Product News from our Summer 2020 Newsletter
Posted July 7, 2020 to Legal Technology Trends.
The clock is ticking down to September 30, 2020 when Timeslips will stop supporting or selling non-subscription versions of Timeslips. While we can continue to support you, it will become increasingly difficult without access to support and as Operating System and other updates may cause performance or other issues with older versions. Upgrading to newer versions or other products will also present a challenge. Timeslips is the last of the legal software programs to switch from a pay once and own model to a subscription. We encourage you to consider the Premium version as Sage regularly adds and enhances features and new versions when available. Premium integrates with LawPay for credit card payments. If you are on version 2016 or earlier, you will immediately benefit from the Firebird SQL back end which makes Timeslips run faster and with few or no data errors. We will work with you to get you the best price for upgrading to the subscription and will make the upgrade as painless as possible. If you rely on Timeslips for your firm’s cash flow, you should consider upgrading while they have an incentive in place. If you are on an older, unsupported version or are considering other options, send us an email or give us a call at 973-746-6454 so we can assist you to make sure you don’t end up losing functionality you rely on. Whatever you do, please do not wait until the last minute to talk with us and map out a plan!
Zola Suite, like many of the cloud-based products, adds new features monthly. Over the last few months, they have enhanced bulk billing functions, improved document importing options, added a flat fee productivity report and split fee billing. This builds on their NetDocuments integration and email management enhancements, new electronic billing formats, revamped phone call notes and favorite reports added earlier this year.
The folks at Centerbase have also been busy. Earlier this year, they added matter metrics and a time entry approval process (additional subscription) and support for saving emails into Centerbase as msg (Outlook format). This last improvement lets you open the actual email from within Centerbase instead of opening a copy that was saved into Centerbase. Recently, they released an improved new mobile app that includes your synced calendar and lets you log your phone calls as billable. Centerbase now also includes a client portal, making it easy to securely share documents and invoices with clients. They changed to role-based pricing so that billing and accounting department staff, who tend to be the heaviest users pay more per month than timekeepers or support staff who do not record time.
Carol was certified on LEAP earlier this year and is in the process of getting advanced certification on LEAP templates. In addition to extensive built in forms for specific practice areas LEAP includes the tools to make sophisticated forms using practice area matter fields. To learn more about LEAP and whether it would be a good fit for your firm, give us a call.
Clio has two options to allow your firm to manage your cases, billing as well as grow your practice with automated client intake tools and data analytics. Clio Manage is their practice management and billing solution. Clio manages trust accounting and links to QuickBooks Online. Clio Manage includes powerful tools to automate documents. Recent enhancements include integration with Zoom and Microsoft Teams. They have also enhanced their Outlook search letting you locate emails by Matter or Client. Firms that add or purchase Clio Grow can automate their intake process, schedule consultations with the option to accept payments. Grow, which focuses on the client and contact side of your practice can help with streamlining tasks, emails and workflows for everyday tasks. Together, they can help your firm go from marketing to conclusion. If you would like to learn more about Clio, call us at 973-746-6454 or email us.
Time Matters is still the gold standard that people use to compare to other products. They are working hard on adding functionality to their web and mobility, giving firms the best of both the server and cloud worlds. If you want to review how you are using Time Matters and make small changes that can have a big impact, call 973-746-6454 or email us.
Carol is certified on Zola Suite, Centerbase, Clio, Cosmolex, Time Matters, Timeslips, TimeSolv, LEAP and PCLaw. In addition to those, she keeps up with the latest developments on products that work with these such as NetDocuments, Law ToolBox and Law Pay. Each of these products have strengths and weaknesses. A feature that is critical for one firm may be of little use to another. Carol’s knowledge and experience puts her in a unique position to help you determine which solution would be the best for your firm. She is also supporting clients on NetDocuments and plans to complete that certification soon.