How Online Case Management Revolutionizes Your Firm

Submitted by Deanna on Fri, 09/23/2016 - 12:44

More and more people are using the Internet to find an attorney. In fact, a 2014 survey conducted by FindLaw.com found that the Internet was the #1 way for claimants to find a firm to work with, up from 7% in 2005. With more use of the Internet comes more tools available for attorneys to manage cases online. If you haven’t yet considered taking your pending cases to the cloud, here are a five reasons why you should consider doing so today:

1: Better Communication with Clients

If you’re managing your cases online, you’ll easily be able to keep in contact with clients. According to the Radicati Group, about 2.5 billion people use email worldwide, up from 1.9 billion users in 2009. The fact of the matter is that people no longer want to use the phone, or heaven forbid, snail mail.

Web-based management software allows you to email all of your contacts or clients easily, as email addresses will be saved online for quick access. You can even send messages to numerous contacts associated with a claim.

2: Less Paperwork for your Intake Staff

Creating documents for your clients can be one of the most tedious and time-consuming tasks your firm does. Retainer packages are typically multiple pages, and some applications, such as the Social Security disability application, are well over a dozen pages long.

When your firm utilizes case management software, you’ll no longer need to spend hours penciling in your claimant’s name, phone number, and address over and over again. Most case management software will have an option to auto populate documents with the data you already have on hand.

3: Faster Case Turnarounds

Sending paper mail to and from claimants can take days. Depending on how far away your clients live, you may need to wait a full week for your claimant to even receive a retainer letter.

Case management software utilizes the Internet, so you know that you’ll be signing clients quickly. If your claimant happens to check his or her email immediately after you send a document, you could have paperwork returned and signed in a matter of minutes. Your cases will speed up in the office as well: Instead of waiting to print or fax a document, anyone can access files online instead with web-based case management software.

4: Able to do business anytime

The standard 9-5 office hours just aren’t viable for many companies. If you have a national law firm, you may have people working on cases from California to Maine. It may be challenging to coordinate with set office hours.

When you move your case management practices online, anyone will be able to work on pending cases at a convenient time. Case management software allows you to upload documents related to a claim or add time-stamped notes whenever an update occurs.

5: Lower your firm’s costs

As your firm expands, you’ll likely need to hire additional paralegals, intake staff, or even attorneys to take on additional case loads. Time is money, and the more time you and your team spends working on mundane tasks, the more money you’ll lose.

If you choose to use web-based case management software, you’ll dramatically improve the amount of time your paralegals need to spend sending documents and filing paperwork. Once your paralegals can handle a higher case load, you’ll see even more revenue.