Every law firm and lawyer entering the digital world or consolidating once and for all, in their plans, must necessarily make use of a combination of communication tools, some powerful productivity tools such as management software and case management, and without a doubt, all possible digital marketing tools. This will result in higher productivity, better results, and greater satisfaction for both clients and attorneys.
Here is a list of the best digital tools that you should start using immediately, especially now that there is a timeout while this virus pandemic passes. If you do, be sure that when the reopening of the judicial instances and the courts is done, you will be one step ahead.
Microsoft Office 365
Without a doubt, the number one tool is still the Microsoft Office 365 package that includes the most used classic tools: Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. If you purchase any of the annual or monthly subscriptions, especially the basic business plan, it includes incredible tools such as OneDrive to store and share files easily and privately.
PracticePanther
The best advice and input on digital tools, without question, is Practice Panther. This program offers a series of unmatched features. Besides, it is the only high-end technology software worldwide, which was exclusively designed in the United States for lawyers and law firms and also handles Spanish.
It is an online platform that can be used on any computer. It also has its downloadable, easy-to-use application compatible with any Smartphone. It offers a range of internal tools for file storage in the cloud, containing the agenda of contacts and clients, the documents related to each matter, an internal chronometer that will make life easier so that the count of the hours dedicated to each particular case is kept.
If this was not enough, PracticePanther helps manage clients even the most demanding ones, efficiently. It helps keep your clients up to date on their cases; the system can provide them with access to an exclusive portal, and they will have first-hand information about their case. Therefore, it will no longer be necessary to invest precious hours in formulating periodic notifications or reports – in writing, telephone, email, teleconference, an appointment to the office – and other updates.
The cherry on the cake is the integration of payment and financial management systems that can be activated individually with each client, over those individuals or companies already banked and without fear of using your debit, credit, bank accounts. In this way, it may even be more attractive for contractors of legal services to pay a recurring monthly payment, instead of spending large sums of money in a single exhibition.
Dropbox Business
This is one of the most powerful tools that you should not miss as an integral part of your law office. It is very simple to use, and you can connect it with all the documents and folders of the various matters that you keep on your computer. It will serve as a 100% secure backup, which you could access from any device through the application or online at any computer using a secure password.
A good copier for document scanning
An office’s daily life cannot do without a high-end multifunction printer, in these digital times. We are not talking about the typical home printer with a small scanner; It must be an excellent multifunctional machine that can carry out the scanning to PDF or any format of hundreds of documents in a matter of a few minutes.
Just for reference, in the United States, offices usually send hundreds or thousands of documents to even the simplest matter once a trial has been filed; therefore, one of the indispensable tools is an excellent multifunction printer – because the moment you have arrived package to the office, it must be digitized, uploaded to the cloud and the file in question and left ready so that lawyers and interns assigned to the case, have immediate access to the documents obtained and the necessary actions can be taken.
Box
This is one of the best tools to centralize all the files in the cloud: to have all files available on the internet no matter where you are. This is the platform used by the largest corporations globally.
Google Calendar
Google Calendar is one of the applications most used by all kinds of professionals worldwide; in the case of law, there are excellent case management and administration platforms that can be synchronized and integrated with this application that is easy to use and at no cost.
Calendly
This is a very functional tool to help synchronize the calendar and meetings; up to 6 different applications can be integrated, such as Google Calendar, your email, and others.
Adobe Creative Cloud
Marketing tools are never going to be completed without other editing tools for content creation. Therefore, you cannot do without the adobe cloud. It is incredible how things have changed and the great innovation of this company. The best example is that years ago, simply purchasing Adobe Photoshop was around $5,000; today, Adobe Cloud handles more than 20 applications for a monthly subscription. Some of these tools are very valuable for the world of law. In constant use, the best example is Adobe Acrobat, the advanced version of the simple PDF reader from the same company that we use every day to access the legal codes and read digital books on the internet.
A Few Words to Wrap Up
All these productivity tools can help lawyers and law firms manage legal operations effectively and meet deadlines. These tools are no less than a helping hand for attorneys dedicatedly providing legal support services to clients. With these tools and other similar platforms, including sources of legal information, the legal industry can foster efficiency, productivity, cost-cutting, and greater transparency in processes.
