by Brian Focht | Jan 14, 2014
Using more than one monitor at your desktop workstation was once considered to be a luxury for hard-core gamers and graphic designers. However, since the implementation of the flat-panel monitor, valuable real estate on your desk has opened up. Combined with rapidly falling prices for desktop monitors, and it’s the perfect time for you to upgrade your desktop with another monitor. But that second monitor isn’t just a status symbol. It’ll most likely improve your efficiency – by as much as 50% when performing certain tasks – and it’ll save you time. Did you know that when you switch between programs on your computer using Alt+Tab, not only do you have to wait for that new window to load, your brain actually experiences a short delay as both it and your eyes readjust. Over the course of a day, you lose a considerable amount of time, potentially measurable in hours, due to those delays. So instead of wasting your time on non-billable tasks, you can be providing actual legal counsel to your clients, or spending some valuable time with your friends and family. Or drinking and watching the game. Who am I to judge? But before you run out and get a second monitor, check out these tips on How to Streamline Your Law Practice by Using Multiple Monitors: 1) First, make sure your computer (and desk) supports multiple monitors. “Measure twice, cut once.” Before you even begin shopping for your glorious new monitor setup, you have to know what you’ve got to work with. The ideal size for today’s computer monitors is likely to be in the range of 20-24... read more
by Brian Focht | Jan 7, 2014
Today I came across an article on Lifehacker.com – a great list of 10 Apps and Services That Are More Than Meets the Eye. I’ve always believed that part of my job here on this blog is to inform those who provide or perform legal services with information about what’s new in the world of tech. However, an equally important job is to make sure I’m helping you get the most from what you already have. With that in mind, here are 10 Apps That Do WAY More Than You Thought: 10) Google Voice Although little has been updated in Google Voice since it premiered – hopefully not a sign that Google plans to do with Voice what it just did with Bump – the app still has a lot of great features that lawyers can utilize. Aside from allowing you to forward calls AND send and receive texts from your computer, Google Voice’s voicemail-to-text feature alone is worth the time and money. But guess what, that voicemail-to-text feature isn’t necessarily just for voicemails! Dictate into Google Voice while you’re on the road. What about those regular voicemails? Well, failure to return important client communications is one of the top ethical complaints against attorneys. Use your ability to filter through your voicemail through your Gmail account, and always know which calls are from your clients, and which ones you can safely ignore for a while! 9) Text Expanders Odds are your most intimate experience with text expanders comes in the form of your firm’s billing software (if you enter your own time, that is). Ever noticed how they’re set... read more
by Brian Focht | Jan 2, 2014
“I watched the whole thing unfold on Twitter. The information came in faster, more clearly, and much more accurately than the reporting on the news.” – A friend discussing using Twitter to learn more about the Boston Bombing. With fewer and fewer trained journalists reporting on local, regional, and national events – a 30% decrease since 2000, according to the Pew Research Center, our media discourse has suffered greatly. Local newspapers, who used to provide most of the reporting on local issues, are closing up shop or cutting their reporting resources drastically. Courtrooms, with the exception of celebrity-style show trials, have become all but ignored by the media. The dearth of coverage by the media has led to ignorance of how the law truly works. Ignorance has consequences. When people don’t know how the law works, the voices of the pundits and politicians who seek to limit general access to the courthouse sound more reasonable. By holding up a few cases as examples of a litigation system run amok, they cry out for tort reform, increased application of arbitration, and new discovery rules that disproportionately favor large companies. An uninformed electorate stands willing to accede. (Want an example? Go out and ask your non-lawyer friends about the McDonald’s “hot coffee” case, and see how many of them even have the facts straight!) The cure to this courthouse apathy is daylight. The best way to provide daylight is to allow social media in every courtroom. Now. Recently, Master-of-the-Blawgosphere Kevin O’Keefe wrote a fantastic article about a recent case in Providence, Rhode Island. Kate Mulvane of the Providence Journal asked Federal... read more
by Brian Focht | Dec 27, 2013
