Politics
Top 7 Reasons Of Using A Cloud-Based Legal Software – ReadWrite
Published
2 years agoon
By
Drew Simpson
It’s hard to predict where the industry is going, but the cloud will certainly play a key role in its evolution. And though it’s been around for more than a decade, as we enter the third quarter this year — thousands of firms will take the first step toward being fully reliant on cloud computing to manage their firms and better productivity, store their data, and serve their clients.
Shedding Light on The Future of Law with Cloud Computing
The innovation of cloud computing has been one of the transformative technologies in the past years. It has revolutionized every industry in each of the sectors, including businesses and service professionals.
As an attorney, you don’t have to be a cloud computing expert. However, you need to possess a basic understanding of what it is and why it matters. This will allow you to avail guaranteed ROI from your investment and assist you in reducing workloads.
Cloud computing is the availability of computer system resources and features without direct active management by the user.
For lawyers, one of the greatest benefits of cloud computing-based software includes:
- Cost-Effective – Cloud computing requires less overhead, this makes it a much more cost-effective option for law firms that want to enjoy a greater efficiency level at a minimum cost. For even smaller law firms it becomes a tool to be even more productive. There’s no need for expensive hardware, software, or on-site servers. Everything is managed online and paid for through a simple, predictable monthly fee or annual fee.
- Speed up your workflow – Nothing is more frustrating and time-consuming than slow page loading speeds, lagging applications, frozen screens, and glitchy interfaces. Cloud computing provides allows law firms to navigate millions of data in a matter of just a few clicks.
- Enhanced accuracy – At the end of the day, your firm needs a digital platform that you can trust. Cloud computing platforms have recovery systems and data backup solutions that make business continuity less expensive, less risky, and time-consuming. The result is far greater peace of mind.
There are several software companies that created legal software for managing automating tasks for lawyers and law firms — there are many — I only list a few.
- CaseFox
- Clio
- Mycase
- Timesolv
Running a law firm is not a hassle-free task, but today technology is assisting businesses to grow and stay competitive in a cost-effective way.
Even today there are still many law firms that work without Legal practice management software. The lawyer and their firm are busy running their very stressful jobs.
A lawyer doesn’t want to stress trying to learn new technology too. Law practice management software is made so it can be used by tech-savvy lawyers — with easy access to the user interface and navigation process.
A Law Practice Can Use Management Software to Stay Well Ordered
A report has quoted that a lawyer has spent 23% of their time in filling and arranging paperwork. Lawyers juggle between court hearing dates and constant fear of missing something in the trial phase and other conflicting information.
Management Software Can Help
It is no longer practical to keep track of everything manually with law practice.
- Document management – Manually maintaining documents was always a long process and tiring with this there was always a risk of information getting misplaced with the document management feature. Maintaining all the documents related to all the cases in a single place, with easy sorting just accessible at typing keywords related to a specific case, create reports, and keep paperwork at a minimum and keep track of every document and never lose any information.
- Calendar management – A lawyer has to keep track of many dates with court hearings, certain deadlines, events just to name a few, with calendar management don’t worry about missing a single date. Conflict check features so that you never have to worry about a date conflicting with each other again. You organize your dates and events with the calendar management feature.
- Staff management – With business expanding and increasing, growth in law practices are no exception with different branches and offices there will be an increase in staff and duties assigned. This feature keeps track of your staff and duties, about who is working on which case, with help of practice management software have an easy flow of information and easily share details and documents with your staff.
- Manage contacts – When you have many clients, it’s hard to keep track and even more difficult to retrieve information related to them. In a practice management software, client information can be synchronized without a need to re-enter details software will look up when a certain contact is associated with another matter.
2. Financial Control
When a lawyer works on a particular case their is always a fatigue and the case brings with its procedures and hearings. When you use law practice management software you can increase your billable time, track your manual time, and drastically reduce your non-billable time. Use your time and financial resources in priority work, gain the financial control in your hand and keep your productivity at a maximum.
3. Increased Efficiency and Productivity
An attorney works hard to successfully arrange all the needs of a particular case, calling several authorities, arranging documents, planning, execution, etc.
It’s hard to keep track of where a lawyer switched from billable time to non-billable time. Law practice management software can make a huge decrease in the number of any firm’s non-billable hours by creating an organization’s efficiency through proper document management, easy access to files, reducing time spent on administrative tasks, and providing remote access.
You can record more billing time and increase productivity by keeping track of billable and non-billable time spent. The software has an effective time tracking system where you can see where you have spent the most time.
4. Menu Driven Interface
Lawyers get stressed with the word “change.” What’s more stressful when it comes to the change in “technology.”
