{"id":5915,"date":"2006-11-01T14:31:46","date_gmt":"2006-11-01T20:31:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.textrial.com\/small-office-management-legal-professional\/"},"modified":"2006-11-01T14:31:46","modified_gmt":"2006-11-01T20:31:46","slug":"small-office-management-legal-professional","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.textrial.com\/es\/small-office-management-legal-professional\/","title":{"rendered":"Small Office Management for the Legal Professional"},"content":{"rendered":"

INTRODUCTION<\/strong><\/p>\n

This paper offers a basic discussion of small firm organization and management.\u00a0 I hope I can pass on a few tips to keep others from making the same mistakes I\u2019ve made (not that there have been many).<\/p>\n

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  1. INTRA-OFFICE MANAGEMENT<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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    1. General Office Management<\/u><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Establish how your office is going to be run.\u00a0 This sounds simple enough, but you must have a plan for managing case files, dealing with clients, accounting and time management, managing business functions, and handling employees.\u00a0 Write these procedures down and have them in place before you start your law practice.<\/p>\n

      Have a good office manager to run your office.\u00a0 Do not leave the day to day management of the office to the partners \u2013 attorneys are busy people, and they want to spend their time practicing law, not ordering more light bulbs.\u00a0 They don\u2019t want to mess with the little details, so have someone in charge of this.\u00a0 Another added advantage of having an office manager is he or she can be the go-between and the buffer between the staff and the partners – someone with authority to whom the staff can vent without bringing he partners into the mire.\u00a0 It\u2019s also much more cost effective to have an office manager – you\u00a0 don\u2019t want the $300\/hour partner worrying about the broken ice machine.<\/p>\n

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      1. Law Office Organizational Structure<\/u><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        If you are considering a solo practice, you are probably a free spirit and don\u2019t want to submit to the will of others or don\u2019t have the patience for the inefficiency or bureaucracy of a big firm or government practice.\u00a0 Typically, people like you \u2013 creative types – are not very organized.<\/p>\n

        But in order to get through law school and pass the bar exam, you\u2019ve already mastered some organizational plan or strategy.\u00a0 Although you might not believe it, the bar exam did prepare you for the practice of law.\u00a0 So you know how to organize, now you just have to apply it to your business.<\/p>\n

        Here\u2019s the bad news: unless you owned a small business before, you have never organized anything like your \u201cpractice.\u201d\u00a0 You are going to be amazed at how hard it is and how much you don\u2019t know, even though you are licensed to practice law.<\/p>\n

        The most important skill you learned in law school is how to find information.\u00a0 You are going to get to put that skill to use in more ways than you could have imagined.\u00a0 You need to research, plan, and implement a practice management strategy that will work for you and your employees.\u00a0 This organizational plan will take years to fine tune, and will constantly evolve.\u00a0 Understanding this from the beginning is the first step to success.\u00a0 So the next time you are alone looking in a mirror say out loud \u201cI understand that planning and implementing a practice management strategy is a lifetime commitment.\u00a0 It is like getting married or having a child.\u00a0 I understand that and I am committed to work on it like it is a marriage or a child for which I am responsible.\u201d\u00a0 Maybe if you say it out loud you will believe it \u2013 and do it.<\/p>\n

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        1. If you are not organized, you are sure to commit malpractice (or at least your clients will think you did)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          I should not have to tell you, but I will.\u00a0 The bottom line is this.\u00a0 If you don\u2019t keep an organized calendar and you don\u2019t calendar deadlines, eventually you will probably commit malpractice.<\/p>\n

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          1. Clients expect lawyers to be professional and business-like.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            If you are organized, and responsive, and responsible, you will appear to be professional.\u00a0 Theoretically, as a lawyer, you are a professional.\u00a0 However, if you do not act like a professional, how can you be a professional?\u00a0 Always act in a professional manner, in all aspects of your life.\u00a0 You should dress like a professional, talk like a professional, and always treat everyone in a respectful manner.<\/p>\n

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            1. Time is Money<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              It is an old cliche, but very true, especially in the legal business.\u00a0 You must really apply this law of life to your business.\u00a0 You must figure out what your time is worth then figure out what each and every activity you are doing is really worth.\u00a0 Is it worth it to be setting up your own filing system?\u00a0 Maybe yes, since a business consultant might charge $150\/hour.\u00a0 Is it worth it to actually do the filing?\u00a0 Probably not, when you can pay a college student $8\/hour to do the filing for you.<\/p>\n

              This cliche is also true when managing your billable hour.\u00a0 If you are organized, it will be easy to make the transition from one client to another without losing billable time making the transition.\u00a0 It is easy to bill 8 hours in a day when you work all day on the same brief for the same client.\u00a0 It is hard to bill 6 hours in a day when you work for 8 different clients, respond to phone calls, review and respond to emails, review mail, and give general advice.<\/p>\n

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              1. Why reinvent the wheel?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                When organizing your practice, make sure you consider how you are going to save those documents that are created over and over again.\u00a0 It could be as simple as creating a form file, it could mean creating subdirectories for each client wiht the type of documents, or it could mean investing in some law practice management software that databases your documents when you create them.<\/p>\n

                A commonly used integrated system with a document management component is pclaw.\u00a0 PC law allows you to index your document by document type and include a description, mater, date created.\u00a0 There are other software programs out there too, including Perfect Law and Abacus Law.\u00a0 The good thing about going with a program usedby a lot of people is that it is likely you will find help from an unlikely source, other users.<\/p>\n

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                1. Maximize your profit margin<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                  Working smart, understanding your worth, and using document management software will maximize your profit margin.\u00a0 Obviously you have to do what you can to cover your expenses, but don\u2019t forget to always be looking forward.\u00a0 As you grow, are you really going to have time to \u201cwork\u201d your cases as you know you should if you are managing your office and filing your pleadings in your cabinet?\u00a0 Smart business people maximize their profit margin as early as possible.\u00a0 Be smart.\u00a0 Spend money when it will make your business more efficient, which will allow you to maximize your ultimate profits.<\/p>\n

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                  1. There is life outside the office<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                    Remember a lawyer is what you are not who you are.\u00a0 You will be a better lawyer if you are a happy lawyer.\u00a0 Don\u2019t you like your kids or spouse or friends?\u00a0 Take time for yourself, if you don\u2019t you will not be practicing law for very long.<\/p>\n

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                    1. Law Office Management Principles<\/u><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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                      1. Work on your practice, not for your practice<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                        Working on your practice, not for your practice is the tag line for the principles laid out above.\u00a0 Work smart – bill time and market your practice.\u00a0 Only you can do those things.\u00a0 For the things that a $10\/hour file clerk can do, hire a part-time file clerk to do it.<\/p>\n

                        Download and read the entire publication here.<\/a><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                        INTRODUCTION This paper offers a basic discussion of small firm organization and management.\u00a0 I hope I can pass on a few tips to keep others from making the same mistakes I\u2019ve made (not that there have been many). INTRA-OFFICE MANAGEMENT General Office Management Establish how your office is going to be run.\u00a0 This sounds simple
                        LEER M\u00c1S<\/a><\/p>\n

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