Tabs3 Practice Management Blog for Law Firms

For your business law clients, what’s the most important thing you do? The answer is probably that your services help their business maintain a strong legal foundation and resolve any disputes and conflicts efficiently and with as little stress as possible. But what helps your practice increase its efficiency and decrease the stress of running a law firm? To provide effective guidance and support for your clients, you can’t rely on your legal knowledge and experience alone. As a business, your practice needs legal practice management software so you can maximize billable hours, reduce compliance risks, and deliver excellent client service—the kind that keeps referrals coming in.

What is legal practice management software?

Legal practice management software is designed to support business operations. The tools available through practice management software can streamline many areas of your work, including:

• Workflow and task management
• Time and expense tracking
• Contact management
• Calendaring
• Billing and invoicing
• Robust reporting and data analytics

Depending on the needs of your practice, you may benefit from either a convenient all-in-one solution or one that allows you to customize your software with the features that are most important to your firm.

Why choose legal practice management software?

Unlike industry-agnostic software solutions, legal practice management software is designed specifically for law firms and tailored to their workflows and compliance needs. For example, a general email management tool might allow you to manage your contacts, but with a law firm-specific software, you can benefit from built-in conflict of interest checks. Another important example is law firm trust accounting: if one of your business clients relies on trust accounting, your team could spend hours trying to build usable trust accounting workflows with a generic accounting system. But with legal-specific software, your firm can use built-in trust accounting software for three-way reconciliation and robust reporting. Features like this help protect your firm from compliance violations at many levels while also improving workflows at every stage of matter lifecycles.

Four reasons why business law firms need practice management software

Because business law firms have their hands in widely disparate matters, it’s critical that your team has the tools it needs to stay on top of billable and non-billable tasks alike. Position your firm for success by taking advantage of these four benefits of legal practice management software.

1.   Improved client communication keeps everyone on the same page

Whether you’re simply reviewing a contract for a client or litigating a merger gone south, communications are at the heart of your client’s experience. Even if you are able to achieve your client’s goals in the end, poor client communication throughout the process can lead to fewer new clients, fewer repeat clients, and a less-than-stellar reputation. Legal practice management software helps law firms maintain positive, personalized communications on both urgent and ongoing matters, so your clients feel valued and taken care of at all times.

Legal CRMs

A client relationship management (CRM) tool is a fantastic way to communicate with clients about the client intake process, scheduling, appointments, deadlines, and updates to your law firm. From first contact, a legal CRM can help you provide immediate responses via text and email communications, automated drip campaigns, and logic-based intake forms that help you identify leads.

Email integration

Practice management tools can help you keep up with the fast pace of business law. If your team struggles to sift through endless email threads or maintain consistent client communication, email integration will allow you to get organized. PracticeMaster’s built-in email tools sync with Outlook, which means that team members can add client communications to their corresponding matter. With this integration, all legal staff can be apprised of any client communications so that nothing slips through the cracks.

2.   Automated workflows reduce errors

Business law requires meticulous attention to deadlines, forms, and documentation. The smallest missed deadline can have significant compliance or liability consequences for your clients. Legal practice management systems provide many ways to streamline processes and help you stay on track, so you never miss a beat (or a deadline). Here are some examples.

• Document management allows you to build customizable templates, so you can assemble documents at lightning speed with automated client data population.

• Attorney-friendly calendars include advanced calendar functions, such as the ability to schedule a series of events from one kick-off date, alert users of a double-booking, and review all upcoming events related to a specific matter or client.

• Advanced conflict of interest checks with quick searches let attorneys instantly see conflicts of interest between potential clients and your firm through phrase matching, phonetic checks, and other features. No more digging through piles of paperwork or endless spreadsheets to cross-reference client information.

3.   Task management automations save time

Even the most organized legal professional can save time with the automations available in practice management software. Instead of slogging through repetitive tasks, practice management software gives you workflow functionality to trigger tasks or send reminders following specific actions. With these automations, your software can take care of tasks like:

• Starting emails
• Adding appointments to your calendar
• Assembling documents
• Running reports
• Launching other software features

These tasks may not seem overly time-consuming in the moment, but the minutes you spend on them each day can really add up over time.

4.   More efficient billing benefits your firm and your clients

Billing, invoicing, and collections can take up an inordinate amount of time for legal staff. The good news is that practice management software can help your law firm get bills out quickly and get paid even faster. Your software should streamline billing and invoicing by helping you:

• Track time and turn billable hours into fees on your client’s next statement
• Bill clients based on their fee structure (i.e. split fee, contingency, retainer, or task-based billing)
• Process credit card and online payments for faster payment processing (and a more convenient payment option for clients)
• Securely email invoices in large batches or one at a time
• Print draft statements and track which ones are under internal review

Get down to business with Tabs3 Software’s suite of legal practice management tools

Tabs3 Software is designed to help business law firms streamline their operations so they can focus on client matters. See for yourself why tens of thousands of legal professionals trust Tabs3 with their business when you schedule a demo with us today.

For law firms, time is quite literally money. With a finite number of billable hours in a day, the way you structure, track, and plan for time can make a significant difference in areas across your legal practice.

Beyond accurate time management, incorrect timekeeping has far-reaching consequences for:

• Company profits
• ABA compliance
• Staff management
• Client trust

The best way to improve all of the above? Accurate time tracking.

Six benefits of accurate time tracking

Time tracking is key to accurately staffing and allocating resources for every facet of firm operations. Let’s get more specific, though. Here are six major benefits of proper time tracking, and how you can step up your system today.

1.   Better matter budget

Because law firms build matter and case plans based on previous experience and knowledge, it can be difficult to scope projects correctly without accurate background information for similar tasks. If your firm chronically under-tracks time, then team members will consistently fall victim to underfunded projects and impossible timelines. This can also negatively impact the client experience (and ultimately, client satisfaction).

