TechnoLawyer: Accounting/Billing/Time Capture

Coming April 13, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Robert Bass reviews his recent Dragon NaturallySpeaking upgrade attempt, including how TechnoLawyer came to his rescue, Clint Pullin discusses the ability to charge additional fees in a contingency case (in Texas at least), Nicholas Paczkowski reviews his Averatec 3150H laptop, Jason Ochsner reviews Acronis' True Image (and provides a few MS Backup tips), and Edward Poll reviews Dragon NaturallySpeaking. In addition, this issue features links to 9 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

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Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming April 6, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Steven Finell discusses the ethics of contingency fees, Kelly Lupo compares GoToMyPC to Windows Remote Desktop, Samuel Mandel reviews his firm's HP LaserJet 4345xmfp, Benjamin Martin reviews the SMART Board for a new training room, and Mark Sargis reviews his experience with ProLaw and ProLaw Ready. In addition, this issue features links to 8 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

In today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire, tech expert Jill Bauerle covers a unique tool for personal injury lawyers and other litigators that automates future earnings and other calculations, a feature-rich time-billing application (free for solos), and an outliner for managing all those deep thoughts of yours (or perhaps just your grocery list). Don't miss the next issue.

Below you'll find one of the three articles from today's edition:

What's Your Case Worth?
By Jill Bauerle
Practice management software does just about everything these days — except crunch numbers. The folks at WorthMORE Software noticed this void and filled it with CaseWORTH, a new software tool designed to help personal injury and other litigators make short work of calculations such as lost income, medical expenses, subrogation payments, and more. Armed with CaseWORTH, you'll have plenty of ammunition at a settlement conference or trial (regardless of which side you represent). You can use CaseWORTH in conjunction with practice management software such as Time Matters and Amicus Attorney or as a standalone tool. After entering the claimant and case information, you can begin calculating whatever the case demands. For example, the "Future Earnings" module can extrapolate future lost income from past history, and calculate their present value. Similar tools exist for past medical expenses, subrogation source payments, past earnings, future medical expenses, travel expenses, burial expenses, legal expenses, liens, and more. The "Damage Summary" screen enables you to see a running total in one place with the ability to drill down for closer inspection. With the "Math Worksheet," you can use the numbers from the modules to evaluate different scenarios. Even more impressive, the "Settlement Calculator" tracks all demands and offers (you can scan and attach the corresponding documentation for quick retrieval). This tool has a number of nifty features — the "Required Settlement" calculator shows you the settlement amount required to cover the claimant's expenses, the "Actual Settlement" calculator shows you how a settlement amount would be distributed, and the "What If" calculator enables you to adjust any of the numbers to evaluate the consequences. When you finish all your number crunching, you can print a "Settlement Statement" ready for the claimant to sign. CaseWORTH runs on Windows 98/2000/XP. Pricing begins at $1,000, which includes one lawyer license and two paralegal licenses. You can purchase additional lawyer and paralegal licenses for $300 and $100 respectively. Learn more about CaseWORTH.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

In today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire, tech expert Jill Bauerle covers a fast, versatile PDF suite, a Web-based billing system, and an anti-spam appliance with a unique twist. Don't miss the next issue.

Below you'll find one of the three articles from today's edition:

A Sly Suite of PDF Tools
By Jill Bauerle
Does your PDF software leave you enough time to fetch a cup of coffee when opening files? Instead of sitting like a hen in front of your screen, try Foxit's quick-footed PDF tools. Foxit develops a number of programs for managing, reading, writing, and converting PDF files. At 1MB, the free Foxit Reader downloads instantly and runs without installation. No more "welcome" screens and agonizing waits. Foxit Reader supports Chinese, Korean, and Japanese character sets once you download a special plugin. Another program, Foxit Reader Pro, has added features like a typewriter tool for inserting text, a note tool for inserting comments, and text-marking tools for highlighting, underlining, and striking out text. With Foxit Reader Pro, you can also draw lines and shapes, convert pages to pure text, and browse files in the Foxit Library. Other Foxit programs include the Reader for Pocket PC, PDF Editor (which enables you to freely edit text and images in PDF files), PDF Text Viewer, and PDF Page Organizer. Foxit's tools require Windows for the most part, but Foxit Reader can also run in Linux. Foxit Reader is free; Foxit Pro costs $39. Check Web site for pricing on other Foxit programs. Learn more about Foxit.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming March 2, 2006 to Answers to Questions:

Nonrefundable Retainer Fees; Review of Time Matters; Acrobat
By Roy Allen, Scott Bassett, William Burt, Steve Kaplan, & Richard Shaffer
In this issue of Answers to Questions, Steve Kaplan responds to the brouhaha sparked by his question about New Jersery accounting practices, Scott Bassett discusses the unique accounting needs for nonrefundable retainer fees, Roy Allen explains the difference between advanced fee deposits and retainers, Richard Shaffer discusses the pros and cons of Time Matters, and William Burt provides some guidance on which version of Acrobat your office should purchase.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. You can subscribe here.