I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season, taking a little well-earned respite from the chaos that is December. For me, it means having some time to put together my set of New Year’s resolutions that I’ll ignore approximately 31 hours into the new year. It also means taking some time to write more articles, and putting together my next installment of the Best New Apps for Lawyers. So here are the best apps, released or receiving a significant update, from December 2013: iOS: SG Project OnePage 5 by Simple Genius Software, $4.99. Legal professionals are gradually gaining an understanding of how useful project management tools and software can be in a law firm. By allowing a project manager or leader to track various elements of a project from planning through completion, they have a better handle of how a project is moving along and where additional resources should be committed. These tools can be incredibly effective for a legal professional utilizing associates, paralegals, and technical staff to work on different parts of one client’s case. Enter Project OnePage 5. This app provides the 30,000 foot view of all active projects that a manager has running at any single time. Utilizing a 12×12 approach (12 total tasks and 12 time slots per project), OnePage gives the project manager a broad overview of each project that is pending, restricting your attention to only the most important information and preventing you from getting lost in the details and minutia. Ideal for providing timely updates to your clients about their matters, this app gives you a broad look at all pending projects in... read more
by Brian Focht | Dec 16, 2013
12 Awesomely Funny Gifts for Lawyers (with Issues!) – Vol. 1 (You’re here) 12 Awesomely Funny Gifts for Lawyers (with Issues!) – Vol. 2 12 Awesomely Funny Gifts for Lawyers (with Issues!) – Vol. 3 Shopping for lawyers come holiday season can be a real drag. I know, I am one. However, I’m one of those fun-loving types, who enjoys little pranks and tricks, provided nobody is too embarrassed, and the property damage keeps any potential criminal convictions in the misdemeanor range. To me, there’s nothing better than a really funny gift. Gag gifts are nice, and have good humor value. But the truly excellent gifts are those that are both funny AND useful. So this holiday season, I’m here to offer some assistance to anyone who is looking for some gift ideas for attorneys like me (i.e. “with issues”). Here are my 12 Awesomely Funny Gifts for Lawyers (with Issues): 1) The Billable Hour™ Brass Desk Clock – $49.95 Make sure that your desk always looks professional… at first glance! This handsome desk clock, with a classic – and classy – design, gives the look of stylish professionalism to all the senior partners who may walk by on their way to lunch. Fortunately for you, all the real decision makers consider the idea of entering into your office to be beneath them. On closer inspection, it’s an excellent homage to the life-consuming practice of billing time. Or, in the event you feel like bringing the soul crushing experience of billing time home, it’ll look great on your home office desk. Yes, I’m referring to the coffee table that also... read more
by Brian Focht | Nov 25, 2013
Last week I attended an all-day CLE on depositions. I’m an experienced litigator, and have taken or defended over 100 depositions in my career, including depositions of parties, witnesses, and experts. I’ve participated in depositions in federal and state court cases, representing plaintiffs, defendants, and third-party witnesses. My hope was that this CLE would offer some interesting tips and hints about depositions from attorneys with styles different from my own. I was wrong. However, what baffled me most was the presentation’s nearly complete omission of information about the use of new technology in depositions. (To view my discussion of excellent iPad apps for depositions, click here) The only technology discussed was the use of video, but even its well-known advantages were barely mentioned. No time was dedicated at all to discussing benefits or uses that we may not have thought of yet. So I decided to supplement their offering, based on my own experience. Here are 4 Routinely Ignored Benefits of Video Depositions: 1) Video testimony is simply more persuasive… to the judge. We’ll start off with an easy one: video is simply more persuasive. Anyone who has conducted a jury trial, or who has had to convince anyone of anything, that video is more persuasive. However, anyone who thinks that video depositions are ONLY for use in trial is missing any number of HUGE opportunities to harness the persuasive power of video. Guess who else is subject to the persuasive power of video: judges! Having experienced it first-hand (unfortunately on the losing side), I can tell you that judges are just as susceptible to the persuasive power of video... read more
by Brian Focht | Nov 8, 2013
Part IV in my series reviewing three of the top cloud-based case management software services available to attorneys. Part I: Clio Part II: Rocket Matter Part III: MyCase Part IV: Review and Comparison Over the course of my last few posts, my cloud-based case management software review has discussed three top services individually: Clio, Rocket Matter, and MyCase. Evaluating their strengths and weaknesses in several key areas that I consider to be highly important for case management software, I attempted to provide an in-depth look at the services that could prove useful to small and mid-size law firms, looking for a more cost-effective alternative to the incredibly pricey practice management options currently available. By focusing on the case management software that each service provides, I deliberately ignored the billing/timekeeping/accounting functions available. I did this partially because I really wanted to focus on how effectively these systems handle case management, and partially because to be all inclusive would preclude the in-depth analysis I wanted to do. Now, the fun part: which of the services is best: Case/Matter Information: Clio MyCase Rocket Matter I’ll be honest, it was really difficult to decide between Clio and MyCase on this one, so it came down to a single factor: contact roles. Clio allows users to designate the role of case contacts on a case-by-case basis, whereas MyCase does not. The ability to designate a contact as an attorney in one case and an arbitrator in another, or a treating physician in one case and an expert witness in another, is crucial in litigation. Both Clio and MyCase put all the most important information... read more