Under-tracking time doesn’t just impact billable hour projects, either. For non-billable business operations, under-budgeted projects lead to wasted work, inefficient systems, and poor project rollout.

No matter how you frame it, knowing how much associate and partner time is needed for a project will have a significant impact on a matter’s overall success. Otherwise, you may not have the time and resources you need to succeed.

2.   Allocate resources accurately

Similar to budget allocation, historical project data is critical to accurately allocating resources for billable and non-billable initiatives in a legal practice. An underestimated project will take up more than the projected time, costing the firm more money and potentially leading to stressful working conditions for attorneys and staff.

On the other hand, if a firm overestimates necessary resources, it can have the opposite problem. Projects can be overstaffed. If staff time isn’t allocated correctly, it can cost associates and partners much-needed billable hours. What’s more, other client work may suffer and profitability can decrease across the board.

3.   Set profitable rates and fee structures

Many firms provide different fee structures to cater to client needs, including flat fees, retainers, fee splitting, and contingency.

If your firm uses flat fees or task-based billing, your profitability depends on accurately pricing your services based on how much time a matter will take to resolve. Without accurate time tracking, you could be severely underselling your services. It’s as simple as that.

4.   Maintain compliance with ABA regulations

Beyond your own firm’s needs, time tracking is essential to maintaining compliance with ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct 1.5, 1.6, and 1.15.

Per the American Bar Association, improper tracking of billable hours can lead to serious ethical dilemmas, disciplinary measures, and even disbarment.

It’s important to note that compliance matters for every team member, not just partners. According to Model Rule 1.5, firms can only charge reasonable fees (the definition of which varies based on several factors). If an associate charges a client unreasonable or padded fees, they are accountable for their actions, even if they were directed to do so by a supervising lawyer.

To keep this issue to a minimum, the ABA suggests that legal staff, especially new lawyers, take care to review bills to avoid allegations of padding, especially when logging time for multiple cases at the same time.

The ABA’s top tip for compliance? Use a desktop- and mobile-friendly time-tracking tool as part of a larger practice management system for accurate billing practices.

5.   Improve client relationships

As previously noted, padded fees and invoices are a serious breach of ABA regulations. Beyond the risk of disciplinary measures, improperly tracked time can compromise client trust.

Trust is the cornerstone of strong client relationships for a law firm. Clients come to law firms to deal with serious and often stressful legal matters. They need someone they can trust to resolve their matters. If your firm loses that trust via padded billing practices or unreasonable fees, that trust is nearly impossible to get back.

On the other hand, consistent, transparent time tracking and fee structures promote open and honest communication which will lead to increased client satisfaction stemming from the level of transparency regarding pricing. This level of understanding fosters mutual trust, which is key to a law firm’s long-term growth.

6.   Better understand your staff’s performance

Time tracking is an important measure of efficiency and productivity, and it tells you how much staff worked on specific projects, or with certain clients. In addition to the numerous issues listed above, inaccurate time tracking can hinder your firm’s ability to support staff who may need more help and reward staff who go above and beyond.

All of these factors play into performance reviews, employee recognition, fair compensation, and keeping track of potential high or low performers at your firm.

How to improve your firm’s time-tracking system

The biggest way to improve a firm’s time-tracking system is to implement automated time tracking throughout the day, rather than tracking time at the end of the day or week.

According to the ABA, lawyers who wait until the end of the day can lose 10% of their billable time. For lawyers who wait until the end of the week, that number goes up to a 25% loss of billable time.

By tracking time throughout the day, team members gain an accurate picture of their billable hours. But tracking via paper and pencil can be inefficient (and easy to forget). Instead, consider working with legal practice management software with integrated time tracking. For example, Tabs3 Connect allows lawyers to track their time on any smart device, and easily switch between projects or pause for breaks.

As an added bonus, Tabs3 Connect’s time tracking seamlessly integrates with Tabs3 Billing. As timekeepers track their work throughout the day, the fees will be immediately available back at the office, ready to appear on your client’s next statement. This saves time compiling client invoices each month, while still providing easy editing capabilities to ensure accurate client billing.

Simplify your time tracking with Tabs3 Software

Time tracking doesn’t have to be complicated. Simplify your system and see the results for yourself with Tabs3 Connect’s timers, accessible from any smart device, no matter where your work takes you.

To see how Tabs3 can help transform your time tracking and firm productivity, schedule a walkthrough demo today.

Law firms often deal with complex matters, and many law practices spend significant overhead time in task management. Some operations in a legal practice need hands-on workflows to succeed.

But, hear us out: not everything has to be done manually. In fact, firms that don’t automate at least some of their processes are sacrificing valuable time that could be spent on more immediate or lucrative tasks.

While all processes in your practice require careful planning and oversight, automated tasks cut out repetitive manual work to give lawyers back some much-needed time in their day.

How automated workflows function

Automated workflows are often part of legal practice management software, which provides a central place for business operations and management. By housing data in an integrated and organized system, law firms gain access to a number of automated workflow functions that cut out the need for manual task initiation.

Automated workflows are designed to follow a set of instructions to perform tasks. They rely on basic if/then instructions: “if” an event takes place, “then” the program starts an action. When set up to run automatically, workflows streamline common tasks by starting the next function related to a previous event.

Take document assembly as an example. Users can create document templates, such as fee agreements and contracts with designated fields for input. Once you add a new client to the system or trigger another event, it will automatically assemble a fee agreement document with the client data already filled in, alongside prompts for further information.

Other common workflow automations for law firms include:

• Adding calendar appointments
• Starting emails
• Creating document management records
• Calendar reminders (i.e., Statute of Limitations reminders)

All of these tasks need to get done, but they each take time away from your team. Let’s say these tasks take just 10 minutes each day per team member. If you automate these tasks, you could save more than 40 hours per team member each year. That’s an entire workweek’s worth of hours you could spend on higher-value tasks at your practice.

