Laptops were a huge boon to law firm productivity, allowing attorneys and other law firm staff to work from anywhere. It gave them the flexibility to adjust their work to their schedules now that they had access to attorney time and billing software places other than the office. However, today many attorneys find laptops to be limiting. Those computers that used to seem so light and small to use now appear cumbersome and awkward.
Cloud versions of law office billing software are taking the flexibility of a laptop to new levels. Legal staff is not only no longer chained to a desk but they aren’t even chained a specific computer.
Many attorneys like the option to do some work from home. They can do this by lugging a laptop back and forth, which is not only inconvenient but also makes them more likely to be crime victims. A laptop dangling from someone’s shoulder is a tempting target, and the thief not only gets valuable equipment but a copy of your company’s client information.
And alternative is to install attorney practice management software on a lawyer’s home computer. The problem is this means buying an additional license to the software and still limits the attorney to specific locations. It also can create problems with trying to keep multiple copies of the firm’s client database in sync.
The best option for today’s busy and mobile law practice is cloud-based software. Attorneys, paralegals and other authorized users have access to the firm’s software from anywhere with an internet connection, and from any computer without lengthy and confusing software installation or operating system limitations. Staff is able to see client information, record billable hours and expenses in the firm’s legal billing and accounting software, check calendars and to-do lists, and do pretty much anything that can be done in the office from any convenient location.
The more options an attorney has, the more productive that attorney can be. Give your staff more opportunities to work by using cloud versions of law billing software and other legal tools so they can decide when they are the most effective.
