The Technology Advantage: How Your Peers Are Getting Ahead

As technologies continue to change the legal industry, attorneys across all practice areas are leveraging new tools to get a leg up on the competition. How can you make sure you’re not left behind? And which features do you need to streamline your practice and increase profits? Below we cover the top five legal tech features that legal professionals are using to get ahead. 

5 Tech Features to Maximize Law Firm Profitability 

1. Feature: Online Payments 

The MyCase Legal Industry Report surveyed 2,000 legal professionals, 73% of which stated that getting paid was a challenge for their firm. Additionally, the report also found that the collection rates for those who accepted online payments were nearly 10% higher than those who didn’t. 

What Can You Do With It?

• Simplify the payments process: With LawPay, firms can send invoices with a clickable payment link. They also have the option to share a unique QR code that allows clients to scan and pay right from their phones in a matter of seconds.

What Legal Professionals Say:

“Before LawPay, I had to send paper invoices through the mail, which took several days to reach the client and then several more for their payment to reach me. With LawPay, I can create an itemized invoice that is transmitted electronically to the client.” 

– Mark Brengelman, Mark R. Brengelman Law PLLC

2. Feature: Lead and Client Intake Automation 

According to the MyCase Industry Report, 50% of legal practitioner respondents find lead intake challenging. Leveraging technology for lead management allows prospective clients to fill out their information on your site and request information with little to no work on your part.

What Can You Do With It?

• Automated intake forms: Prospects can simply contact you by filling out their information on embedded intake forms located on your site. You can then automate response messages to ensure prompt response times. This can also trigger your case management software to open a case file with all submitted information.

What Legal Professionals Say:

“With MyCase eSignature, we cut client intake time in half—maybe more. We can do a lot more in an hour now than we could ever do before MyCase.” 

– Kim Leval, Sorenson Law Office

3. Feature: Document Management 

Easily create, share, and store documents in a single, secure location. Legal document management software can help you ensure that your whole team is on the same page and has access to the most recently updated version of each document. 

What Can You Do With It? 

• Keep all documentation in one secure place: With case management software, all documents can be stored in a single source of truth. Share, tag, and comment on documents in real-time to easily collaborate with coworkers and clients. Also, you can determine who has access to view, edit, and share each document.

What Legal Professionals Say: 

4. Feature: Time Tracking

The MyCase Industry Report determined that 61% of respondents struggle to capture billable time. Time-tracking software provides several ways to make this process simpler, freeing up your time and ensuring that you get paid for every billable minute. 

What Can You Do With It?

• Set timers and reminders to ensure time is captured: Rely on timers and automated reminders to log time, ensuring that every minute of potential revenue is recorded. MyCase allows users to switch between up to three timers simultaneously to record the hours and minutes spent on billable tasks.

What Legal Professionals Say:

“Our staff loves the MyCase timers that allow them to switch back and forth between cases in real-time. And because we have so many different bill rates and fee types, being able to set these rates in MyCase (or write them in the case notes) helps ensure bill accuracy.”

– Kim Leval, Sorenson Law Office

5. Features: Client Portal and Text Messaging

Leveraging client communication tools such as a client portal or text messaging makes it simple and easy to streamline communication and keep clients up to date—bettering the client experience and freeing up your time to focus on billable tasks. 

What Can You Do With It? 

• Allow clients to communicate on their terms: Case management software, such as MyCase, provides a Client Portal that makes client communication a breeze. You can communicate with clients in their preferred way, whether that be by text, email, or through the Portal.

What Legal Professionals Say:

Utilizing Legal Tech to Get Ahead

Give your firm a competitive advantage. Tech features like those mentioned above can help you streamline your practice, collect more billable hours, and impact your revenue. If you want to see firsthand how these features can improve your bottom line, request a free 10-day trial of MyCase and try a demo of LawPay.