If you’re like most lawyers, you want to ensure that your law firm runs like a well-oiled machine. But the truth is, the average attorney has limited management experience and an even smaller understanding of how to manage a legal practice. To help narrow this gap, most lawyers will turn to some sort of software solution—and with good reason: legal practice management software allows you to automate tasks and organize data so that it can be easily accessed by all members of your team in one place.
Defining Legal Practice Management Software
Legal practice management software is software that automates the tasks involved in running a law firm. It can be used to manage your workflow, manage your documents, manage your clients and cases, and manage your finances.
There are two main kinds of legal practice management software: accounting and case/contact management. Accounting applications are designed to keep track of the money flowing into and out of the firm; these include accounts payable (what you owe), accounts receivable (money you’re owed) and general ledger (totaling all transactions).
What Does Legal Practice Management Software Do?
Legal practice management software is a program that helps you to manage all aspects of your law practice. It allows you to grow your business more efficiently, be more productive, save time and money and attract and retain clients.
The best practice management software will help you to grow your law practice faster, improve client satisfaction and increase profitability. It’s also important that it’s easy to use and has the features you need to run your business.
Lawyers are a business, and like any other business, they need to manage their expenses and take the most efficient route possible. And that’s where legal practice management software (LPM) comes in. Many law firms and solo practitioners are using LPMs to help them do everything from billing clients to managing their finances. In fact, many lawyers say that using this type of software has helped them save time and money on things like billing services or staff members who used to do those tasks manually. But—just like anything else — there are a lot of reasons to get a competent and comprehensive legal practice management software like RunSensible.
Scheduling Calendar
Once you have created a scheduling calendar, you can use it to schedule meetings with clients. As an example, let’s say that you want to meet with your client at 2:00pm on December 5th. Here’s how you would do that:
- From the appointment tab, select Add Appointment in the top right corner of your screen. Then select Create New Appointment from the dropdown menu and press enter or click OK on your
keyboard. - In this screen, type in the date and time that you want your meeting to take place (December 5th at 2:00pm) in their respective boxes.
- Select Save Changes when finished adding all of your event information so it will be saved permanently in Microsoft Outlook Calendar!
Billing
With billing software, it’s easier to bill clients. You can set up recurring bills that are automatically sent out and paid each month. You can also attach invoices to emails or send them directly from the software. This saves time because you don’t have to constantly go into the system to enter in information manually and then send out invoices manually as well.
Billing software makes it easier for your clients to pay their bills on time because they get an email reminder when an invoice is due, and they have access 24/7 through their own computer or phone. Your client doesn’t have to wait around until you return from lunch so they can pay their bill; they simply log in any time during the day or night, check off which items they want paid (if applicable), click submit payment button and voila! It’s done!
Document Management
Document management is one of the most important features you can use in legal practice management software. It’s helpful for keeping track of all the documents in your cases and managing the process from start to finish. For example, if you need to send a client a copy of their contract, it should be easy to find that document and attach it to an email or upload it directly into an online portal where they can access it easily.
If you’re using an electronic filing system like eFile CPA or LegalZoom, RunSensible’s document management will help make sure your clients’ paperwork is organized correctly. This ensures that everything gets filed smoothly and on time so there are no delays in submitting documents with their state board or court system. Document management also helps ensure that each case has its own folder with all relevant files stored together for easy retrieval later on if needed.
Law Practice Management Software Features
These are the features you will want to look for:
- Integrated billing/accounting software. You should be able to electronically send legal bills and receive funds, as well as handle your accounting. This feature typically costs an extra fee but is well worth it, especially if you have multiple clients and need a way to keep track of their payments (and lack thereof).
- Electronic document management system. Many law firms use this feature because it helps them organize different types of documents all in one place, which makes searching easy when needed later on down the road! Some companies offer free trials so that you can see what it looks like before purchasing anything else from them; be sure not miss out on those offers!
Legal Billing Software
If you’re a lawyer, then you know that managing your time is essential to running a successful practice. Time tracking is the first step in this process—without it, how would you know how much time is being spent on each task?
If you’re not using time tracking software yet and need some convincing, try these benefits:
- It keeps track of billable hours so that you can be more accurate when billing clients.
- It can help prevent burnout by allowing lawyers to switch tasks when they get tired or bored with their current one.
- It helps eliminate distractions while working so that lawyers can concentrate on the task at hand.
It helps lawyers and legal assistants stay on top of their workload so they don’t get overwhelmed. It makes it easy to see how much time is being spent on each task, which makes it easier to prioritize tasks. RunSensible has streamlined the whole billing and payment system so your client can pay easier — so can get paid faster! With RunSensible, you’ll get a billing system connected to a payment system of your choice, including Stripe, Square, and even PayPal. All that with your own firm’s logo and branding!
Paperless Billing and Invoicing
With practice management software, you can save time and money by streamlining your billing and invoice process. You can be more efficient, which means less time spent on administrative tasks — leaving you with more time for the important work of building relationships with clients. Plus, paperless billing and invoicing helps reduce expenses such as postage costs. And who doesn’t love to see their carbon footprint shrink?
Time Tracking
In order to bill clients for your services, you need to keep track of the time that you spend on each project. This can be done manually or automatically. If you do it manually, it’s easy to lose track of how much time you’re spending on individual tasks or even forget about things altogether. You may also tend to underestimate how much time certain tasks take if they aren’t always in front of your face.
