaring/Docketing: Appointments, deadlines, reminders, rolling

list of to-dos; automated calendaring Alerts/Reminders of Inactivity: Case status notification Date Calculators: For example, “20 days from today = _____” or “15 days prior to 5/15/05 = _______”

Single-entry data input: You should only have to enter one type of

data one time only, then link/relate it.

Audit Trail: Shows changes made to a record. Multiple Viewing Options: Calendar view, case view, client view

Customizable Fields: Allows the program to be modified to fit the individual attorney’s needs

Timekeeping: Track time spent on phone calls, events, appointments, preparing documents, etc.

Document Management: Associating computer files to clients or matters for easy saving & retrieval; keyword and/or full-text searching capabilities

E-mail Integration: Can save e-mail with contacts/matters

Document assembly: Merging your data with forms, for easy


document generation, i.e. with Word, WordPerfect, or HotDocs.

Report generating: Printing out the data in various forms, i.e. address lists, mailing labels, time reports

Integration with standard word processing programs: For Example: MS Word and WordPerfect Links to standard time & billing or accounting programs: For Example: Timeslips, PC Law, Jr., Tabs3,

Quickbooks, Abacus Accounting, Amicus Accounting, Juris

Synchronization with pocket or palm organizers and smart phones:

For Example: PalmPilot, Pocket PC, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, iPhone, Droid

Synchronization with Outlook: Contacts, Appointments & Todos Import/Export Capability: Can you easily transfer data from your

current database into this practice management database? For Example: import from ascii text or csv format.

Phone System Integration: Ability to dial phone numbers from within the PMS using standard modem

Remote access capability: Allows you to access your database from a remote location, or can “pack” PMS and transport out of the office Security: Ability to restrict or grant access to specific parts of your practice management database? Training and technical support: What training is offered at the time of purchase? Are tutorial programs included with purchase? What is the turnaround time on technical support? Are there certified consultants available in your area for initial and ongoing training?



DISTINGUISHING FEATURES of Practice Management Software Flexibility for Customization: Ability to easily adapt the PMS to individual practice styles or areas Word Processing Interface to PMS database: Ability to retrieve or enter data into PMS from within Word or WordPerfect Integrated Online Research: Ability to directly integrate with online research such as Lexis-Nexis, Westlaw Research Materials Management: Ability to easily manage the rules, case law, procedures, manuals maintained in a law office Rules-Based Calendaring: Provide and maintain regional rules for calendaring/docketing, or linking with vendors who can do so, i.e. CompuLaw and Legalex Front Office/Back Office: Practice management features (front office); AND billing and accounting functions (back office) built-in. Integrated Electronic Filing: Integration with online electronic filing service to streamline the electronic filing of documents with the courts Operating System Compatibility: Windows NT/XP/Vista/Windows 7; (some are Novell; MacIntosh compatible)

Browser-Based Option: Ability to upgrade to browser-based version to access practice management program database via the Internet

Mobile Access: Ability to access the database remotely, i.e. via PDA or smartphone

Remote Hosting: Database and software are installed and managed offsite


Practice Management Software Products Demonstration For the demonstration portion of this seminar, I have selected three practice management software products, AbacusLaw, Amicus Attorney Premium Edition (or Small Firm Edition), and Time Matters because these programs are:

Competitive in foundation features required for the modern law firm Popular with many practicing attorneys and legal services organizations

Designed to be used by firms practicing diverse areas of law

Affordable pricing for small firms and sole practitioner firms

The purpose of the demonstration is to show the power of practice management software system and, at the same time, introduce the audience to the individual “styles” of the practice management programs. It will begin by showing how each program performs routine law firm functions such as entering contacts and matter information, phone calls and notes, calendaring of routine deadlines, appointments, reminders, to-dos. The demonstration will go on to show the more advanced routine functions of a law practice, such as automated calendaring, document assembly (using data from stored in the practice management program), document management, e-mail and internet research integration. The following list of three practice management software programs being demonstrated in this seminar gives a brief bulleted description of each product which, although perhaps not unique to the product, at minimum indicates capabilities.

