Find out what trends legal tech experts see catching on next with small firm lawyers — and why!
Back in December, our friends at Attorney at Work sourced an expert roundup of tips on small firm technology trends to help small firm practitioners identify what automation efforts they want to implement next.
A BETTER USER EXPERIENCE WINS IN 2020.
One trend I’ve started to see that I believe will continue into 2020 is the focus of legal technology companies on customer experience. As more and more jurisdictions pass ethics rules related to technological competency, more practitioners are seeking to implement technology in their practices and to do it in an effective and safe manner. Hopefully this is the year every lawyer will feel more comfortable adopting the legal tech they need for a sustainable practice.
Software is evolving toward simple user interfaces and increasingly user-friendly features and setup. Most practitioners don’t want to purchase a product as well as hire an IT company or consultant to set it up and make it work. They want out-of-the-box solutions that they can use immediately. I’ve seen too many instances where firms invest in a product only for it to fail in implementation due to unsophisticated users and the bandwidth needed to learn a new product as well as workflow.
Keeping with the theme of user experience, I think we are also going to see products marketed to “increase productivity” and “decrease distractions.” Slack and other communication tools have become popular not only in startup companies but also in law firms, as a way to decrease email and improve communication. Email poses a huge problem for all professionals. One study, conducted by Adobe, found that the average worker spends approximate 5.6 hours per day checking email (both business and personal). That’s where products such as Zero make their mark. This iPhone app uses AI to automatically capture, analyze and prepare reports on time spent on client-related work, and applies AI to sort and file emails. Zero helps recover lost billable time, saves hours spent processing emails, and reduces errors in email filing. These tools among others promise to help lawyers work smarter and faster.
Find more on increasing productivity here.
And clients will continue to appreciate enhanced user experience throughout representation just as much as lawyers do as consumers of legal tech. Find more on:
- Customer Experience: How Lawyers Can Transform Client Relationships [Webinar]
- Tools Lawyers Need to Win at Client Intake Experience
- Tips to Improve Client Intake and Experience
- Communication Guidelines That Create Better, Happier Clients [Webinar]
You can find more on other legal tech trends for small firms to watch in the full post on AttorneyatWork.com.
- Online Scheduling Gains Traction with Chatbots Rising (Reid Trautz)
- Automate or Delegate Non-Billable Work (Jim Calloway)
- The Small Firm Cybersecurity Sphere (Sharon Nelson and John Simek)
- The Rise of Cloud-Based Practice Management Tools (Nerino Petro)
- and more!
