If your firm has grown and taken on more cases, you’ve surely grappled with the big decision of expanding and hiring new staff members. Hiring another member of your team is no small feat: From salary to health insurance, it’s very expensive to pay for a full-time employee. You’ll also likely lose thousands of billable hours from training new employees. If you’re considering taking the plunge, here are a few things to keep in mind before making a decision.

Do you find yourself working well into the night?

Some cases will demand extra prep time, but if you consistently find yourself pouring over paperwork or drafting documents for court, it’s likely that you could use an extra hand around the office. Striking a great balance between work and life is important for numerous reasons, if not for just helping you perform better in court.

Are you spending hours on mundane tasks?

An attorney has some skills that cannot be replaced by anyone else. Representing a claimant in court isn’t even possible for those without a legal license or accreditation. But some tasks, like sending retainer packets to clients, or following up with clients with outstanding paperwork, can be done by anyone. If you find that you have less and less time every day to prepare for hearings because you’re bogged down by everyday tasks, you may be in need of a paralegal or secretary.

Do you have a hard time vetting claimants?

If your firm is understaffed, you may find that the process of choosing whether to sign a claimant may be challenging. You may be inclined to turn away cases that appear poor, but had someone spoken with the claimant in depth, would actually be a viable claim. Instead of nitpicking through your initial communications with claimants, you should always strive to have one thorough conversation with every claimant to thoroughly assess his or her situation. If you do not have the time for this, you may need to hire a new member for your intake staff.

Have you recently signed a high number of clients?

This is often one of the best problems a firm could have: more clients than usual. If your firm has recently signed a high number of clients, you may be in need of help. For example, most divorce attorneys will sign more clients in January, as this is the most popular month for couples to break up. If you have too many cases to handle, you may want to hire someone to help you with the additional work, if only for a couple of months.

Can you afford a new paralegal?

Hiring extra help is expensive. According to PayScale.com, the national average entry-level paralegal salary is $38,000, which does not include extra costs from taxes and health insurance. If your firm cannot afford additional help, there may be other resources available.

There's no perfect substitute for a great paralegal, but if your firm isn’t ready to make the leap and hire a new employee, consider purchasing case and lead management software instead. Case management software can perform many of the duties of paralegals, such as generating documents, sending emails, and more. If you’d like to learn more about eLuminate, eGenerationMarketing’s case management software, give us a call today at 617.800.0089. We’d be happy to show you how the software can help your firm manage your pending cases.