AbacusLaw Full-featured practice management system4

Easy-to-learn menus and screens

Unlimited customizable user-defined fields and screens

Local and Federal rules-based calendar/docketing modules available

Powerful query-type system for unlimited database reports

E-mail your calendar

Work in Word or WordPerfect, and “Save and Log to Abacus”

Seamless integration with time/billing, accounting, Abacus Accounting (available only

with Abacus Law Gold Edition); also can link with Timeslips

Figure 6 - Save and Log to AbacusLaw

While working in Word or WordPerfect, you can save (link) your document to your Client Matter in Abacus



4 Full-featured describes the foundation features required of a modern law practice, i.e. contact and matter management, automated calendaring, document assembly and document management, integration with Word and WordPerfect, e-mail and on-line research, links with popular personal digital assistant software, billing software, remote office capability.

AbacusLaw Distinguishing Features - “Bells and Whistles”

Outlook Integration: E-mail (sent/received) can be linked/saved in AbacusLaw


AbacusLaw Forms Library – Can easily convert a .pdf document to a form/template for merging; store the variable data in a Matter profile for future forms; “Do Group”



AbacusLaw Intake Forms – Can create form, which when filled out, will back-fill into the Client’s Name, Matter, Events or Notes records. May be used on firm website.


Amicus Attorney Full-featured practice management system3

Communications Center to organize phone records and e-mails Graphical interface --- looks like a real law office

“Library” feature for organizing law firm resources

Rules-based docketing link with CompuLaw

Link with QuickBooks Pro or Premier and other popular billing/accounting software.

Now Amicus has its own accounting software called “Amicus Accounting” Work in Word or WordPerfect to set up merge for document assembly

Work in Word or WordPerfect, and “Save to File” in Amicus Attorney

Figure 7 - Save to File

While working in Word or WordPerfect, you can save (link) your document to your Client Matter in Amicus Attorney



Amicus Attorney Distinguishing Features or “Bells and Whistles”

Two (2) Choices of Amicus Attorney:

1) Amicus Attorney - Premium Edition: a. Designed with the larger firm in mind (<10 users) b. SQL database; c. Run Amicus as a Service; d. Browser-based: Allows you to access your Amicus from anywhere

with Internet connection to your Amicus server. e. Many-to-many record relations f. Amicus-managed documents; or user-managed documents g. Custom Records h. Full Outlook synchronization of Contacts, Appointments and Todos i. Full Outlook e-mail integration; can work in Outlook and save e-mail

back to Amicus


Amicus Attorney (Small Firm Edition)

2) Amicus Attorney – Small Firm Edition: a. For firms with up to <=10 users b. Retains the familiar Version V+ look and feel, with the exception of

the navigator bar at the left-hand side of screen c. Retains the familiar Faircom database d. Tasks Module e. Full Outlook synchronization of Contacts, Appointments and Todos f. Full Outlook e-mail integration; can work in Outlook and save e-mail

back to Amicus



Amicus Attorney (Premium Edition) Amicus Attorney Premium Edition:

a. Form firms of any size, but particularly beneficial to those of >10 Users b. SQL database c. Multi-relational database d. Other features beneficial to both small and large firms

Amicus-Managed Documents: Do you have staff who like to save client documents on their C:/ Drive? Fear no more. If a document is saved in (linked in) Amicus, and you have opted to let Amicus control where documents are to be saved, then that document will be moved to the Amicus-designated file location. (When setting up Amicus, you tell Amicus where you want shared documents to be saved.)


Amicus Attorney Premium Custom Records: Have you ever wanted to track some information in Amicus and discussed there was no place to put it? For instance, maybe you want to track exhibits in a litigation or medical records requested or expenses incurred. You can create a custom record.



Amicus Attorney Premium Amicus Mobile: Add-on to Amicus Attorney 2009 (Premium Edition) that runs Amicus on any PDA or Smartphone that uses Windows Mobile 5 or higher. A miniature version of Amicus Attorney which uses your cellular or wireless network to connect real-time all-the-time to your Amicus Attorney server. If you are ever out of range of a cell phone signal, you could always work with Amicus mobile offline.


