Picking the "Best" Law Office Software
by Jim Calloway
Director, OBA Management Assistance Program

As a part of my duties, I often get to discuss law office software with lawyers. Without fail, at some point in the conversation, I am asked what is the "best" of a certain class of software. This simple question is actually extremely difficult, if not impossible, to answer. One might as well try to definitively state which automobile make is the best, which political party is the best or which brand of soft drink is the best.

Deeming a product "the best" involves a number of factors, and many of them are subjective. Even the objective criteria can mislead you on occasion.

For example, one of the more objective factors is whether the company can survive and not leave the lawyer with unsupported "orphan" software when it folds. We've all seen many technology companies fail. In early 1998, an outstanding Texas trial lawyer spoke at an OBA CLE program and recommended a program called "Time & Chaos" as a great contact manager and calendar program. He showed us some customizations that he had done with the product that looked really interesting. But I was unpersuaded. This was one of a very few software products produced by a small company. It was not nearly as fully featured as the "true" case management software products available. Outlook Express was free and did many of the same things. T&C sold for around $40 and provided free upgrades for purchasers. With that pricing structure, it did not seem like the company would survive long.

You've probably already guessed that both the product and the company survive to this day. The company actually changed its name to incorporate its flagship product and is now called Chaos Software. (www.chaossoftware.com.)  Time & Chaos Version 5.6.5 was released this summer. It sells for $45.00 and purchasers can have free upgrades for two years after purchase.
A couple of T&C devotees have posted extremely positive comments about this program on OBA-NET. Now the company offers several other products, including a $34.95 Legal Billing program, an e-mail client and a Web data hosting service for one's T&C data.

But all Oklahoma lawyers do not practice in the same way and do not think in the same way. I frequently am contacted by a lawyer who absolutely hates a software application in the same week I am contacted by a lawyer who deems it vital and loves it.

So after stating how difficult it is to determine "the best," let me pass along a few tips to help you pick the best for you.

Know Thyself – You don't have to get a degree in philosophy, but the smart software shopper will make a priority list of the features that they want before they start looking at specific products. Often there will be trade-offs and compromises, so it is best to know the most important reasons for a new software purchase in advance. Rank features in importance to you. Otherwise there is the risk of your assistant saying, "But we mainly wanted it to do that, and it doesn't."

Test Drive the Application - The best way for one to pick software is to try it and see if it works for you. Many software packages have free trial periods. The actual user should spend some time seeing how comfortable they are with the program and how well it accomplishes routine tasks for them. The lawyer should personally try out case management and litigation support software while the billing clerk should review time and billing software.

Get Some Reviews – Everyone will love some product so it is not hard to get glowing reviews for advertising material. But talking to another lawyer who uses the product, reading third party reviews in the legal tech publications, searching for information online in places like OBA-NET or Technolawyer or just doing a Google search for the product name are all ways to get more objective opinions. Consult with your bar practice management advisor. If there are no reviews of a product anywhere, pay attention.

What's in Your Area?– If several lawyers you know have a certain software or if one is used by most of the lawyers in your area, count that as a big plus. Having someone locally to ask questions or to go in together on group training classes is a big advantage, as is having several of the local legal staff already trained on a package.

Stick with major players – The above-noted success story of Time & Chaos notwithstanding, it is still a great risk to buy software from a small or a start-up company. Their Web site may look great, but will you able to get telephone tech support when you need it? No one wants to invest the time in learning an application that may not be around next year. If none of the technology proficient lawyers you know has ever heard of it, it is a bad sign.

Get training – The greatest predictor of a successful software installation is whether the lawyers and staff invest time and money in significant training. Think about training resources before you buy and ask the vendor what training resources they suggest. Most software packages can look great in a 10 or 20 minute demonstration, but it is a different matter when you are poised at the keyboard thinking "how did they do that?" Extensive written materials can bridge the gap when there is no local training resource, but software manuals produced by the company are not always clear to the user. Explore third party written materials. There may be no gain if you don't train.

One of the places where legal technologists and lawyers interested in technology get information online is TechnoLawyer.1 There are many smart people who contribute to TechnoLawyer (www,technolawyer.com) and subscribe to its electronic newsletters. Since they have just released the results of their annual poll for the TechnoLawyer @ Awards last month, this is a good place to learn what products other lawyers are using and endorse.

TECHNOLAWYER @ AWARDS
COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS & FINALISTS

1. FAVORITE TECHNOLAWYER CONTRIBUTOR

WINNER
Dennis M. Kennedy -- http://www.denniskennedy.com
FINALISTS
Ross L. Kodner -- http://www.microlaw.com
William Kellerman -- http://www.summation.com

2. LEGAL TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANT OF THE YEAR

WINNER
Carol Schlein, Law Office Systems Inc. -- mailto:carol@losinc.com 
http://www.losinc.com
FINALISTS
There are no finalists for this @ Award.