Start with the regular, repetitive pain points

The best tasks to automate are the ones you have to do frequently. Think about the systems or tasks that cause the most frustration. Meet with your administrative or accounting team members to learn about their repetitive tasks, especially redundant functions like duplicate data entry.

For example, review your client billing process. Is your team creating each invoice, and manually adding each team member’s time? An automated system can create batch invoices based on time-tracking data. Instead of manually drafting each invoice, your team can quickly review and edit invoices as needed, then send them out either individually or as a batch to your clients.

Keep in mind that automated tasks are here to help reduce effort on predictable, repetitive tasks. If automation seems overwhelming, start with two or three tasks and go from there.

Automated workflows that will save you time

Workflows can be set up either to run automatically after certain events occur, manually, or both. This provides flexibility for your team to find the best system that works for them.

Client record creation

When you create new records or make edits to an existing record, automated workflows can help ensure that other related tasks are updated. For example, adding a new client record can prompt timekeeper assignments or calendar tasks.

Calendaring

The best legal practice management software includes an attorney-friendly calendar that syncs with Outlook, so you never miss an event. With automated workflows, events, deadlines, or new clients can automatically trigger appointment scheduling and calendar reminders, which helps keep your schedule organized and top-of-mind.

With calendar plan templates, lawyers can schedule a series of events from one kick-off date, such as a client onboarding. As an added bonus, integrated calendars can also alert users to double bookings to prevent future conflicts.

Document assembly

There are many opportunities for document assembly with automated workflows. You don’t have to copy, paste, save as, and still risk carrying information between documents. While the initial setup takes a bit of time, it can quickly become a go-to workflow for your entire team.

Common document assembly for new client records includes thank-you letter generations and contract agreement assembly. With these tools, teams can easily build a strong first impression with new clients in a timely manner.

Time tracking

It can be easy for lawyers to become laser-focused on a task and lose track of time, which can interfere with billable hour limits and your productivity for the rest of the day. With time trackers, legal staff can track their time for multiple projects in a day so you can ensure that all of your time is captured and ready to include on a statement.

Reporting

When your firm prints the same set of reports every year, quarter, month, week, or any time in between, you can save time by having your reports ready to print all at once with a single click. Report suites can offer an easy one-step option to print a predefined set of reports with the click of a button.

Launching related programs

In addition to document assembly, adding a new client to the system often requires other related tasks. With PracticeMaster, when a new client or contact is added to the system, it can be set to automatically open a conflict of interest search window to review their name against your existing database.

Save time and start automating workflows today

Tabs3 Software is a fully integrated legal practice management software designed to make your life easier with workflow automation and other integrated tools, such as billing, time-tracking, accounting, online payments, advanced reporting, and document management.

Start automating workflows today, and build time back in your day to focus on big-picture items. To see how Tabs3 Software can help your law firm automate workflows, schedule a walkthrough demo or sign up for a free trial today.

Practicing criminal law can be a high-stakes endeavor, and we’re not just talking about client matters. Criminal law practices face unique challenges in managing and growing their practice, from navigating a competitive marketplace to working with difficult clients who may require payment plans.

As an attorney, it makes sense that your business practices and needs can sometimes take a back seat to immediate client needs. But in the long run, an inefficient practice management system will only lead to more problems for you and your clients.

This state of stress and disorganization doesn’t have to be the default for your firm. Effective practice management software can help improve operations, increase profitability, and reduce stress, all while providing better support and representation for clients.

What is legal practice management software?

Practice management software is designed to help businesses operate more efficiently and effectively. Features can range from all-in-one solutions to customizable packages.

Practice management software typically includes:

• Contact management
• Time and expense tracking
• Billing and invoicing
• Calendaring
• Workflow and task management
• Detailed reporting and data analytics

Because legal practice management software is designed with attorneys in mind, law firms can quickly take advantage of the software’s functionalities to improve their operations. For example, instead of spending hours trying to get your generic accounting software to support your trust accounting workflows, you can implement built-in trust accounting software to ensure your law firm doesn’t miss a beat (or a three-way reconciliation deadline).

This means that from the outset, law firms are positioned to see a much faster ROI.

Three reasons criminal law firms need practice management software

Criminal law practices work on matters that are often time-sensitive. For such impactful work, it’s imperative that legal staff have as much time as possible to focus on their clients’ needs, without letting anything slip through the cracks.

When it comes to client intake, matter organization, and payment processes, practice management software can streamline your operations with results that benefit all parties.

1.  Improved client communications build strong relationships

Clients come to you for support and guidance in stressful situations. Firms that achieve clear and consistent communication will attract and convert more qualified leads and are better positioned to build long-term positive relationships that can result in opportunities even after a case is completed.

Legal client relationship management

Criminal law is a competitive practice area. You only have one chance to make a good first impression, and that starts with responsive communication.

A legal client relationship management (CRM) tool works with practice management software to provide a number of benefits to law firms:

• Find quality leads: with logic based intake forms, criminal law practices can reduce the time it takes to sort through interested parties to find qualified leads for your practice
• Quick, tailored responses: with built-in triggers, a legal CRM can provide appropriate and immediate follow-ups to qualified leads, such as scheduling a consultation and other next steps
• Automated drip campaigns: increase touchpoints with prospective clients with email and text campaigns that can remind clients of upcoming appointments and deadlines, as well as other relevant calls to action
• Contact management: eliminate manual and redundant data entry with an integrated CRM that automatically syncs with your practice management software

Simplify email management

Client relationship best practices begin with effective communication, and email plays an important role in that. As such, your email organization should help you work better with clients. For example, PracticeMaster’s email management system syncs with Outlook so staff can add client emails to their respective matter. With this feature, your team can work with a consolidated list of client communications so that everyone has access to all pertinent information.

