Technology Essentials. Basic Technology in Starting Up a Law Office

Transcription

1 Materials Provided by Paul Henry Technology Essentials Basic Technology in Starting Up a Law Office Technology in the law office covers many areas, such as phones, computers, and photocopiers. As time goes by, these technologies increasingly merge. Today, a smartphone performs many functions formerly reserved for computers, while computers are used for forms of communicating that were formerly performed only by phones. Printing and scanning devices were in the past distinct, separate pieces of equipment, but have trended towards being unified devices. The explosion of tablet computing together with ready access to quality speed wifi based internet has started a new technology revolution that is still having new and unforeseen impacts on law office technologies. The purpose of this discussion is to view, in wide terms, those basic technology considerations that are present when establishing a new law office. Every office has different needs. A solo office presents different challenges from a small firm, or an office sharing arrangement. These differences make it impossible to give a detailed technology program that fits everyone s needs. This program addresses in general terms the varied issues and solutions available when an office is being established from scratch. 1. Computers. A. Over the past twenty years, the computer evolved to become the technology centerpiece of law offices. In the not too distant past, that meant a personal computer and possibly some form of centralized server. However, smartphones and tablets today are equipped with processors, memory and graphic capability which far exceed those of computers from not too many years ago. In this discussion, we will start with discussing the personal computer as the base point in setting up a law office and then explore how these same functions can be duplicated or shifted to mobile platforms. B. Regardless of whether one decides to have a traditional land-based office in a commercially rented office building, or a virtual office which is homebased, some form of physical personal computer will invariably be required to fulfill certain functions of the office. (1) A PC handles some functions which are still best accomplished using a fully-function computer. When discussing personal computers in terms of hardware, most base-level computers that can be purchased off the shelf from a local electronics or computer store will serve the needs of many solo or small firms. This category may 2--1

2 2. Portable Computing also include laptops in the right situation, but they typically require more of a medium to high-end version. $300 student laptops tend to have lower-quality components that have a high failure rate. As tempting as these lower priced laptops seem, they should not be used as a primary computer for a lawyer. (2) Laptops: In the case of a solo attorney who practices primarily out of a home and has a highly mobile existence, a laptop serving the function as a personal computer may be the optimal choice in terms of convenience and expense. Such practices tend to be more mobile where the attorney will meet clients outside their home office. The ability to take their office with them in the form of their laptop accommodates this professional model - All the data and programs that are needed for their practice is always with them. However, with mobility comes a risk, in that during travel and movement of a laptop there is a heightened risk of physical damage and theft, and other loss that could cause problems, at least on a temporary basis if such an event should occur. A reliable backup solution will help alleviate any problems that would arise from such a loss. (3) Desktops: Traditional desktop computers bring benefits such as larger (or multiple) screens, faster processors, more memory, and lower prices. In addition, typing from a full-sized keyboard and separate mouse or pointing device can be physically easier than using a laptop as a primary means of creating work product. Many functions simply are better accomplished from a personal computer include word processing (pleadings, agreements, correspondence), billing, , central calendaring, and legal research. All of these functions can be accomplished using a smaller format, even with tablets and smart phones, but a desktop computer is often more efficient and better suited. A. While laptops are portable, this focus is on devices such as tablets or smartphones. The obvious benefit of these devices is that they are highly mobile and lightweight. B. As previously mentioned, the primary, or sometimes only computing device used by a small law firm would be a desktop or laptop computer, but the options in mobility now include items such as laptops, tablets (i-pads, Androids, and Windows) and smartphone

3 C. Tablets and smartphones are limited in the terms of the ability to edit or draft complicated documents such as pleadings, formal correspondence and agreements. However, some apps for ipads and the larger frame Android tablets are evolving as those technologies continue to flourish. Typically speaking though, some form of pc in the form of either a computer or desktop computer or laptop is far superior in terms of producing documents for legal use. D. As supplemental technology, tablet and smartphone computing provide some extraordinarily beneficial uses to the typical law firm that exceed those offered by the a traditional computer. Tablets/Smartphones are particularly useful for these functions: (1) s. (2) Document review (3) Drafting (limited, but more useful when a physical keyboard is used) (4) Legal research (WestlawNext, FindLaw) E. In a trial setting, tablets are becoming increasingly used for purposes of voir dire, examination and cross-examination of witnesses, and presentation of evidence, and for opening and closing statements. F. Having a tablet properly programmed to access office information, s, etc., allows attorneys to remain productive during traditional downtime, such as waiting for call dockets and client meetings. 3. Input/output devices (printers, scanners, etc.) A. Another recent trend in law offices paper-less technology. As courts and other government agencies continue to move towards paperless filing, and as attorneys and clients increasingly accept the use of for communications, the use of paper has become significantly less than in the recent past. However, it is invariably becomes necessary to either print or scan physical documents. In many cases, the capacity of the particular office dictates the type of input and output devices that are used. In the situation where there are multiple lawyers and support staff using the same output device such as a photocopier, it is practically unavoidable to get a higher-capacity machine to prevent downtimes due to equipment failure or delays from peak usage such as before mail delivery. However, a $300 multi-function device with a scanner, copier, fax machine and printer can produce the same quality results as a multi-thousand dollar full-size photocopier