Time Matters Full-featured Practice management Program3

Powerful customization of menus, screens and fields

Powerful document management capabilities

Powerful automated calendaring capabilities, with “Outline” feature

Link with PCLaw and other popular billing/accounting software

Partnership with Lexis-Nexis is available for fully integrated online legal research

Work in Word or WordPerfect to run document assembly

Work in Word or WordPerfect, and “Save to Time Matters”

Figure 8 - Save to Time Matters While working in Word or WordPerfect, you can save (link) your document to your

Client Matter in Time Matters



Time Matters Distinguishing Features - “Bells and Whistles”

Data Entry Wizards: When creating new Matters and Contacts, you may choose to use the “data entry Wizard” which prompts you to fill in data for the most important data fields.


Time Matter Newsreader: You can set up RSS feeds to download into Time Matters.



Time Matters Journal Views (Case, Contact or Personal): Select a Case/Matter, then select Matter Journal view. You can see all related contacts, calendar, communications, notes, billings, etc. in one desktop view.


Time Matters Outline View: If you prefer to view timelines and deadlines, docket dates, case progress, etc., but you are uncomfortable with the “database-like” presentation, you may instead warm to the “Outline” view for monitoring your case. As items are marked done on the calendar, they appear stricken on your outline.



Time Matters Lexis Research Linked/Saved with Case File: Not only is the website address/URL memorized and saved with your Client’s File, the web page itself is displayed in a preview screen.




Resources for the Practice Management Software Researcher There are a significant number of practice management applications available for the attorney who wishes to invest some time in researching before choosing. The table of applications at the end of this booklet represents a good cross-section of legal-specific practice management software. The following resources may provide you with even more software options. IMPORTANT RESEARCH TIP: Inquire about initial and ongoing training. Vendors may differ significantly on how they help you to learn and implement your software. ABA Legal Technology Resource Center: Phone: (312) 988-5465

Web site: http://www.abanet.org/tech/ltrc/ Your ABA is on top of the latest in technology for law firms. The Legal Technology Resource Center is chock full of articles, tables of software vendors by category, podcasts, blogs, and archives.

TechnoLawyer, e-newsletter Web site: www.technolawyer.com

E-newsletter comprised of content submitted by practicing attorneys, consultants specializing in legal specific software, vendors of legal-specific software. You can sign up to receive the free, e-newsletter. For a nominal fee, you have the option to subscribe annually to their online archives, organized by topic area.

University of Florida Levin College of Law, Legal Technology Institute

Web site: http://www.law.ufl.edu/lti/ See page entitled Computerized Case Management Systems from which you

can access many articles by leading consultants/authors in legal-specific case management software. State Bar of Arizona, Sections Web site: http://www.myazbar.org/SecComm/sections.cfm

For practice-specific software, contact the Section of the State Bar of Arizona for your practice area, i.e. Bankruptcy, Family Law Section, Probate Section, Tax Law, Trial Practice Section, etc. Some practice-specific software products are intended to replace practice management software; however, others are intended to supplement practice management software. Do your research. Ask questions.

Practice management Software Products and Training:

For information on a variety of practice management software, other legal-specific software and, specifically, training on Abacus Law, Amicus Attorney and Time Matters, call:

Susan Traylor, Practice Management Advisor Certified Consultant for Abacus Law, Amicus Attorney, Time Matters

Law Office Management Assistance Program State Bar of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ Phone: (602) 340-7355; E-mail: [email protected]

http://www.abanet.org/tech/ltrc/

http://www.technolawyer.com/

http://www.technolawyer.com/member/archivehome.asp

http://www.law.ufl.edu/lti/

http://www.myazbar.org/SecComm/sections.cfm

mailto:[email protected]




Practice Management Software Table of Software Products

(as of 05/01/10)

Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software

(According to web site)

Price

(Check web site for up-to-date pricing)