2.  Secure and organized matter management achieves better results for your clients

Whether you’re helping a client fight a DUI or navigate a fraud charge, you can’t afford to overlook filing deadlines or misplace evidence. Practice management software, however, can help you better manage your time, schedules, and matters.

Efficient task management

You shouldn’t have to rebuild the proverbial wheel over and over again for repetitive tasks.

Practice management software provides workflows for task automation, including:

• Document assembly
• Running custom reports
• Starting emails
• Adding appointments
• Launching other software programs

These automated tasks reduce human error and save users time every single day, improving productivity and efficiency for criminal law firms.

Integrated calendar management

Instead of using an industry-agnostic calendar, consider powering your law firm with built-in calendars that help you track matter schedules.

Integrated calendar systems sync with your email and include:

• Applying jurisdiction-specific criteria to reminders and due dates
• Recurring reminders for regular meetings
• Customizable security settings that determine which employees can see appointments for certain attorneys or clients

These features maximize your time so you can spend your energy on your matters and strategic business priorities.

Secure file sharing and eSignatures

Criminal law practices often operate with tight turnarounds and firm deadlines. Secure file-sharing and eSignature features enable teams to request documents, get signatures, and securely send information as quickly as possible by eliminating the need to print, mail, and return documents.

3.  Streamlined payment processes

Criminal law firms may need to employ a variety of fee arrangements to provide the right payment solutions for their clients.

Whether your clients prefer trust accounts, flat fee arrangements, retainers, or contingency, you can use your practice management software to support flexible billing options. Firms can use an attorney’s standard rate, bill by timekeeper level (associate, partner, etc), or add custom rates for any client.

In addition to the flexibility to create a billing structure that works for each client, your practice management software can help you:

• Accept online payments by optionally including a payment link within an emailed bill for faster payment
• Schedule future and recurring payments
• Track which draft statements are still under internal review
• Quickly edit and update transactions on bills to ensure statement accuracy

Build a stronger practice with Tabs3 Software’s comprehensive legal practice management tools

Top criminal law firms use Tabs3 Software to run a more efficient and profitable practice. Tabs3 is built to meet the unique needs of your practice, so you can spend more time working on the needs of your clients.

Schedule a demo with us and see why Tabs3 Software has been a leading choice that tens of thousands of legal professionals rely on every day.

For law firms, it can be overwhelming to sort out exactly what software and programs you need in your starting line-up to operate at peak performance. Firms need to balance utility with user interface, cost, frequency of use, and a whole host of factors that can be difficult to predict.

This can result in a team of tools that aren’t built to complement each other and may actually slow your firm down.

This can be as frustrating as watching your favorite college basketball team miss a game winning shot during March Madness.

But while tech grievances are common, your legal practice can leave them in the past. It’s possible to build a system with all the functionalities your firm needs to succeed, without outdated or mismatched technology that drags you down.

If you’re looking to create a more efficient workflow for your law firm, here’s the starting line-up to get you there.

Practice management software

Practice management software is a centralized system designed to help legal practices function more efficiently. The software itself can range from all-in-one packages to customizable solutions designed specifically for your law firm, but the end goal of these solutions is to allow firms to manage their entire practice from one intuitive, convenient interface.

There are many functionalities within practice management software that support better workflows and task tracking for attorneys, including matter management, documentation, calendaring, communication, and more.

Matter management

Matter management tools keep case files organized, enabling your team to store all case data, files, contact information, phone records, tasks, and calendar events in one secure system. Authorized team members can collaborate with one another in the system from their desktop or smartphone, making it easy to find what you need, no matter where you are.

Document management and automation

Look for legal practice management software with built-in document management. This feature lets teams track who made what changes in a document, and when they did it. Your software should also enable linking between documents and matters. As a result, team members have more transparent collaboration, as well as a clear history of case matters and updates.

Document automation allows firms to build custom legal templates to save time on generating document. With document templates, team members can easily populate client or case information into the template, which helps reduce human error and manual administrative time.

Calendaring

More than your average calendar app, integrated calendars enable you to schedule tasks and appointments for individuals, groups, or the entire firm. The best software will also include calendar plan templates to schedule a series of events following a kick-off date, such as automated follow-ups after a client is onboarded.

For extra points, practice management calendars also alert you to double bookings. This feature can save hours of untangling scheduling problems and prevent missed appointments.

File-sharing and eSignature capabilities

Two-way secure file-sharing makes it easy to collaborate with clients and outside parties while minimizing risk for all involved. With eSignatures, clients can sign legally binding documents from any device, eliminating the need to print, sign, scan, and email documents. This improves the client experience and boosts turnaround time for documents, since clients are more likely to quickly sign and send forms when you make it more convenient for them to do so.

Time tracking software

Time tracking software can streamline administrative tasks and make tracking billable hours easier for everyone. When members of your legal team don’t account for their time until the end of the day (or the end of the week), it can lead to inaccurate reporting. This can result in either shortchanging the firm or overcharging the client.

Neither scenario is ideal for growing a firm and can even pose compliance risks for your practice.

Time tracking software lets team members record how they spend their time throughout the day, which creates an accurate picture of their activities as they work. Look for software with mobile capabilities so your team members can track time no matter where they work.

With time tracking reports, your team can also analyze how they spend their time so you can check on their performance, client time allocation, and administrative pain points. As a result, firms can make informed decisions regarding how they need to spend their time.

CRM

Client relationship management software (CRM) is a tool that helps firms manage their client intake process and marketing efforts. Legal CRMs are built specifically with law firms in mind, which reduces the need for heavy customization.

Legal CRM provides many valuable tools for law firms, including email and text campaigns as well as automated follow-ups.

