Legal case management software should streamline, secure, and simplify your firm’s operations. Looking at these traits individually, a good legal software solution should:
- Streamline any repetitive workflow tasks to decrease workload and ensure accuracy.
- Secure your most sensitive data and your clients’ data from potential breaches.
- Simplify the core administrative functions of your firm, so you can focus on practicing law.
As an attorney, your case management system is integral to your success. And case management software can relieve a massive amount of stress and save an equally massive amount of time — if it’s got the right features. The American Bar Association (ABA) summarized it best with this quote:
“By reducing the burden of administrative tasks, integrated case management software allows practitioners to reconnect with the core reasons they chose this career path, fostering a renewed enthusiasm and dedication to their work.”
There are several reasons to use this software — improving client communications, upping your cybersecurity, organizing your documents — but in each case, the software should fit your unique needs as a practice. Knowing how to vet case management software makes it easy to know whether software will actually improve your operations, or just add noise to it.
Looking for tips on how to evaluate this software? You’ve come to the right place! Below, we’ll discuss the most important functions of cloud-based legal case management software and how they help keep track of legal cases. As you’ll soon see, some software is more helpful than others, and not every software feature contributes something meaningful.
But what exactly is the best way to track a legal case using software? And how will we know when we’ve found it? Ultimately, it all comes back to answering the same core question:
Does this help me streamline, secure, or simplify my practice?
With all that said, let’s start evaluating!
The Top 3 Features of Legal Case Management Software
While every firm has different goals and functions, case management systems for law firms all share certain core workflows that software can support. The three most critical ones include:
Feature #1: Legal Billing and Time Tracking
One unique trait of the practice of law is the way you get paid for your time. Billable hours demand clear, accurate tracking so clients feel confident they are being billed fairly. In the past, legal professionals had to create piecemeal solutions to address this unique problem; today, legal billing software can take this massive load off your shoulders.
Legal billing software can improve your firm’s operations by:
- …streamlining the time tracking process, allowing you to log hours from anywhere and collect them all into the same software you’ll use to create the client’s invoice.
- …securing sensitive client information (and your time tracking data) in a place only you and your firm can access.
- …simplify the billing process by consolidating time tracking, invoice generation, and automating payment collection — including client reminders for unpaid invoices!
Feature #2: Calendaring and Scheduling
While every attorney knows the value of keeping up their calendar, tracking the myriad of client meetings, court dates, and important deadlines can easily become overwhelming. We probably don’t need to explain the importance of scheduling, but software solutions can make that upkeep process a heck of a lot easier — especially if the admin functions are part of comprehensive, cloud-based legal software that is compatible with mobile devices.
When part of a cloud-based software, legal calendaring features will:
- …streamline the process of recording calendar entries and populating your calendar, because all your devices will pull from the same source of truth.
- …secure sensitive event information by protecting all your appointments and deadlines within encrypted, access-controlled systems your firm manages.
- …simplify your daily workload by linking calendar events directly to the right matters, so you can view upcoming deadlines in the same place you manage the case.
Feature #3: Task Management and Workflow Automation
If only cases could move themselves forward. Unfortunately, every matter you handle involves a steady flow of filings, deadlines, client conversations, and internal reviews — all needing attention at the right time. Without a strong system, essential steps can easily get delayed or missed altogether.
Legal task management software features can improve your firm’s operations by:
- …streamlining the way tasks are created, assigned, and tracked across matters, so every team member knows what needs to be done and when.
- …securing your legal workflow solutions in a centralized system where responsibilities are clear, deadlines are visible, and progress is easy to monitor.
- …simplifying how you manage even the busiest caseloads by automating task lists tied to each matter, helping your team stay organized without constant oversight.
These three ingredients — legal billing, admin organization, and cloud-based storage — are what the best legal case management application will include, among many other features that can smooth out your operations and increase cash flow.
When your firm runs through a single, secure system, it becomes much easier to keep matters organized, meet deadlines, and protect client information. As the ABA explains, “integrated case management software manages all of the case data in a single location that is designed to meet stringent security standards, ensuring that sensitive client information is protected.”
What Is the Best Law Firm Case Management Software?
For small to midsize firms, there’s no question that PracticePanther is a great choice, if not the best choice. PracticePanther brings together all the core functions of running your firm into a single, safe, easy-to-access place that you can use from a desktop, smartphone, and every device. It’s also easy to learn — especially because you’ll have our knowledgeable team helping you whenever you need it. And we provide multiple pricing tiers to fit your budget, all of which still carry the core functions you need.
There’s no need to settle for free case management software. For lawyers, quality software like PracticePanther is worth the cost, not just because it makes your life easier but because it’ll also save you money in the long run. Your firm will run smoother, faster, and more effectively, freeing you up to do what you do best: practice law.
Lawyers should be lawyering — let PracticePanther take care of the rest. Try our software for free, or book a free demo by clicking the button below. Get ready to run your practice with less stress and much more confidence!