4 B. In terms of reliability and per-copy-cost, the higher end machines are far more economical when used to their capacity. However, in a solo or very small office, a high capacity photocopier will not be used enough to capture the economies of scale. A multi-function printer and a photocopier with the proper features will allow a law office to scan in any necessary documents needed for purposes of maintaining electronic copies. C. The current gold standard of scanners for purposes of scanning routine correspondence, hard documents and hard pleadings, is a ScanSnap brand scanner at the desk of either the attorney or an attorney s support staff (or both). It s ix500 desktop model ranges in price in the mid $400 s and includes a license for the Standard version of Adobe Acrobat. A costconscious office can rely on a multifunction printer/scanner/copier combination that alone costs only a few hundred dollars. For instance, an HP LaserJet Pro M1212 Fax / copier / printer / scanner costs around $200. D. Fax Machines. As and scanners become far more prevalent, the use of fax machines has greatly diminished over the past several years. In addition, instead of a physical fax machine, many offices are currently relying upon virtual faxes that are services provided over a cloud-based system that deliver faxes to a virtual phone number via and sends them out typically using a virtual print driver.. efax and MyFax are examples of these services. E. Color printing is becoming more than just a convenience. In the event that the economies of an office justify a full-sized photocopier that also produces color prints and color copies, that is the more efficient and economical way to proceed. However, in smaller offices, a full-sized machine is not warranted, in which case a desktop color printer is more in line. The nature of color printing is such that color printers tend to have a high failure rate compared to their black and white counterparts. They also tend to be considerably louder than their black and white counter parts. Therefore, it would be best to consider a separate color printer that is shared in an office rather than having individual color printers for each user. F. Desk Jet printers are printers that use liquid based ink, as opposed to LaserJet printers that use dry toner. Avoid them. For someone on a budget, DeskJets seem to be a less-costly alternative for a printing device. However, over time, the toner costs for these far exceed the low purchase prices for the printers. They also cost money in time, as they are much slower than most laser printers

5 4. Phones. A. Many options are also available in terms of phones. The traditional model in a lawyer s office is a centralized phone system with different extensions serving staff such as attorneys, receptionists, and assistants. These phones traditionally relied upon standard land-based lines coming from a phone company into a central distribution box that would handle the traffic of incoming calls. Currently, the old-fashioned hardware method is being replaced with voice over internet protocol (VOIP) based phone systems. Under these phone systems are even another subset of phone systems, such as some that rely on traditional land based T1 or phone lines to bring in a digital signal, and then rely upon an internal VOIP system to distribute the calls amongst the different handsets located around the office. Other VOIP systems rely entirely on internet connections to handle incoming and outgoing calls. B. The drawback of pure VOIP-based systems is the fact that the voice communication over phones resides over the same lines as the internet used for purposes of , web-browsing, and other types of electronic communications over the internet. In times of high internet usage, the voice function can sometimes fail and be difficult to use because the use of the data interferes with the conveyance of voice communications. As higher levels of bandwidth are available to more offices, especially in central business districts, this deterrent to using VOIP systems is diminishing. C. A benefit of a VOIP system is that while the hardware costs tend to be the same as traditional systems, the cost of maintaining a single internet connection shared for voice is substantially less than paying most phone companies for land-based lines. In some respects, smaller home-based users often have an advantage over use of VOIP systems because cost of high bandwidth internet connections for residential use tend to be substantially less than the same bandwidth sold to business users. A one or two or three-handset VOIP system tends to run very well over a moderately high internet connection. D. Another advantage of VOIP based systems is that they can be used to integrate with smart phones and computers such as laptops and tablets to create what is known as a virtual phone such that a client calling into the business number is able to be transferred to a user on a cell phone regardless of that person s location. These phone systems are becoming exceedingly more affordable, powerful and common, at the same time that central based phone systems are declining in use. A significantly higher

6 growing trend is attorneys using their cell phones for all uses. Rather than having a central answering system or receptionist, attorneys are exceedingly prone to give out their cell phone to clients, which allows them to be reached directly without relying on a central-based system. The pricing of cell phone packages currently is very amenable to this approach, as opposed to the past, where counting minutes on a cellphone plan was important. Most major carriers of phones allow for mobile to mobile calls to not count against their cell phone plans, and since most phone calls are now placed from mobile phones as opposed to land phones, the amount of time spent talking to someone in terms of minutes becomes less important as a consideration. E. Allowing clients access to a cell phone number carries with it risks in practice areas where clients tend to hound attorneys at all hours and all days of the week. Also, being available to clients at all times can lead to higher stress levels for attorneys, because it prevents them from having extended downtimes away from work. Allowing clients to have access to cell phone numbers also potentially interferes with an attorney s personal family time, which can lead to difficulties with relationships with family members. 5. General Topics. A. Productivity Software (1) Word processing / document assembly (2) (3) Time and Billing (4) Practice Management (5) Contacts B. Choosing the right smartphone/tablet C. Apps for Lawyers D. Cloud Computing E. Backup solutions (1) On Site (2) Off site (3) Hybrid