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If We Could Do It Over Again '
New law offices are opening every day: Some are opening because large firm partners are departing to start their own smaller firms; some because junior lawyers can't find work in established firms; some when firms expand to a new city; and some aren't traditional offices at all ' they're home or remote offices that, although for one or two people, have technology and connectivity issues nonetheless.
Law firm owners and administrators ' especially ones who have been part of law firms in the past ' often think that because they have operated in a legal environment before, they can easily select systems, have them installed and be up and running.
Wrong! As business and operations advisers know, no two setups are exactly the same. Goals for a smaller or remote office are not necessarily the same as for existing headquarters. And, with the constant updating of technology, prior decisions need to be revisited. What's more, pricing is almost never quoted in easy-to-compare ways. Practicing attorneys, especially when departing a firm to start their own, need to keep their eyes on the client ball, and often don't have the background or time to make technology decisions.
Over the past year, I have advised several groups of lawyers departing larger firms to start their own smaller ones. I've also worked with many small firms who needed seamless, upgraded connectivity to remote offices and wireless devices. Those clients who took the time to plan up front with experienced advisers fared the best by far. Those who did things by delegating to other partners, or by asking friends for technology experts without ample due diligence or reference checking, wasted a lot of money and experienced untold frustration.
Having efficient systems in place to handle technology when lawyers and staff departed vastly helped client relations, and also avoided exposure and expense.
Here are some lessons learned by my law firm clients, many of them the hard way.
1. Practicing lawyers are not technology advisers. Lawyers starting their own firm should tend to the business of law and client service. Those who assume the role of technology “guru” invariably run out of time and patience, only to have to undo mistakes in selection and installation.
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