| A dispute between neighbors (both
members of a union) over leaves falling
from one party's tree into the other's backyard
resulted in each talking to different lawyers
at the union-appointed firm. Both lawyers
accepted the matter for action. If the firm
had a good billing system at work and kept
up-to-the-minute entries on its computer
system, this embarrassing situation could
have been avoided. |
| New attorneys try their best to do
a good job. But they may not always be aware
of a case's potential value and are often
not given instructions about how much time
to devote to pending matters. Furthermore,
senior attorneys are constantly busy talking
with clients, preparing for trial and trying
important cases. As a result, they may have
little time for face-to-face meetings to
discuss pending cases. Detailed printouts
of time records of "works in process"
can alert them to the need to reign in
associates spending too much time on less
important matters. A monthly listing of
activity in every case showing work done
during the previous month as well as over
the life of the case, and reports of what
each lawyer and paralegal has been working
on, provide important information at a
glance.
|
| Sometimes very important cases languish
in the office. Senior partners know there
is no excuse for not preparing a case properly
during the time limits allowed in the jurisdiction.
Monthly reports of case activity will indicate
when a case is being ignored. |
|
If you have a broad-based personal injury
practice, detailed time records might reveal
that slip-and-fall cases are netting you
$50 an hour, but auto-collision cases are
netting you $500 per hour. Clearly, if you
had such hard facts, you might decide to
refer the slip-and-fall cases to others
and focus on the collision cases. |
| Some clients--especially
large corporate or business clients--may
demand detailed invoices. They will want
information about the date of the service,
the lawyer involved, the nature and extent
of the service, and the time it took. These
clients may also ask for more involved
descriptions of work done; estimates of
time to accomplish given tasks; and work
done by type of service (for example,
preparation of written discovery documents,
on-line legal research time, and time
in court on various types of motions.)
This type of information is invaluable
to business clients who, in our competitive
economy, try to reduce all expenses--including
the fees of outside counsel.
|
| Clients always wonder what lawyers
are doing for their cases. Attorneys have
the best intentions and are committed to
being good communicators—periodically
they call clients or send status reports.
However, because trying cases, staying up
to date on the law, and dealing with almost-daily
emergencies consume attorneys' attention,
they seldom communicate with clients as
often as the clients would like. For
informational purposes, why not keep detailed
time records and send clients monthly
"statements," listing the dates
activities were performed? This form of
contact takes very little time and keeps
clients fully aware of work progress.
If a law firm does not use case-management
software, billing records can serve as
a reminder to review the status of cases
and track critical dates. In fact, a good
time-and-billing program can act like
a case-management program. If everyone
working on a case makes entries into the
billing program, when a client calls for
a status report the attorney can retrieve
up-to-date information on the computer
and answer any questions immediately.
Staff members, not just attorneys, should
keep time records of all client contact.
If a client called twice in the morning
while the lawyer was in court but was
out when the lawyer returned the call,
at the end of the day, a form letter can
be generated to document when the calls
were received and returned. This will
assure clients their phone calls are not
being ignored.
|
| Fewer cases go to trial these days,
and more of the practice of law seems to
revolve around preparing for settlement.
Although having good trial skills is still
essential, knowing relevant business and
financial data has become increasingly important.
Tracking the number of cases resolved during
the year, what types of cases the firm handles
best (were verdicts more favorable for medical
negligence or automobile collision cases?),
"effective hourly rates" on cases
where attorneys have collected a settlement
or judgment, and income produced by each
partner and associate can be valuable. Requiring
office staff to keep time records would
help monitor these matters much like a
case-management program would. Time records
could also help calculate the overall
cost of handling various types of matters,
not just the cost of hours billed by attorneys.
Lawyers need to know this as they are
also professionals running a business
|
