It's not uncommon for someone to show some initial interest in a legal automation project, get excited seeing how it could make a real difference in their work and that of their team, and then be told that it is not possible.

What can you do in that situation?

Topics: Legal Technology, In-House Legal, Document Assembly, Law Firm Management, Compliance, Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations, Contract Management, Law Firm Profitability

 

A common concern we hear when talking to prospective clients about legal automation is that they haven't got a budget, and they don't think they can get one.

Often, however, this is before we have discussed the size and cost of the problem or the opportunity to be addressed and the expected benefits, and therefore, it needs more context before a price can be agreed and a budget could be obtained.

What should you do before worrying about price and budget for an automation project?

Topics: Legal Technology, In-House Legal, Document Assembly, Law Firm Management, Compliance, Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations, Contract Management, Law Firm Profitability

When I’m asked for the best resources to improve overall contracting processes and outcomes, there are two that I can recommend knowing they will provide excellent insights and return on investment.

While particularly relevant for in-house legal teams and contract managers (who can get immediate benefits), they offer significant value to commercial lawyers in law firms who want to understand how they can really add the most value to their clients’ businesses.

Topics: Document Automation, Procurement, Legal Technology, In-House Legal, Document Assembly, Law Firm Management, Legal Operations, Contract Management, Law Firm Strategy, Productivity

Looking ahead to the coming year, I think (maybe with a bit of hope thrown in) several themes will be key. This is what we will be focussing on helping our customers with, and in our own business.

Topics: Practise of Law, Future of Law, Document Automation, Legal Technology, Law Firm Management, Compliance, Legal Operations, Contract Management, Law Firm Strategy, Productivity

When evaluating new technology, a proof of concept can be a very helpful way of ensuring you get what you think you are getting while avoiding unnecessary costs.

However, we sometimes see proof-of-concept projects that go off the rails, don’t achieve the expected outcomes, and cost a lot of money.

There is one particular mistake that we frequently see people make.

Topics: Document Automation, Legal Technology, In-House Legal, Document Assembly, Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations, Contract Management

Effective task management and collaboration are crucial for in-house teams and matter management, with various methods available to track and organise tasks based on personal preferences and collaboration needs.

While dedicated legal matter management systems offer task management functionality, Microsoft provides powerful tools within your existing subscription that can streamline task management and collaboration.

Leveraging these tools can help maximise productivity without additional costs.

Let's explore some of the options available within Microsoft 365.

Topics: Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations

Scheduling and managing meetings efficiently can be challenging (see this earlier post for how to make it easier!), but ensuring that meetings are concise and results-oriented is equally important.

While in-person meetings have their benefits, I have found that Microsoft Teams meetings often lead to greater productivity. Despite the usual delay caused by computer updates or Apple earbuds that won’t connect, Teams meetings tend to focus on what matters and allow participants to end the meeting as soon as its purpose is complete to continue with their day. There’s no travel time, and the shambles of waiting for earlier meetings to end and people to vacate the room you booked is avoided. The visual aspect of video calls adds a personal touch that phone calls lack. Personally, I prefer seeing the people I'm talking to, even if it's through a screen.

Topics: Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations

Arranging meetings can be time-consuming, often involving numerous back-and-forth emails to find suitable dates and times.

Even for a simple two-person meeting, the coordination can be challenging, let alone when multiple participants are involved.

While popular paid tools like Calendly have gained popularity, not every legal team can access separate tools. Microsoft also offers a powerful yet often overlooked solution in the form of Bookings.

Topics: Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations

One of the key motivations for legal teams in adopting legal matter management solutions is often to generate comprehensive reports showcasing their active matters and demonstrating the value they provide.

Additionally, these solutions are intended to enable effective matter and team management by identifying potential issues early on and managing workloads more efficiently.

However, in reality, inflexible intake processes and user aversion to data entry often lead to insufficient data capture, undermining the expected value of analytics and reporting.

Topics: Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations

In addition to managing emails (see this earlier post on managing emails), legal teams are heavily involved in creating and working with various documents.

Traditional in-house document management methods using shared drives to save, and emailed attachments, often result in collaboration challenges, such as working with outdated versions, multiple copies of the same document, and scattered file locations.

While specialised document management solutions exist, commonly utilised by law firms, in-house legal teams often have no chance of getting such a separation solution. They are increasingly aligning themselves with their business counterparts, opting to work within Microsoft SharePoint.

SharePoint offers a broad collaboration platform utilised by thousands across the organisation, making it a natural fit for legal teams. However, additional functionality is often necessary to meet the specific requirements of legal professionals. This is where OnePlaceDocs proves to be a valuable tool.

Topics: Legal Automation, Matter Management, Legal Operations