ABACUS LAW 2010

(800) 726-3339 www.abacuslaw.com

“Simplify Your Practice: AbacusLaw is an all-in-one, easy to use solution designed specifically for law firms. With our fully

integrated practice management software, you will be able to work more efficiently, lower risk and improve client service” …”legal

calendaring software, contact management, case management, document handling,

document production, conflict checks, phone messaging, time capture, law office billing and accounting — so you can do anything and retrieve anything from one location”

…AbacusLaw is the only software that can combine multiple practice areas so easily”

Versions available in: Classic: front office only Gold: front and back office Enterprise: Fortress version Specialty Versions for different practice areas; Rules Modules (automated calendaring)

See vendor website for price quote

AMICUS ATTORNEY 2010

(800) 482-9227

www.amicusattorney.com

“Amicus Attorney is designed to help legal

professionals improve the efficiency and profitability of their firms and to help them

get the most out of the time they spend practicing law.” …”Designed by lawyers for lawyers, this world leading software provides

a comfortable, familiar environment” …”Manage every aspect of your practice from Files, to Contacts, to Calendaring, to

Time Tracking, E-mail to Phone Calls, Documents to Research…”

Small Firm Edition (<10 Users) $499/1st User $399/Ea Add’l User Premium Edition (>10 Users) $999/1st User, $599/Ea Add’l User Amicus Accounting $399/1st User $299/Ea Add’l User Amicus Mobile Server: $499/User Licenses: $149/User. (Does not need to match the total number of licensed users for Amicus Premium Edition)

CLIENT PROFILES (Case Management

Or CRM4Legal)

(770) 640-0300

www.clientprofiles.com

“…providing solutions that span a suite of product offerings including Case Management, Financial Management, Document Management, Client Relationship Management (CRM) and Document Imaging…Whether your law firm’s area of practice is Personal Injury, Workers Compensation, Insurance Defense, Litigation or Transactional, to name just a few, Client Profiles is ready to provide a technology solution that is tailored to meet your specific needs. …built to run on the latest Microsoft technology standards, and is designed to integrate closely with Microsoft Office and Outlook…”

See Vendor Website

http://www.abacuslaw.com/

http://www.amicusattorney.com/

http://www.clientprofiles.com/


Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software


Price


CLIO

www.goclio.com

SaaS (Software as a Service)

“Web-based Practice Management. Clio makes practice management easy with a full suite of tools targeted specifically at the needs of sole practitioners and small firms. Stay organized, on top of billings, and in

control of your practice with Clio. Best of all, it's web-based so there's nothing to install.

Your practice is wherever you are”

Monthly Subscription Fee:

$49/mo per attorney $25/mo per non-legal staff

COMPLETELAW

(877) 283-9035

www.completelaw.com

“from case management, client files, contacts, and calendars to time tracking, billing and

accounting…integrates all major functions…syncs with Outlook …server or web-based document management…Law

Web in the cloud…also available for Workers Comp…Personal Injury…”

For purchase or lease

or subscription

See Vendor Website

CREDENZA

www.credenzasoft.com

(Microsoft Outlook Add-on) “…turns Outlook into a professional practice management system…organize client, matter…e-mails, contacts, appointments, tasks and notes…keep time entries…organize documents…make notes of phone calls…practice management utilities and reports…”

Limited to 3 Users;

$9.95 per user/per month

CONSTELLATION JUSTICE SYSTEMS

(also Damion and CourtView Justice Systems)

(585) 218-0420

www.damion.com

“Software solutions for the American Criminal Justice Market…Prosecutors, Public Defenders, Civil Attorney, Social Attorney,

Victim Witness Advocate, Investigators, Law Enforcement and Jail Management agencies.

Designed around the principle that data should only be entered once and at the earliest opportunity possible, DAMION allows users

to efficiently store and retrieve all information related to a crime and the

individuals involved.”

