The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/96072
Dealing with these daily fire drills is no picnic, and sometimes you may wonder, "Why all the drama?" The short answer is that, for firms that still bill hourly, time is inextricably linked to money — and that leads to pressure. Minutes represent dollars for a law firm, so if time is lost because of a computer, power or phone outage, money is draining away while the outage persists. Since a profitable law firm with strong billings means job security for employees at the firm, billable time must be a concern not only for the lawyers and paralegals, but for IT, too. What's Billable Time? When we talk about "billable time," it means a lawyer or paralegal is performing work that gets billed to a client, which is where the organization's profits are made. It's important to keep in mind that there are many things a lawyer or paralegal cannot bill for, depending on the policies of the firm. Lawyers are supposed to bill for time spent delivering their legal expertise only, not on administrative tasks. A lawyer should not bill for time spent on routine tasks that an assistant could perform, such as making copies or copying files to a CD/DVD. Delays Are Costly Though planned IT activities such as software upgrades, implementations and training all reduce billable time, they are investments in future workflow. Unplanned IT issues like viruses, bugs or crashes can render time unbillable if they persist, unless the lawyer can perform billable work related to the case on an unaffected system. Network slowdowns or delays can also be costly because, at many firms, the actual billed time must be adjusted fairly to reflect how much time the tasks should have taken had there been no technical difficulties. If technology breaks down, it's the firm's problem — not the client's — and the firm must agree to sacrifice the money that could have been billed. The client doesn't, and shouldn't, pay for downtime. Today's clients are becoming increasingly knowledgeable about the legal process and often require attorneys to justify and explain time spent to resolve a matter. If the client is being overbilled for an activity, they will complain and push back — or worse, not pay at all. Lawyers are on the frontlines and need to manage the client's expectations. If the attorney is providing results the client is expecting at a cost that reassures the client the attorney's and staff's time is being optimized, then it's a win-win. Conversely, if the billed hours are significantly more than the client anticipated, the lawyer will have a lot of explaining to do. Attorneys and timekeepers are always under pressure to bill time and have a rather regimented day. Billing best practices include setting and achieving a target number of billable hours per day (seven to nine is typical). Imagine that workday divided into six- or 10-minute increments. Then imagine your compensation and contribution to the firm were determined, in large part, based on how many of those several-minute blocks you billed to a client or matter. It's no wonder that when the email system goes down, the document management system (DMS) goes offline or a person's computer suddenly freezes, pandemonium ensues. A Genuine Partnership The lawyer's purpose is to provide service to his/her client in the most efficient manner and to create value. Without good technology, he/she cannot function optimally. Many lawyers are smart, but intelligence does not equal IT knowledge. They just want the technology to work. They need IT on board as a genuine Peer to Peer 67