In today's issue of TechnoLawyer NewsWire, tech expert Jill Bauerle covers a customizable, integrated case management program, an online project management system, and a universal word count utility. Don't miss the next issue.

Below you'll find one of the three articles from today's edition:

Case Management Software that Caters to Your Every Whim
By Jill Bauerle
Imagine a world created just for you in which everything worked as you envisioned. Well, that'll probably never happen. But with Abacus Data Systems' new AbacusLaw v2006, you can at least create a practice management system to your exact specifications. With AbacusLaw v2006, not only can you customize the interface and toolbars, but you can even remove menu items and other elements that you don't use. What else is new in this major upgrade? AbacusLaw v2006 features BlackBerry synchronization, private notes and calendar events, complete drag and drop, your choice of Google, MapQuest, or Yahoo for integrated maps, zip code lookup, a mini-calendar that can display 1-12 months, an enhanced Notes editor, and the ability to email events to anyone. Abacus Data Systems also focused on improving the integrated accounting component. The "intuitive check writer" looks just like a paper check, and the "enhanced check register" enables you to quickly search for checks using any parameter. AbacusLaw now saves every bill in PDF format and links it to the corresponding matter. When working at your desk, you can easily toggle among multiple timers as you move through your to-do list — plus you can now post time entries from anywhere in AbacusLaw. With AbacusLaw's new reports, you can always get a handle on your firm's activities. For example, the Matter Synopsis Report gives you a birds-eye view of all current activities, and the Malpractice Report lists all matters without any notes or future calendar events. AbacusLaw v2006 runs on Windows XP/NT/2000. Learn more about AbacusLaw v2006.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Wednesdays, TechnoLawyer NewsWire is a weekly newsletter that enables you to learn about new technology products and services of interest to legal professionals. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming February 23, 2006 to Answers to Questions: Gary Young responds to the ongoing debate surrounding a New Jersey lawyer's accounting practices for retainers, Eric Lay discusses the ethics of legal outsourcing, Pat Cunningham explains how to make retainers show up as revenue on a P&L report, Stephen Hayes shares tips for those interested in Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and Richard Haeussler reviews his Brother MFC-6800. In addition, this issue features links to 18 additional Posts in the TechnoLawyer Archive. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published Thursdays, Answers to Questions is a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Coming February 21, 2006 to TechnoFeature: Lawyers who bill by the hour can find it difficult to justify investments in labor-saving technology. Why spend money to get work done faster when you charge for your time? In this article, attorney and technology consultant Marc Lauritsen describes twelve ways lawyers can profit from greater speed and efficiency. Learn how to work smarter — and better serve both your clients and yourself.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Tuesdays, TechnoFeature is a weekly newsletter that contains in-depth articles written by leading legal technology and practice management experts. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.

Tony Mankus, Review: QuickBooks v. PCLaw in a Law Firm

TechnoLawyer member David Marcelino asks:
"Does anyone out there use QuickBooks for both billing and time entry? I am currently using Timeslips for time entry. Timeslips has frustrated my office. We are tired of the instability."

We used QuickBooks Pro for a number of years for accounting and time-billing. It's accounting and payroll features and interface are intuitive, simple to use, and generally excellent; the time-billing feature was not as good. A number of steps were required to accomplish what we wanted.

It's a generic program written for any type of small businesses and not law firms specifically. (Although a law firm specific version came out about a year ago which we did not try out.) Also their technical support was non-existent, unless you were prepared to pay a hefty support fee.

We switched back to PCLaw which has a better time-billing feature for law firms, though the accounting and payroll features are not as good. Their technical support is excellent. LexisNexis recently purchased PCLaw and we're hoping that their bigger budget will help to make needed improvements.

Tony Mankus, Esq.
Mankus & Marchan, Ltd.
Lisle, IL

[Publisher's Note: Learn more about QuickBooks and PCLaw. — Sara Skiff]

About Answers to Questions
Posts like the one above appear exclusively in Answers to Questions, a weekly newsletter in which TechnoLawyer members answer legal technology and practice management questions submitted by their peers (including you if you join TechnoLawyer). Like all of our newsletters, it's free. You can subscribe here.

Coming February 3, 2006 to Fat Friday: Stephen Hayes reviews his Fujitsu Tablet PC, Todd Hill sets forth the bare minimum technology tools that every law firm should have, David Leffler reviews his experience with HP LaserJets and discusses Epson's first laser printer, Kent Davis compares PCLaw to QuickBooks for law firms and explains what software developers could learn from a program like Amicus Attorney, and Mark Klarich shares how his firm could easily survive a Katrina-like event. Don't miss this issue.

How to Receive this Newsletter
Published on Fridays, Fat Friday is a weekly newsletter that features a grab bag full of genuinely useful product reviews and tips on a wide variety of topics. Like all of our newsletters, it's free. Please subscribe now.