See Vendor Website

GRYPHON LEGAL SOFTWARE

(805) 456-2050

www.grysoft.com

“…complete case and practice management software for solo practitioners and small to mid-size firms. Every aspect of the program

is fully functional without any add-ons or extras” … “…between litigation

and transactional mode…”

See Vendor Website

(for purchase or subscription)

http://www.goclio.com/

http://www.completelaw.com/

http://www.credenzasoft.com/

http://www.damion.com/

http://www.grysoft.com/



Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software


Price


JUSTWARE

(New Dawn Technologies)

(877) 587-8927 www.justware.com

“The unique design and flexibility of our JustWare | Solution Suite programs offer

standalone or combined case management and workflow solutions that can be used individually by your courts, prosecutors,

probation and parole, pretrial services and public defender agencies. “

See Vendor Website

LAWBASE

Synaptec Software (800) 569-3377

www.lawbase.com

“LawBase is a computerized Case and Matter Management System designed to increase the productivity and profitability of your office.

LawBase is currently being used by thousands of law office personnel across the country, from solo practitioners to law firms

with 750-plus attorneys to the legal departments of Fortune 500 companies to

governmental agencies. … Case Notes, Smart Folders, Docketing, Document Assembly,

Contacts, Conflicts, Workflow”

See Vendor Website

LAWSTREAM

(250) 247-9999 http://www.lawstream.com/

(for Mac and Windows/Vista)

“…integrated computer program for

managing time, money, contacts, and other information in law offices”

$800 per 1st user (package pricing for more users)

LEGALEDGE

(610) 975-5888 www.legaledge.com

“Since its inception in 1989, LegalEdge has been providing legal case management software to Law firms, Corporate Legal

Departments, Prosecutors (including adult and juvenile), Public Defenders, Juvenile,

Attorneys General, City and County Attorneys and State and Local Government

agencies. … knowledge management…Cross-Platform suite of Case Management Web Applications. These easy-

to-use Case Management applications are built on an n-tier, J2EE core platform, which is highly scalable and fully customizable and

offers full .NET support”

See Vendor Website

http://www.justware.com/

http://www.lawbase.com/

http://www.lawstream.com/

http://www.legaledge.com/


Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software


Price


LEGALFILES

(800) 500-0537

www.legalfiles.com

“… full-featured case and matter management system lets you organize all your contacts,

documents, deadlines and data within a proven, flexible set of practice-specific

windows and workflow that can be easily customized to your office. Our premier legal software offers exclusive, seamless two-way integrations with Microsoft Outlook , Lotus Notes and Novell GroupWise, so you can save all your file related e-mails, calendars

and tasks in one place, sharing this information with others and dramatically

improving workflow management.”

See Vendor Website

LexisNexis PC LAW

Version 10.0

(800)-328-2898

www.pclaw.com

“PCLaw™ 10 is an easy to use foundational

solution for managing matters, helping ensure compliance with trust accounting rules,

tracking time and expenses, billing, payroll and more. PCLaw is a flexible tool fine-tuned for law professionals, and is the most widely used practice management software in North America. Join 30,000 firms just like yours who trust PCLaw to manage their practice”

See Vendor Website

LexisNexis TIME MATTERS

Version 10.0

(800) 328-2898

www.timematters.com

“Time Matters® software provides new ways to help law firms, legal departments and other

organizations streamline operations to save you time and make your firm more efficient. Time Matters allows you to manage cases,

contacts, your calendar, documents, communications, time tracking and other

daily activities. Time Matters has been the choice of Law Firms, Legal Departments and

other organizations for the past 20 years”

See Vendor Website

NEEDLES

(410) 363-1976 www.needleslaw.com

“… customizable Case Management Software for law firms. Whether your law office

consists of a solo practitioner or is a large law firm, Needles provides you with the tools

necessary to manage matters efficiently, thus decreasing delays and increasing

accountability and productivity….Needles' legal case & practice management solution

delivers the technology required to transform your firm into a more efficient and profitable

law office

Priced by number of concurrent users; price includes support

and training

See Vendor Website for calculator by number of users

http://www.legalfiles.com/

http://www.pclaw.com/

http://www.timematters.com/

http://www.needleslaw.com/



Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software


Price


PERFECT OFFICE ADC Legal Systems

(407) 843-8992

www.adclegal.com

“…offers a legal software solution for your firm starting at $23/month…Case

Management software adapts to your firm, not the other way around. …billing and accounting…Bankruptcy/Foreclosure, Litigation, Insurance Defense, Personal