3. FAVORITE ACCOUNTING SOLUTION

WINNER
QuickBooks -- http://www.quickbooks.com
FINALISTS
Omega Legal -- http://www.omegalegal.com
TABS III -- http://www.stilegal.com

4. FAVORITE CASE/PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Attorney -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
RealLegal Practice Manager -- http://www.reallegal.com

5. FAVORITE CLIENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Attorney -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
Omega Legal -- http://www.omegalegal.com

6. FAVORITE DOCUMENT ASSEMBLY/AUTOMATION SOLUTION

WINNER
HotDocs/HotDocs Pro -- http://www.hotdocs.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Assembly -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
PracticeMaster -- http://www.stilegal.com

7. FAVORITE DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Attorney -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
WORLDOX -- http://www.worldox.com

8. FAVORITE ELECTRONIC DISCOVERY SOLUTION

WINNER
Summation Blaze/iBlaze -- http://www.summation.com
FINALISTS
DocuLex Discovery Cracker -- http://www.doculex.com
Ringtail CaseBook -- http://www.ringtailsolutions.com

9. FAVORITE LEGAL FORMS SOLUTION

WINNER
LexisNexis Automated Forms --
http://www.lexisnexis.com
FINALISTS
ProLaw WestWorks Libraries --
http://www.prolaw.com/westworks/
West Group Form Bank -- http://west.thomson.com

10. FAVORITE LEGAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Attorney -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
CaseMap/TimeMap -- http://www.casesoft.com

11. FAVORITE LEGAL RESEARCH TOOL

WINNER
LexisNexis -- http://www.lexisnexis.com
FINALISTS
RealLegal Exemplaris -- http://www.reallegal.com
Westlaw -- http://www.westlaw.com

12. FAVORITE LITIGATION ASP (Application Service Provider)

WINNER
RealLegal iBinder -- http://www.reallegal.com
FINALISTS
CaseVault -- http://www.casevault.com
Ringtail CaseBook -- http://www.ringtailsolutions.com

13. FAVORITE LITIGATION SUPPORT SOLUTION

WINNER
CaseMap/TimeMap -- http://www.casesoft.com
FINALISTS
RealLegal Binder/iBinder -- http://www.reallegal.com
Summation Blaze/iBlaze -- http://www.summation.com

14. FAVORITE ONLINE CLE PROVIDER

WINNER
West LegalEdcenter -- http://westlegaledcenter.com
FINALISTS
Cognistar -- http://www.cognistar.com
Law.com -- http://www.law.com

15. FAVORITE TIME-BILLING SOLUTION

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Omega Legal -- http://www.omegalegal.com
Timeslips -- http://www.timeslips.com

16. FAVORITE TRANSCRIPT MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

WINNER
RealLegal Binder/iBinder -- http://www.reallegal.com
FINALISTS
LiveNote/VideoNote -- http://www.livenote.com
Summation Blaze/iBlaze -- http://www.summation.com

17. FAVORITE TRIAL PRESENTATION SOLUTION

WINNER
TimeMap -- http://www.casesoft.com
FINALISTS
Sanction -- http://www.verdictsystems.com
TrialDirector -- http://www.indatacorp.com

18. FAVORITE TECHNORELEASES

WINNER
CaseSoft -- http://www.casesoft.com
FINALISTS
Software Technology, Inc. -- http://www.stilegal.com
Summation Legal Technologies -- http://www.summation.com

19. FAVORITE PRACTICE AREA SOLUTION

WINNER
CaseMap/TimeMap -- http://www.casesoft.com
FINALISTS
Summation Blaze/iBlaze -- http://www.summation.com
Time Matters Estates and Elder Law -- http://www.premiersoftware.com

20. FAVORITE PRINT LEGAL TECHNOLOGY PUBLICATION

WINNER
Law Office Computing -- http://www.lawofficecomputing.com
FINALISTS
Law Practice Management -- http://www.abanet.org/lpm/magazine
Law Technology News -- http://www.lawtechnologynews.com

21. FAVORITE LEGAL-SPECIFIC TECH SUPPORT

WINNER
Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com
FINALISTS
Amicus Attorney -- http://www.amicusattorney.com
CaseSoft -- http://www.casesoft.com

22. FAVORITE LEGAL WEB SITE

WINNER
lexisONE -- http://www.lexisone.com
FINALISTS
FindLaw -- http://www.findlaw.com
Law.com -- http://www.law.com

23. FAVORITE NEW LEGAL PRODUCT OF 2002

WINNER
CaseMap 4.0 -- http://www.casesoft.com
FINALISTS
RealLegal Publisher -- http://www.reallegal.com
Toshiba Magnia SG20 Server with Time Matters -- http://www.timematters.com/products/toshiba/sg20

24. SYNDICATED CONTRIBUTOR OF THE YEAR

WINNER
Dennis M. Kennedy -- http://www.denniskennedy.com
FINALISTS
Arthur Smith -- http://www.husch.com
Robert Fleming -- http://www.elder-law.com/


Reprinted with permission of TechnoLawyer. TechnoLawyer is a legal technology and practice management resource that consists of a network of free, critically-acclaimed e-mail newsletters, and a searchable Web-based repository of all TechnoLawyer content since January 1997. To join, search, or learn more about TechnoLawyer, visit www.technolawyer.com

Originally published in the Oklahoma Bar Journal October 4, 2003 - Vol. 74; No.27