Developers of law practice management software understand that law practitioners don’t have much time to learn the working of the software. This software is designed in a way where it can be easy to use, with an easy user interface.
Never worry about the words, change and technology — but instead use management software to be more efficient, organized, and less stressful.
5. Time Tracking and Automated Time Entry
While you work, it’s hard to keep track of the amount you spent on non-billable time like client phone calls, noting down information, filing of reports, switching applications, etc.
Many law practice management software gives you the ability to capture time as you’re working. Some even capture time spent within their application and other programs lawyers use throughout the day.
With practice management software, every second of billable time can be captured through time tracking timers with easy time tracking to know where you have spent your time when you switched apps, with this one can keep track of non-billable time and increase productivity.
6. Keeping Up With the Trend of Working Remotely
We have seen a drastic increase in the trend of working remotely. More and more people want to work from home, but the problem arises with the amount of paperwork and information one has to access at home.
Not all information and details can be accessed when you are working remotely and handling paperwork manually, but with law practice management software it becomes easy for every person working remotely.
With the software, you can access any piece of information from anywhere by just logging in the cloud on any device with a stable internet connection and update, access and retrieve information.
7. Controlled Data Protection
As more and more businesses are climbing digital walls cybersecurity, data loss and data breach are becoming one of the major concerns of businesses.
These days Law Firms are responsible to protect a wide range of client’s private information including medical, personal, professional, and attorney-client privilege information. A lawyer has to keep all the data protected.
A law practice management software can assist in securing that information by providing security features and backup features, with this feature never lose information and protect your clients from data loss and keep all your information at a place.
Automation for software management systems makes all of your processes easier and improves client relations. Additionally, sharing information about calendar notices through client portals improves your productivity.
Conclusion
While some are struggling with stress, fatigue, and burnout of the staff a practice management software will minimize your’s and your staff fatigue.
Specifically, practice management software optimizes practice management, workflow, financials, and billing.
The gains in the ability to keep track of all of your work when you transition from a paper-based environment to an effective law practice management solution cannot be overemphasized.
Image Credit: vitaly vlasov; pexels; thank you!
Simran Sinha
As a Content Marketer at CaseFox, Simran Sinha loves to write tech-related news, articles, specifically IoT and legal technology.
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Politics
Fintech Kennek raises $12.5M seed round to digitize lending
Published
2 months agoon
10/11/2023By
Drew Simpson
London-based fintech startup Kennek has raised $12.5 million in seed funding to expand its lending operating system.
According to an Oct. 10 tech.eu report, the round was led by HV Capital and included participation from Dutch Founders Fund, AlbionVC, FFVC, Plug & Play Ventures, and Syndicate One. Kennek offers software-as-a-service tools to help non-bank lenders streamline their operations using open banking, open finance, and payments.
The platform aims to automate time-consuming manual tasks and consolidate fragmented data to simplify lending. Xavier De Pauw, founder of Kennek said:
“Until kennek, lenders had to devote countless hours to menial operational tasks and deal with jumbled and hard-coded data – which makes every other part of lending a headache. As former lenders ourselves, we lived and breathed these frustrations, and built kennek to make them a thing of the past.”
The company said the latest funding round was oversubscribed and closed quickly despite the challenging fundraising environment. The new capital will be used to expand Kennek’s engineering team and strengthen its market position in the UK while exploring expansion into other European markets. Barbod Namini, Partner at lead investor HV Capital, commented on the investment:
“Kennek has developed an ambitious and genuinely unique proposition which we think can be the foundation of the entire alternative lending space. […] It is a complicated market and a solution that brings together all information and stakeholders onto a single platform is highly compelling for both lenders & the ecosystem as a whole.”
The fintech lending space has grown rapidly in recent years, but many lenders still rely on legacy systems and manual processes that limit efficiency and scalability. Kennek aims to leverage open banking and data integration to provide lenders with a more streamlined, automated lending experience.
The seed funding will allow the London-based startup to continue developing its platform and expanding its team to meet demand from non-bank lenders looking to digitize operations. Kennek’s focus on the UK and Europe also comes amid rising adoption of open banking and open finance in the regions.
Featured Image Credit: Photo from Kennek.io; Thank you!
Radek Zielinski
Radek Zielinski is an experienced technology and financial journalist with a passion for cybersecurity and futurology.
Politics
Fortune 500’s race for generative AI breakthroughs
Published
2 months agoon
10/11/2023By
Drew Simpson
As excitement around generative AI grows, Fortune 500 companies, including Goldman Sachs, are carefully examining the possible applications of this technology. A recent survey of U.S. executives indicated that 60% believe generative AI will substantially impact their businesses in the long term. However, they anticipate a one to two-year timeframe before implementing their initial solutions. This optimism stems from the potential of generative AI to revolutionize various aspects of businesses, from enhancing customer experiences to optimizing internal processes. In the short term, companies will likely focus on pilot projects and experimentation, gradually integrating generative AI into their operations as they witness its positive influence on efficiency and profitability.