Injury, Corporate Counsel, Social Security, Other Specialty… ”

See Vendor Website

THE PLAINTIFF

(877) 202-0235 ext. 101 www.theplaintiff.com

“Plaintiff’s Attorney Software – Accounting and Case Management…integrates with

QuickBooks…case management, document management, accounting, time and

billing…calendar…forms”

See Vendor Website

PRACTICE MASTER Version 15

(402) 423-1440 www.tabs3.com

“PracticeMaster is a practice management

system, in use since 1988, that is recognized for its flexibility, integration and

customization capabilities. …Integrates with Tabs3 Billing Software, QuickBooks®, Outlook®, Microsoft Word®, WordPerfect®, WORLDOX®, CompuLaw®, iManage® and

HotDocs® Blackberry (using Outlook), Palm, Paperport.”

Standard: Starts at $150/1st User And $50/ea. Add’l User

------------------------ Premier:

Starts at $295/1st User and $150/ea. Add’l User $65-130/ 1st User Ann’l Support Telephone Support $25/15 min

PROLAW (Elite)

(800) 977-6529

www.elite.com/prolaw/

“.. ProLaw software suite is designed to automate the practice and manage the

business of law. Comprehensive features simplify, streamline and coordinate the work of attorneys and staff in small and mid-size law firms, corporate legal departments and

government law offices. Built from the ground-up on a unified database, ProLaw combines case and matter management as well as time entry, billing and accounting

capabilities within a single integrated solution

See Vendor Website

PROSECUTOR II

(800) 237-0723

www.microfirm.com

“…District Attorneys, County Attorneys, Criminal Prosecutors, States Attorneys,

Commonwealth Attorneys and other prosecutors performing criminal and civil

case management”

$1,100 per PC

ROCKET MATTER

www.rocketmatter.com

SaaS (Software as a Service)

“Rocket Matter is a web-based, practice management and time & billing solution

designed exclusively for the legal industry.”

Monthly Subscription Fee:

$59.00/mo/1st user

$49.99/mo/2-6th users $39.99/mo/7-20th users

20+ users – contact vendor

http://www.adclegal.com/

http://www.theplaintiff.com/

http://www.tabs3.com/

http://www.elite.com/prolaw/

http://www.microfirm.com/

http://www.rocketmatter.com/


Software

Name, Phone and URL

Type of Software


Price


SAGA PRACTICE MANAGER Version 9.1

(800) 222-3066

www.sagasys.com

“…highly advanced practice and case management software program, using the

latest and most robust technologies. From the ground up, the program was designed for

Windows 2000/2003/XP/VISTA. It uses the award winning Microsoft SQL Server as its

database engine, and allows scalability from a single user to 1001…including but not limited

to Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice, General Negligence, Litigation, Real Estate,

Matrimonial, Business Transactions, Criminal, and Collections.”

See Vendor Website

DE NOVO CaseMgr

(formerly Trial de Novo) Version 2.0.9

(800) 755-9744

www.denovosys.com

”… designed by attorneys for attorneys; it’s easy to learn, setup and use

immediately…from intake through depositions and discovery to settlement or

trial…allows legal professionals to do valuable work from the day of installation,

and they need NOT become computer experts.”

$399 / 1st station license $150 / add’l stations each $199 / add-on stations (add later after original purchase) FREE PHONE SUPPORT!

TRIALWORKS

(800) 377-5844

www.lawex.com

“…solutions are designed to help law offices, government agencies, and insurance

companies in managing data. We invite you to browse our website and learn more about the exciting offerings from our company… SQL version...integrates with Quickbooks,

Juris, PCLaw, Sanction, Summation”

$2,995 database license $495 per User License

For information on practice-specific case management software i.e. for

bankruptcy, immigration, or other practice areas, contact: Susan Traylor, Law Office Management Assistance Program,

State Bar of Arizona (602) 340-7355 or [email protected]

http://www.sagasys.com/

http://www.denovosys.com/

http://www.lawex.com/

mailto:[email protected]

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