The Efficient Office

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Noel McCormick
10 years ago
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1 Vermont Bar Association Seminar Materials The Efficient Office September 19, 2014 Killington Grand Resort Killington, VT Faculty: Donald Coker

2 VERMONT BAR ASSOCIATION 136 TH ANNUAL MEETING SEPTEMBER KILLINGTON GRAND RESORT KILLINGTON, VT THE EFFICIENT OFFICE

3 FORWARD One of the hardest things to do as a lawyer is to run an office efficiently. You are so busy reacting to events outside your control (court deadlines, demands by clients, etc.) that the idea of spending time setting up systems, following the rules, and simply developing good work habits is something that always seems to get pushed back to the sidelines. Hiring good people, training them properly, supervising them, setting up systems, monitoring the adherence to the rules, etc.is all the stuff they DIDN T teach you in law school. Law schools don t teach lawyers about the business of law.marketing, sales, administration, etc. I am grateful that they did not teach that it has allowed me to make s pretty decent living for over 30 years..thanks LAW SCHOOLS! The format of this 2 hour discussion is one that has a framework, but we may well swerve off the beaten path if an interesting subject comes up. I will always bring up back to the task at hand Running an Efficient Law Office. In this discussion, please feel free to stop and ask questions that is important because the question is usually relevant to the current specific subject for discussion. By discussing the subject in greater detail, at the moment it is fresh in your mind, you will get the benefit of toher s points of view and experiences. Q&A is one of the best ways to learn. For over 30 years, my firm has helped small to mid-sized law firms (I ONLY work with law firms) choose and use technology, billing systems, practice management systems, implement document assembly, and in ways to become more organized, more productive and more profitable. The notes in the following pages are simply areas of discussion. I have left room for you to take notes about those specific subject areas. Thanks for attending, and I look forward to your questions and participation in this wide ranging discussion of Running an Efficient Law Office Donald Coker

4 TECHNOLOGY NETWORKS MACS vs. WINDOWS PC s THE CLOUD LIFE CYCLE OF COMPUTERS PRINTERS SCANNERS FAX MACHINES

5 MFP DEVICES MOBILE PHONES HIRING GOOD PEOPLE PLACE AN AD VBA MAGAZINE, CRAIGS LIST, LOCAL PAPERS. BE SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS GOOGLE IS YOUR FRIEND POLICE BACKGROUND CHECKS SHOULD YOU DRUG TEST?

6 TRAIN THEM PROPERLY YOU DO HAVE A POLICIES AND PROCEDURES MANUAL DON T YOU? CROSS TRAIN THEM TAKE THE TIME TO DO THIS RIGHT WORD PROCESSING MICROSOFT WORD WORDPERFECT FOLDER STRUCTURE

7 TEMPLATES DONALD J. COKER, P.A. BILLING AND ACCOUNTING INTAKE FEE AGREEMENTS RETAINERS WHEN IS THE MONEY YOURS? WORK HABITS TIME ENTRY, OPENING FILES REMOTE DATA ENTRY

8 WORK IN PROCESS DONALD J. COKER, P.A. DRAFT BILLS PRINTING FINAL BILLS UPDATING THE DATABASE OF TIME, HOURS, ETC. ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE MANAGEMENT STEPS PAYMENTS TO THE FIRM ALLOCATING DOLLARS MANAGEMENT REPORTS HOURS ENTERED WEEKLY

9 EFFECTIVE RATE ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE PRODUCTIVITY CASH RECEIPTS PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS LIKE OUTLOOK ONLY MORE CALENDAR MATTERS

10 CONTACTS CALENDAR TEMPLATES CUSTOMIZED SYSTEMS DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT BILLING TIED TO PM NOTES TO THE FILE MANAGEMENT

11 RESEARCH LINKED TO FILES PARTIES TO THE FILE REPORTING Q&A SESSION

AVOIDING MALPRACTICE:

AVOIDING MALPRACTICE: TWO Half-Day Programs! CLOUD COMPUTING for Lawyers: Pros, Cons and Ethical Issues MORNING PROGRAM 9:00 am 12:15 pm Submitted for 4 General CLE Credits, Including 1 Ethics LIVE PROGRAM AND LIVE WEBCAST!