by Brian Focht | Nov 7, 2013
Part III in my series reviewing three of the top cloud-based case management software services available to attorneys. Part I: Clio Part II: Rocket Matter Part III: MyCase Part IV: Review & Comparison My reviews will focus on how effectively the services provide case- and matter-management. My reviews will not discuss the accounting/timekeeping/billing aspects of the services. Instead, I will focus on the accessibility/presentation of case information, contacts, calendar & tasks, documents, document assembly, and unique features each service provides. Product: MyCase by MyCase, Inc. Price: $39.99 per month for attorneys, $29.99 per month for staff MyCase advertises itself as “an affordable, intuitive and powerful legal practice management software designed for the modern law firm.” A full-service cloud-based case management software service, MyCase’s biggest selling point is that it is the only case management system that offers an integrated client portal, allowing you to keep your clients updated on everything going on in their case. Case/Matter Information Accessing case/matter information easily and quickly is a major strength of MyCase. The matters are organized by name, and can be further organized by practice area, so that you can easily access your cases (particularly important in a firm with a large number of cases). The main screen for individual matters is nicely organized, with the basic case information available immediately. Tabs give in-screen access to the case’s calendar, notes, tasks, messages and contacts. Custom fields for each case are given a prominent location on the case information screen, proof that MyCase has placed great importance on a user-controlled experience. Another great benefit is direct access to case-specific Workflows (see Unique Feature,... read more
by Brian Focht | Nov 6, 2013
Part II in my series reviewing three of the top cloud-based case management software services available to attorneys. Part I: Clio Part II: Rocket Matter Part III: MyCase Part IV: Review & Comparison My reviews will focus on how effectively the services provide case- and matter-management. My reviews will not discuss the accounting/timekeeping/billing aspects of the services. Instead, I will focus on the accessibility/presentation of case information, contacts, calendar & tasks, documents, document assembly, and unique features each service provides. Rocket Matter by Rocket Matter, LLC Price: $59.99 per user, per month Rocket Matter advertises itself as “the blazingly fast, leading legal billing and law firm management software.” As I will discuss in greater detail below, Rocket Matter clearly sees itself as a billing software first, as demonstrated by the testimonial quotes contained on their main page (two address billing, none address case management). However, they have grown to be one of the most used cloud-based case management software systems on the market. The real question is, how does their case management portion stack up? Case/Matter Information Rocket Matter emphasizes it’s ability to provide billing and accounting to small firms, and its focus on the accounting side is probably felt the greatest in the display of case/matter information, which is sadly neglected. That said, Rocket Matter really does a lot of things right in this area. Rather than putting case information and details in the most prominent location, as Clio and MyCase both do, Rocket Matter puts your upcoming calendar appointment and tasks front and center for each case. The case information, including a full calendar, your to-do list, and... read more
by Brian Focht | Nov 5, 2013
Part I in my series reviewing three of the top cloud-based case management software services available to attorneys. Part I: Clio Part II: Rocket Matter Part III: MyCase Part IV: Review & Comparison My reviews will focus on how effectively the services provide case- and matter-management. My reviews will not discuss the accounting/timekeeping/billing aspects of the services. Instead, I will focus on the accessibility/presentation of case information, contacts, calendar & tasks, documents, document assembly, and unique features each service provides. Clio by Themis Solutions Price: $49/month for lawyers, $25/month for support staff. Clio advertises itself as a cloud-based “practice management, time & billing and client collaboration platform for small- to mid-sized law firms.” Advertising bank-grade security for your information and a fully-functional iPhone app, Clio offers all the basic aspects required to serve as case management software for lawyers. Case/Matter Information One of the biggest strengths of the Clio case management software is the matter display tab. The design is simple, and allows for easy organization of your cases. However, the true beauty of Clio’s system comes when you open one of those matters. Without scrolling (unless you’ve added an obscene number of custom fields), all of the basic information for your matter is displayed on screen. Just beneath the case information section is a series of tabs: Client, Transactions, Contacts, Tasks, Calendar, Notes, Time, Expenses, Documents, and Communications. Each tab allows one-click access to a summary page for the respected area. Want to see which of your contacts are linked to the case (and for what role)? Just click on the contacts tab, and they’re displayed without your... read more
