Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/50188
create an incredible spreadsheet with formulas and "ifs" and "if nots," but — in the end — will give up on finding the exact amount. This happens because there are hundreds of interest-related scenarios that exist in the law. Some of the specifics to consider include: • Is this simple interest, compound interest or capitalized simple interest? • Are we dealing with a day count that is a 30/360 year, or is it actual/actual or actual/365? • Is the compounding daily, monthly or semiannually? • Is there interest on court fees? • What happens when the statutory rates change? • Will there be post-judgment interest on prejudgment interest? And, although lawyers would like to disregard interest altogether, law firms deal with many types of calculations regularly: pre- and post-judgment interest, arrears, collection of receivables and judgments, multi-award judgments, structured settlements, unpaid loans and mortgages, present value, computation of an unknown interest rate in a loan and incorrect APRs — to name a few. What options do firms have to wade through the mess? HAND CALCULATORS The hand calculator is not as fashionable as it once was, yet it can do basic calculations when regular payments are involved ( ., loans and mortgages) or when, in simple interest, the number of days is multiplied by the interest rate. The task becomes arduous, nearly impossible, when irregular scenarios are involved and when interest rates change over time. FREE CALCULATORS ON THE WEB Hundreds of websites, even some created by state bars and fellow lawyers, provide free mortgage and loan calculators. These compute basic payments based on a regular amortization and a fixed rate. Real estate lawyers regularly compute mortgages, yet when adjustable rate mortgages are involved, very few — if any — websites provide the necessary tools. THE SPREADSHEET Spreadsheets, such as Excel, are probably the most flexible software tools on the market. They can be used for accounting, to make projections, to create forms, to create amortization schedules and to manage lists. Creating a complex spreadsheet is manageable, but it can take days to create, test and adapt to the very special needs of the legal industry. And, as reports in its article, "Eight of the Worst Spreadsheet Blunders," 80 percent of spreadsheets contain "significant errors." GENERIC, OFF-THE-SHELF INTEREST CALCULATORS Quite a few interest calculation packages exist on the market with prices ranging from a few dollars to about $200. TValue is a well-known solution that creates regular and irregular www.iltanet.org Tech Potpourri 51 e.g CIO