Automated client follow-ups

A robust legal CRM provides automated client follow-ups via email, phone calls, and/or text messages. With CRM software, firms can send automatic reminders about upcoming appointments or other deadlines. Firms can also use automated messages to follow up on missed calls to keep the conversation going with potential leads.

Email drip campaigns

Email drip campaigns can build stronger relationships with your leads by creating valuable touchpoints. For prospective clients, email campaigns can communicate information about the services your firm provides or next steps in the client intake process.

Text message functionality

Text messages have almost a 98% open rate, so it’s an important resource for client communications. With a legal CRM, firms can share documents securely by text, as well as important reminders and next steps for clients. You can set up text message communication based on certain triggers or to send to multiple groups.

Billing and invoicing software

Billing and invoicing does not have to be complicated. With the right software, firms can create efficient systems that improve payment processing and compliance reporting without the usual headaches.

Get bills out quickly and easily

If your time tracking software is integrated with your billing software, creating and sending bills can be a quick and easy process every time.

Billing software makes it easy to:

• Set up automated batch billing or send invoices one at a time. Bills can be password-protected for high-profile clients.
• Pull billable hours from time tracking into client invoices with easy editing features for bills that need review.
• Send invoices at the same time each month to create consistency for your clients.
• Run advanced reporting to review records and ensure compliance.

As an added bonus, billing software makes it easy for firms to bill with flexible rate types such as split fee, flat fee, contingency, retainer, progress, or task-based billing.

Get paid faster

Within a robust billing and invoicing software, firms can use tools that will help them get paid faster, while also creating a streamlined payment experience for clients.

Look for software that accepts credit cards and online payments. Many clients prefer paying online because of the added convenience and are more likely to pay invoices in a timely manner. This helps with your firm’s liquidity and reduces the time it takes you to follow up on past-due collections.

Trust accounting

Trust accounts have very specific parameters for compliance and state regulations. Billing software helps build trust accounting that is efficient and in compliance for your peace of mind.

Trust accounting features can provide:

• Intuitive tracking and dashboards
• Three-way reconciliation reports for trust accounts
• Notices when an account falls below the minimum threshold
• Tracking for an unlimited number of trust accounts
• Positive Pay programs for your bank’s fraud prevention program

These features make it easier to manage trust accounts with confidence while providing increased transparency for clients.

Make your tech stack work for you with Tabs3 Software

The technology you use should make your law firm easier to run, not harder. For a well-balanced and complimentary tech stack, an integrated system of practice management, CRM, time tracking, and billing software will create a winning strategy for you and your clients.

Build the tech stack you need with Tabs3 Software. Tabs3’s suite of client and law firm-friendly tools offers fully integrated billing, accounting, and practice management tools to help law firms run more efficiently and profitably.

To see how Tabs3 can help your law firm work better, schedule a walkthrough demo today.

As an estate planning practice, you work with clients on emotional subjects: deciding what their legacy will be, mapping out their long-term care needs, and ensuring that their loved ones are provided for. Not only are you helping to plan for potentially difficult experiences for them and their loved ones, but the work itself also requires detailed and extensive documentation.

As an attorney, your goal is to help your clients solve their problems and prevent friction on often-contentious subjects, not to add further confusion with poor communication or less-than-perfect documentation. You can do this by supporting your clients with the right tools in place to streamline communications and accounting.

The best place to start? A practice management system built for you.

What is legal practice management software?

Legal practice management software is software designed specifically for law firms to help manage their practices more efficiently. Practice management software can range from comprehensive, all-in-one solutions to highly customized packages tailored to a law firm’s specific needs.

Practice management software performs a number of different functions, including:

• Contact management
• Task and workflow management
• Calendaring
• Time and expense tracking
• Reporting and analytics

Legal practice management software may also offer trust accounting, billing, payments, and client relationship management features. These features tie into the basic practice management functionalities, ensuring that information is accurate and easily accessible no matter how you’re putting it to use.

Three reasons estate planning law firms need practice management software

Estate planning law can be complex, but the right tools can make it simpler for both you and your clients. Put your practice management to use for your law firm in these three ways.

1.   Improve your client experience with better communication

Client communications are a critical component of estate planning law practices. It is at the heart of a client’s experience and can make the difference between a positive and negative experience with your firm. With this in mind, estate planning law firms need communication practices that simplify complex legal matters and bolster client confidence in your firm.

Legal client relationship management

A strong first impression is vital to converting leads into clients. One of the best ways to make a strong first impression? Being responsive with your communication.

A legal client relationship management (CRM) tool can make it easier to stay in touch with your clients from the moment they reach out with features like text and email communication, automated drip campaigns, and logic-based intake forms that help you qualify leads.

Email management

A solid email strategy helps build long-term relationships with clients. It allows you to educate them on topics related to their needs, build rapport, and remind them of upcoming deadlines and appointments.

That said, it can be difficult to stay on top of consistent communication for all clients without the tools to back it up.

Practice management software is a great way to simplify email management and keep everyone on the same page. For example, PracticeMaster’s built-in email management software syncs with Outlook and allows you to add client emails to their corresponding matter. With this feature, you don’t have to go digging through hundreds of email threads to find where your last conversation left off or forward email after email to colleagues.

2.   Automate tasks to save time

Estate planning requires meticulous organization and record-keeping to ensure your client’s needs and wishes are followed correctly. If one task slips through the cracks, it can create a host of problems for both you and your clients. However, practice management functionalities can make it easier to stay organized without losing billable hours to project management work.

Secure file-sharing and eSignature

Secure file-sharing and eSignature tools remove the need to print, mail, and return documents, saving you and your clients valuable time. Clients can also sign a contract or upload documents from their smartphones. This tool provides added convenience for your clients, increasing the likelihood that they will return documents in a timely manner.