Automated time tracking makes sure that everything gets recorded and is available at all times—not just when they’re fresh in your memory or if someone else happens to be around! The software will record how long each activity takes and add it up as soon as it’s complete so there’s no chance of forgetting anything important (or any other mistakes).
This kind of software can be used for more than just billing purposes: It can help improve productivity because employees know exactly what needs doing next based on their work history; make customer service better by recording interactions between clients and employees; reduce errors due to miscommunication; provide valuable historical data about what worked best in past situations; etc., etc., etc…
Time and Billing Software
To be effective, a good legal practice management software needs to offer a variety of features. These include time tracking, billing and document management. Time tracking allows you to record how much time you spend on each matter, which allows you to bill clients accurately and quickly. Billing allows you to generate invoices quickly, while document management ensures that all of your important paperwork is organized in one place.
In addition, a good legal practice management software should be easy to use. This will allow you to get up and running quickly, so that you can begin taking advantage of all of its features.
You can decide whether its worth it.
Ultimately, it’s up to you. While there are a lot of benefits to using legal practice management software, it could cost your firm money. You need to consider how much time and money the system will save you in terms of efficiency and productivity.
It’s important not just for your firm but for your staff as well. If they have trouble learning how to use the software or if they feel like it takes too much time out of their day-to-day tasks, then they won’t be happy with their job and may decide not to stay with your firm long term or at all.
The key takeaway from this section is that law practice management software has its benefits and drawbacks. While some of the features can be useful for lawyers, others are not as helpful or may even be detrimental in certain situations. Make sure to do your own research before investing in any software package!
Who Needs Legal Practice Management Software?
Law firms, solicitors and legal professionals are the primary users of legal practice management software. Many law firms have come to rely on these systems for a number of reasons. One of the most important is because they allow you to manage your practice more efficiently. The software gives you access to information about your case, client and time management all in one place. It helps ensure that each client receives the attention they need from your team as well as makes it possible for more people within your firm (especially those who do not specialize in certain areas) to be able to offer assistance when needed.
The software also makes it easier for lawyers who want their practices to run more smoothly by tracking data so they know how much time they spend on different types of cases or tasks throughout any given week/month or year which allows them
Is a Virtual Law Office Right for You?
One of the biggest benefits to working with a virtual law office is that you can work from anywhere. You don’t have to be in your office at all times, and you can take time off whenever it’s needed. You can even take vacations or weekends off when it suits you best—it’s your choice! This is especially helpful for people who like the idea of being their own boss but don’t want to sacrifice their personal lives for it.
Another benefit of choosing a virtual law practice management platform over traditional software is that they’re designed specifically for attorneys (rather than other types of businesses). This means they’re more likely to fit your needs as an attorney without costing extra money every month just because they weren’t made with lawyers in mind specifically.”
Are You Prepared to Manage Your Law Practice?
Have you ever wondered if your law practice is ready to manage? Sure, the basics have been figured out and you have a great team in place. But are you prepared to take on all the tasks that come with running a successful business?
To find out for sure, let’s take a look at some of the things that make up good legal practice management software:
- The right skills – You need to have good knowledge of the law and how it works. You also need strong business skills so that you can make important decisions about how your firm operates on an everyday basis.
- A good understanding of business management – This includes knowing how to price services, keeping track of expenses, handling client accounts receivable/payable issues effectively and efficiently, as well as many other necessary topics related specifically towards operating within this industry (e.g., ethical standards).
How Do I Select the Right Legal Practice Management Software?
Once you’ve narrowed down your list of potential options, it’s time to start looking at the details. The first thing to consider is the features of each legal practice management software package. This includes how many users can access the program at once and what kind of security features it has (like two-factor authentication).
Next, look at the cost of each legal practice management software solution being considered. You shouldn’t be paying more than $50 per month for this type of service and most solutions will run between $25-$45 per month.
A user interface that is easy-to-navigate is also important when choosing a legal practice management system because you’ll be spending many hours using it every week—so choose wisely! Finally, look into any support or training resources available with your chosen system before making a final decision on which one suits your needs best!
If you want your law firm to run like a well-oiled machine, then select the right legal practice management software for your needs.
The right legal practice software can help you optimize efficiency, increase profits, and manage more effectively. If you want your law firm to run like a well-oiled machine, then select the right legal practice management software for your needs.
- Choose the right software based on compatibility with your computer system and what features it offers.
- Think about how much time you will have to spend on it—the easier it is to use, the more likely you are going to be using it regularly at work!
- Consider how much money you have to spend on training or administrative support when selecting a new piece of software (i.e., if there are specific training manuals available).
Takeaways!
Legal practice management software isn’t just for law firms. In fact, anyone who wants to manage their business better can benefit from having the right tools in place. The best part is that this type of program doesn’t have to break the bank because there are many affordable options available today. So if you want your law firm to run like a well-oiled machine, then select the right legal practice management software for your needs!
RunSensible is an all-in-one legal practice management software for lawyers that gives you simply all the tools you will need to run your legal practice remotely or from the office. RunSensible not only includes case management, calendaring, time-tracking, and invoicing tools, but it also provides a business phone system for lawyers.
Want to know what else it’s got in store for your practice? Set up your complete legal practice management software today, for free. And no credit card needed!