Goldman Sachs’ Cautious Approach to Implementing Generative AI
In a recent interview, Goldman Sachs CIO Marco Argenti revealed that the firm has not yet implemented any generative AI use cases. Instead, the company focuses on experimentation and setting high standards before adopting the technology. Argenti recognized the desire for outcomes in areas like developer and operational efficiency but emphasized ensuring precision before putting experimental AI use cases into production.
According to Argenti, striking the right balance between driving innovation and maintaining accuracy is crucial for successfully integrating generative AI within the firm. Goldman Sachs intends to continue exploring this emerging technology’s potential benefits and applications while diligently assessing risks to ensure it meets the company’s stringent quality standards.
One possible application for Goldman Sachs is in software development, where the company has observed a 20-40% productivity increase during its trials. The goal is for 1,000 developers to utilize generative AI tools by year’s end. However, Argenti emphasized that a well-defined expectation of return on investment is necessary before fully integrating generative AI into production.
To achieve this, the company plans to implement a systematic and strategic approach to adopting generative AI, ensuring that it complements and enhances the skills of its developers. Additionally, Goldman Sachs intends to evaluate the long-term impact of generative AI on their software development processes and the overall quality of the applications being developed.
Goldman Sachs’ approach to AI implementation goes beyond merely executing models. The firm has created a platform encompassing technical, legal, and compliance assessments to filter out improper content and keep track of all interactions. This comprehensive system ensures seamless integration of artificial intelligence in operations while adhering to regulatory standards and maintaining client confidentiality. Moreover, the platform continuously improves and adapts its algorithms, allowing Goldman Sachs to stay at the forefront of technology and offer its clients the most efficient and secure services.
Featured Image Credit: Photo by Google DeepMind; Pexels; Thank you!
Deanna Ritchie
Managing Editor at ReadWrite
Deanna is the Managing Editor at ReadWrite. Previously she worked as the Editor in Chief for Startup Grind and has over 20+ years of experience in content management and content development.
Politics
UK seizes web3 opportunity simplifying crypto regulations
Published
2 months agoon
10/10/2023By
Drew Simpson
As Web3 companies increasingly consider leaving the United States due to regulatory ambiguity, the United Kingdom must simplify its cryptocurrency regulations to attract these businesses. The conservative think tank Policy Exchange recently released a report detailing ten suggestions for improving Web3 regulation in the country. Among the recommendations are reducing liability for token holders in decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and encouraging the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to adopt alternative Know Your Customer (KYC) methodologies, such as digital identities and blockchain analytics tools. These suggestions aim to position the UK as a hub for Web3 innovation and attract blockchain-based businesses looking for a more conducive regulatory environment.
Streamlining Cryptocurrency Regulations for Innovation
To make it easier for emerging Web3 companies to navigate existing legal frameworks and contribute to the UK’s digital economy growth, the government must streamline cryptocurrency regulations and adopt forward-looking approaches. By making the regulatory landscape clear and straightforward, the UK can create an environment that fosters innovation, growth, and competitiveness in the global fintech industry.
The Policy Exchange report also recommends not weakening self-hosted wallets or treating proof-of-stake (PoS) services as financial services. This approach aims to protect the fundamental principles of decentralization and user autonomy while strongly emphasizing security and regulatory compliance. By doing so, the UK can nurture an environment that encourages innovation and the continued growth of blockchain technology.
Despite recent strict measures by UK authorities, such as His Majesty’s Treasury and the FCA, toward the digital assets sector, the proposed changes in the Policy Exchange report strive to make the UK a more attractive location for Web3 enterprises. By adopting these suggestions, the UK can demonstrate its commitment to fostering innovation in the rapidly evolving blockchain and cryptocurrency industries while ensuring a robust and transparent regulatory environment.
The ongoing uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrency regulations in various countries has prompted Web3 companies to explore alternative jurisdictions with more precise legal frameworks. As the United States grapples with regulatory ambiguity, the United Kingdom can position itself as a hub for Web3 innovation by simplifying and streamlining its cryptocurrency regulations.
Featured Image Credit: Photo by Jonathan Borba; Pexels; Thank you!
Deanna Ritchie
Managing Editor at ReadWrite
Deanna is the Managing Editor at ReadWrite. Previously she worked as the Editor in Chief for Startup Grind and has over 20+ years of experience in content management and content development.