Besides being user-friendly, file-sharing and eSignature tools also provide a high degree of security compared to paper documents. With bank-level security for sensitive client data, your clients will feel safe sharing their data, and you can rest assured that you’ll be protected from compliance risks.

Document automation

Organization is vital to an effective estate planning practice, but ongoing document tracking and assembly can be a tedious and time-consuming task. When you use robust practice management software like PracticeMaster, it’s easier for legal teams to automate document assembly, importing, and sharing. PracticeMaster offers features like:

• Document assembly: pull client information to fill forms and contracts with document assembly features, shaving hours off of traditionally tedious document assembly tasks.

• Import documents: import documents and data. System plug-ins enable integration across Word, Excel®, Windows, Adobe® Acrobat, and more.

• Built-in document management: track document changes, including which staff member made them. Firms can also link to documents and clients in their communications to keep everyone on the same page.

3.   Utilize accounting software that caters to your fee structure

Robust accounting features in practice management software can cater to different fee structures and simplify billing for all parties.

Estate planning law firms in particular utilize a variety of fee arrangements to provide convenient solutions for clients. Some clients may rely on ongoing service agreements and trust accounts to secure services, while others may benefit from flat fee arrangements for more straightforward needs, such as drafting a last will and testament.

Tabs3 Billing gives you virtually unlimited billing rate flexibility. Use attorneys’ standard rate, bill by timekeeper level (partner, associate, etc.), or create custom rates for any timekeeper for any client. You can also use contingency, split fee, flat fee, retainer, progress, and electronic task-based billing when needed.

In addition to the features you need to create flexible billing structures, practice management software can also help you send your bills and accept payments faster, providing your firm with the tools needed to improve your cash flow. With Tabs3 Billing, your firm can:

• Accept credit cards and online payments, and include a credit card remittance form on a bill for faster payment with Tabs3Pay
• Print statements and email them as PDFs, one at a time or in large batches
• Print draft statements and track which ones are still under internal review
• Easily edit and update transactions on any bill to ensure accuracy for your clients

Do your best work with Tabs3 Software’s full suite of legal practice management tools

Tabs3 Software is the ideal legal practice management software for estate planning law firms because it provides the tools you need to run an efficient and profitable practice. Tabs3’s powerful features can be customized to meet the precise needs of your firm, so you can spend more time focusing on the needs of your clients.

See for yourself why Tabs3 Software has been trusted by law firms for decades, and schedule a walkthrough demo with us today.

When you work in the field of family law, you often work with clients who are experiencing difficult moments in their lives, working through life-changing problems such as divorce and child custody disputes. From splitting shared property or child custody to determining whether alimony is needed or how much child support is owed, navigating these matters can be an emotionally draining time.

As an attorney, your goal is to help your clients solve their problems, not add to their challenges by being disorganized or slow to respond. Support your clients by keeping things running smoothly with the right tools.

The best place to start? Choosing the right practice management software.

What is legal practice management software?

Legal practice management software is a type of software solution designed to help law firms manage their practices efficiently and profitably. Practice management software can range from providing all-in-one solutions to customizable packages designed for a law firm’s unique needs.

Functions typically included in practice management software include:

• Task and workflow management
• Contact management
• Calendars
• Time and expense tracking
• Reporting and analytics

Legal practice management providers may also offer billing, payments, trust accounting, and client relationship management features either as part of the package or as add-ons.

5 reasons family law firms need practice management software

Because family law matters can be complex and time-sensitive, staying organized is a challenge. With the right practice management software to support law firm operations, though, this is entirely possible.

Consider the following five ways your family law firm can benefit from legal practice management software.

1.   Create repeatable workflows to provide a better client experience

Family law matters can move quickly. If you’re relying on inefficient workflows, it can damage the client experience. Missing a filing deadline, responding slowly to a client in crisis, and depending on inconvenient processes can all lead to subpar legal results, damage client trust, and impede your family law firm’s growth.

Legal practice management software can mitigate these problems by helping you create workflows that work better for your firm and your clients alike.

2.   Stay ahead of the curve with built-in calendars

Staying on track with deadlines and schedules is vital for your family law practice, but you need more than a pen-and-paper calendar or an industry-agnostic calendar. To maximize your time and energy, your practice will benefit from an integrated calendar management system that syncs with your email and allows you to create firm-wide calendars. Other valuable uses of practice management calendaring tools include:

• Setting up recurring reminders for regular meetings and color coding events by staff member, activity, or matter type
• Applying federal, state, county, or even jurisdiction-specific criteria to reminders and due dates
• Implementing customizable security settings that determine which employees see appointments for certain attorneys and/or clients

3.   Manage tasks more efficiently

While the calendar in your practice management software gives you a big-picture view of your schedule, a task management system helps you manage your day-to-day work. With task management features, you can establish repeatable workflows, delegate tasks, and communicate progress on matters. The beauty of task management tools is that they help you better collaborate with other attorneys and legal staff to ensure no one falls behind on important client work.

Your task management tools also help you provide a strong client experience. Task management enhances visibility as to matter progress, which means that your team can better answer client questions and provide updates. No more shuffling through notes or documents to figure out the status of a client’s case.

Automate tasks and save time

Speaking of workflows, there are few things more tedious than endlessly building and rebuilding tasks. Thankfully, this is a problem that practice management software can resolve for you. For example, within PracticeMaster, you can use the WorkFlows function to automatically start tasks and send reminders after an action is taken, including:

• Starting emails
• Adding appointments
• Assembling documents
• Displaying messages
• Running reports
• Launching other PracticeMaster features
• Launching other software programs

Not only does this save your team time, but automation leads to fewer errors and creates consistency in assignments.

