Article 4:

Don't Get Caught in the Malpractice Zone!

In the Himalayas it's called the Death Zone - a point past which the air is too thin to sustain living tissue. Stay up there too long and your body begins to die.

In law practice there's a similar kind of danger - the Malpractice Zone. If you're working at the edge of control, then sooner or later you'll make a mistake - forget a phone call, miss a deadline, lose a document.

Experienced climbers use expert gear to keep them out of the danger zone. Experienced attorneys do too: practice management software.

Calendar Control:
Handhelds, desk calendar, master legal calendar. How much time do you spend updating and synchronizing? One central, computer-based calendar is the essence of practice management software. Lawyers and staff access calendaring information instantly from any workstation, and updates are automatically synchronized. You gain time for more valuable and profitable tasks!

The Ultimate Tickler System:
Most offices intend to get a tickler system in place, but don't have consistent follow-through. It's time-consuming to get it all down on paper. A computerized calendar system lets you input your desired reminder interval - then get to work. Your daily calendar will issue reminders for events, deadlines and even your afternoon meeting. Watch your productivity (billable hours) increase!

Date Calculator:
Don't be embarrassed if you're counting on your fingers - fortunately there's a quicker, more elegant (and accurate) way to figure deadlines. Enter the date of your event, and let the practice management date calculator tell you your due date and interval between events. Your date is automatically adjusted for court holidays. That's one more detail you don't have to worry about!

Court Rules:
Practice management software can use pre-defined court rules for your state. Enter a trigger event and the program schedules all the related events based on the court rules. Never wade through rules, and stop worrying about missed deadlines.

Files:
Paper files have their place - but they don't have to end up in piles on top of desks and credenzas. Practice management software eliminates the hunt for documents and notes. Pull up your information on screen, view or print any document, attach related notes, print a report or prepare a bill. No cutting and pasting, it's all done in a few keystrokes. This is the good life!

Contact Data:
How much time do you waste searching for details? How often during the course of a day do you say, "I'll have to get back to you"? In a few clicks you can get what you need. Use practice management software to streamline your workflow and stop getting bogged down in details.

Conflict of Interest Checks:
If you're still doing conflict checks manually, you're inviting an oversight. Don't put yourself in the position of having to return earned fees, or worse! Practice management software can "see" your entire practice through linked databases, and does a thorough search instantly. That's one less headache for you.

Documents:
Are you easily generating documents without any duplication of effort? Practice management software sets you up with fast and easy templates and merges in the relevant data from your client files. You can kiss cutting and pasting goodbye.

Phone Calls:
This is one of the hot spots in the malpractice zone. Unreturned phone calls are a leading cause of complaints against attorneys. When a client calls and wants to know the status of his case, your assistant can satisfy him with a couple of mouse clicks. Trying to answer calls at the end of the day, then never getting to them, means you're treading on dangerous ground. Practice management software will let your staff handle client phone calls in a timely manner, and tracks those calls you need to return. It's so efficient you'll easily get your calls made and your practice back under control.

Peace of Mind:
Stop waking up in the night worried about your law practice. Simplify, organize and control your work. Practice management software will revolutionize the way you practice law. You'll work better, faster, smarter, and have more fun. Why not get started now?