4.   Support better billing processes

When it comes to supporting profitability, your practice management software plays a significant role. Not only does maximizing productivity impact your billable hours, but it also helps you bill more efficiently when you:

• Implement robust time and expense tracking processes
• Convert activity into fees for billing
• Track the status of clients’ bills with matter management dashboards
• Access in-depth financial reports
• And more

5.   Improve the client experience with better communication and greater convenience

When a client is dealing with a family law matter, they want their lives to become less complicated, not more complicated. With practice management software at your disposal, your law firm can do a great deal to simplify complex legal matters.

Email management

Communicating with clients is essential for family law firms, and a big part of communicating with clients is managing your emails effectively.

Good client email practices start with using an email management system that helps you stay organized. For example, PracticeMaster’s built-in email management software syncs with Outlook and allows you to add client emails to their corresponding matter. With this feature, you don’t have to go digging through hundreds of email threads to find where your last conversation left off.

Secure file-sharing and eSignature

Family law matters are time-sensitive. It’s vital to get signatures and send information as quickly as possible. Secure file-sharing and eSignature tools expedite the process by removing the need to print, mail, and return documents. Clients can sign a contract or scan and send documents from their smartphone, removing added hassle.

Besides being incredibly user-friendly, file-sharing and eSignature tools provide a higher degree of security than paper versions. With bank-level security for sensitive client data, your clients will feel safer sharing their data and you can rest assured that you’ll be protected from compliance risks.

Do your best work with Tabs3 Software’s full suite of legal practice management tools

There are lots of legal practice management software options out there, but Tabs3 stands out because it provides everything a law firm needs to run an efficient and profitable practice. Tabs3’s powerful features can be customized to meet the precise needs of your firm.

See for yourself why Tabs3 Software has been trusted by law firms for decades, and schedule a walkthrough demo with us today.

The early bird gets the worm, but what about the proactive attorney? A less stressful tax season awaits. If you haven’t already, now’s the time to get a head start on the upcoming tax season.  

Getting started 

Your law firms’ exact tax obligations and procedures can differ depending on:  

• Entity type (Partnership, Limited Liability Company, S-Corp, etc.)  
• Number of owners
• Financing
• Location

No matter what, though, one thing stays (mostly) the same: Form 1099. If you’re wondering whether your law firm should be sending or receiving 1099s, the answer is likely both. Law firms of all sizes and business structures are required to generate and report them.  

It sounds simple enough, but the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has hundreds of pages of regulations regarding 1099 forms. What’s more, the IRS recently reintroduced Form 1099-NEC, creating an additional layer of confusion about tax obligations for law firms.  

Why law firms should pay special attention to Form 1099 

Failing to properly report income and payments can lead to serious consequences for any business, but law firms, in particular, tend to receive extra scrutiny from tax authorities. 

Litigation settlements, judgments, and attorneys’ fees are of particular interest to the IRS, and precise record-keeping is a must. Since law firms manage large sums of client funds, they make for easy audit targets.  

In fact, certain tax laws specifically target law firms. Among these are laws that make attorneys responsible for a flood of incoming and outgoing 1099 forms.  

Keeping track of all the requisite information and forms can seem daunting while managing your caseload. However, accuracy is crucial to avoid a notice or, worse, a penalty from the IRS.  

Strategies for managing 1099s successfully 

Having a concrete plan for the season can alleviate the overwhelming feeling that accompanies seemingly constant changes to tax laws and forms. 

1. Track tax forms year-round.  

Most people, and even businesses, pay the most attention to tax forms when they arrive at the end of the year. However, this strategy doesn’t work well for law firms, thanks to the sheer volume of 1099 forms to be sent and reported.  

Tracking and providing forms at the time of payment, year-round, is the best way to prepare for tax time.  

2. Make sure you’re using the right form for the right application.  

It’s easy to get confused. To prepare for the season ahead, it helps to have a basic understanding of each tax form’s purpose.  

By no means is the information below comprehensive, but it may help you better understand each form’s purpose and applications.  

For either form, the due date is the next business day if any of these dates fall on Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday. 

3. Be proactive about recipient data. 

For a complete filing, you will need each 1099 recipient’s legal name and taxpayer identification (or social security) number. Make sure you have these details handy well before the filing deadlines. You’ll also need to confirm whether the recipient of the form is a U.S. taxpayer.   

Throughout the year, ensure any professional contracted by your firm fills out a Form W-9 to assist you in tracking and verifying this information.  

4. Call in the experts. 

In addition to using the reporting features built into your legal-specific accounting software, we recommend consulting with a tax professional about your firm’s specific obligations to report and send 1099 forms. 

This is the best way to double-check that all incoming and outgoing payments are recorded on the proper form and in the correct blank. 

Tabs3 Trust Accounting and Accounts Payable Software Make Tax Season Simple 

With Tabs3 Software, 1099s can be prepared easily online by either your firm or your client (the trust account holder), depending on the payor.   

When your firm is the payor, 1099 information can be combined with your accounts payable information to create a combined 1099 form or electronic file for even more convenience. Tabs3 Software has partnered with Nelco to provide Tabs3 E-file, a complete solution to filing your 1099-MISC, 1099-NEC, and 1096 forms. In just a few clicks, you can meet all federal, state, and recipient requirements. Nelco will even print and mail recipient copies for you.   

To learn more about how you can enjoy a more straightforward and less stressful tax season with Tabs3’s robust reporting and compliance features, schedule your free demo today.   

Disclaimer: You should always consult a professional accountant or CPA for any tax questions regarding your legal fees or law services at the end of each tax year.  

While computer hardware started the digital age and catapulted our technology to where we stand now, software is what has transformed our daily lives, and what will lead to exponential growth moving forward.  

But what is software, exactly? How did it begin? How did we end up here today, and where might we go tomorrow?  

The answer is surprisingly complicated. Not because the history is unclear, but because the inherent properties of software have made it one of the most collaborative and influential global inventions of the modern era. With such an abundance of incredible breakthroughs, innovative scientists, and memorable moments, it’s impossible to identify every critical step along the way.  

And it’s just getting started. 

What is desktop software? 

First, let’s take a step back and define what exactly desktop software is (and even then, the answer has changed over time).   

Today, we understand software as a set of instructions given to a computer to help it accomplish a set of goals. Software in general is a collective term for applications, programs, and scripts that run on a computer or any other programmable device.   

Desktop software can also be referred to as application software, and it’s typically installed over the personal or work computer. It’s a version of a service or web application located on your device, which allows that computer to interact with the application without directly connecting to the app’s website.   

As a whole, desktop software today provides useful cross-platform solutions that don’t require intensive web services and don’t impact your computer’s core architecture. Desktop software is designed to be user-friendly, stable, responsible, and customizable to fit the user’s preferred operating system.  

In other words, it’s a great option that gives you the best of both worlds when efficiently accessing information and services from your computer.  

The early days of software 

The first desktop software is difficult to trace, and even more difficult to trace outside of the origin of the computer. This is because as long as computers have existed, we’ve been telling them what to do. Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, the development of the computer and its software was an incremental process, with hundreds of individuals contributing to its development over time.  

While the concept of the computer dates all the way back to 1822, it took a while for scientists and mathematicians to construct a useful model.  

• 1822: English mathematician Charles Babbage conceives of a calculating machine run on steam power. 
• 1890: Herman Hollerith develops a punch card system to use during the American census (his company would eventually become IBM). 
• 1936: Konrad Zuse creates the first programmable computer. 
• 1946: John Mauchly creates the ENIAC, a programmable computer, during World War II. The ENIAC was the first computer to house multiple sets of instructors. It was programmed mostly by women who had been previously working as human computers.  
• 1948: The Manchester Baby at the University of Manchester is the first stored-program computer to execute a piece of software, created by Tom Kilburn. 
• 1950: Kathleen Booth develops the first assembly language to make it easier to program the computers she worked on.

The 1940s can claim the first software, even if the idea of “desktop software” didn’t come around until decades later. The term “software” itself became popular in the late 1950s. Before that time, computers weren’t available commercially, and scientists mostly created their own programs (aka software).   

Everything changed in the 1960s, when the Programma 101 became the first desktop computer sold to the average consumer. The Programma 101 offered the general public a desktop computer that anyone could use. The 65-pound machine was the size of a typewriter and had 37 keys and a built-in printer.  

Desktop software through the years 

The 1960s 

At the advent of the personal computer, most software could only be purchased alongside the computer itself as a bundled purchase, directly through the manufacturer. When a customer bought a “minicomputer” (which could still clock in at upwards of 50 pounds), the computer did not come with pre-installed software. Any software had to be installed by computer engineers.  

The 1970s 

Microcomputers ushered in the age of the personal computer. The first generation of personal computers started with the Apple II, Commodore PET, and TRS-80, which were followed much later by IBM’s PC desktop system.  

IBM began selling software in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, which was the first time commercial software was available to the average computer. This means that users could add different types of programs to any computer.  

The first version of Tabs3 Billing Software was installed at a law firm in Lincoln, NE in 1979. 

The 1980s 

The 1980s were a big decade for computers, particularly personal computers. First, the Osbourne 1, the first portable computer, was released in 1981. While it was the predecessor to the modern laptop, it still weighed more than 24 pounds.   

Also in 1981, IBM released its first personal computer, which included one of the earliest operating systems, the Microsoft MS-DOS. IBM’s brand recognition launched personal computers into mass-market use. The IBM PC led to the creation of a vast ecosystem of software for use with the platform.  

Then in 1983, a company called Microsoft Corporation announced a Graphical User Interface (GUI) for its operating system. The product was first called Interface Manager, and Bill Gates would later change the name to Windows.   

Microsoft 1.0 was introduced in 1985. 

The 1990s 

In 1991, the Linux operating system created the first major competitor for Microsoft (and it’s still one of the most common operating systems in Android phones and supercomputers today).   

Prior to the 1990s, most software was distributed via floppy disks. With the rise of CD-ROMs, users could download programs faster and more efficiently.    

Web browser software also emerged in the 1990s, bringing the Internet (and video games) to the masses. 

The 2000s 

Personal data assistants (PDAs) and smartphones flourished in the early 2000s, making it possible for consumers to take computers wherever they went. Operating systems such as Apple iOS and Google Android led to programs known as “apps” becoming commonplace.  

Desktop software today 

After evolving from manual programming to floppy disks to CD-ROMs, users can now download software directly from the internet, cutting out middlemen manufacturers and cutting down costs.   

Software has also become increasingly complex, able to accommodate a variety of functions that would have been unimaginable even 30 years ago.    

Take practice management software, for example. At first, practice management software was much more single-purpose: a program to track time and billing. Today, desktop practice management software encompasses a whole suite of services that dramatically reduce the time required to execute tasks. Many products are available on the cloud, but desktop options meet critical needs for law firms, providing them with deep functionality, security, and flexibility.   

Just like the ENIAC helped replace human computers to solve complex mathematical equations, modern practice management software is a fully integrated ecosystem capable of replacing time-consuming labor with the speed of a machine. And just like the ENIAC in 1948, it’s not replacing people. It’s allowing people to work smarter, freeing up time to focus on the things that truly matter. 

The future of desktop software 

Computers and software are still evolving. Artificial intelligence is changing the face of technology at exponential rates, and advanced programs are capable of more and more every day. Desktop software is more important than ever, and its programs are becoming increasingly complex.   

When it comes to software, the only limit is your imagination. With near-limitless possibilities as one of the world’s most innovative industries, it’s only going to get better from here.   

Ready to get started with Tabs3 Software, the desktop solution that will grow with your firm? Get in touch or schedule a walkthrough demo.