Virtual Law Practice

Tag: Practice Management

Social Networking Policies for a Virtual Law Practice

Last week I gave a brief presentation for the Legal Services National Technology Assistance Project (LSNTAP) about developing policies for online social networking. While researching for the presentation and round table discussion, it occurred to me that having a policy in place for social networking is a wise idea for a virtual law practice. Considering that a great deal of the marketing and professional networking for a virtual law practice is going to be handled online using social networking tools, it makes good sense to establish a policy for your practice whether you are a solo practitioner or a medium-sized online law practice with virtual assistants.

If you haven’t already, please check out Carolyn Elefant’s ebook Social Networking for Lawyers: The What, Why and How. This is a good resource regarding the use of social networking for legal professionals and could be useful for developing your own social networking policies for a virtual law practice.

Here are some social networking policy suggestions from my presentation that can be applied to a virtual law practice: (more…)

June 14, 2009
Transitioning with a Virtual Law Practice

Over the past couple weeks I have spoken with two or three attorneys who have been laid off from their positions at large law firms. A couple of them knew that the practices of their BigLaw firms were not sustainable in this economic environment and had the foresight to pad their savings. Now they are considering opening virtual law practices as a way of transitioning from a large law practice into the next phase in their legal career.

The trend of opening a virtual law practice as a method of career transition seems to be growing. Previously I had been working with attorneys who wanted to use a virtual law office (VLO) to generate additional online client revenue for their existing law practices or who wanted to go completely web-based for the flexibility and better work/life balance. Transitioning with a virtual law practice is another use of the technology to consider.

A VLO could be a great way of keeping an attorney’s resume up to date and allow them to continue practicing law while they transition from one phase of their legal career to the next or perhaps phase into retirement, taking only the online clients they want to continue to handle. Maybe an attorney needs to move with their spouse to another state but has yet to sit for another state’s bar exam. They could continue to practice law of the state they are licensed in through a VLO while studying and moving to another jurisdiction.

The technology is flexible so that conflicts of interest checks can be run against any previous law practice contacts and export features would allow an attorney to export the data contained in a VLO into another law practice management system once the attorney had completed the transition in their career. If the transitional VLO took off, generating a steady online client base, then the attorney would have the option of keeping their virtual doors open and operating a completely web-based VLO or adding it to whatever practice of law they join or open for themselves.

Or an attorney transitioning into retirement and closing the doors to their traditional law practice might use a VLO to retain a select number of clients to work with on the side online while enjoying their retirement by traveling and not being tied down to a physical law office. They could even use a VLO to transition out of a practice by using it to communicate and work online with their partners and associates in the traditional law office while they cruise around on a yacht or go hiking in the mountains. As long as they could carry their iPhone or Blackberry around with them and get wireless access, they could transition gracefully out of the firm remotely.

These are just a couple ideas about how to use a virtual law practice to transition through phases of a legal career. I’ve written before about how both men and women in the legal profession could use a VLO to take time off to care for their families and transition in and out of a traditional law office using the technology for that purpose. Let me know your thoughts on other ways that legal professionals could use a virtual law practice to transition between phases in their lives and careers.

June 5, 2009
Article Notes Rise in Virtual Law Firms

Today’s Legal Technology section over at Law.com has an article about the increasing number of solo practitioners who are profiting from going virtual. As I’ve blogged about in the fall of last year, operating a virtual law office is a great way for a solo or small law firm to compete in this difficult economy. The general public, our clients, are seeking more affordable legal services and they want the convenience of using technology to acquire those services.  After all, being able to take care of your legal needs at 1am without having to take time off of work or arrange for child care saves money as much as a reduced legal fee.

I have noticed an increase in my virtual law practice since last October and many of my online clients are forthright about why they decided to come to my VLO instead of going to a traditional law firm.  My clients are scattered across the state so at the same time that I am helping my clients, I am also helping my law practice by being able to expand my client base and compete with traditional solo practices in my state.

Working with VLOTech to set up other attorneys with virtual law practices and seeing the increase in interest in the web-based technology assures me this is a trend that is not going anywhere anytime soon. Check out some of the newest VLOs in my links to the right.

The Law.com article talks about virtual law practices that communicate through email (usually unencrypted and not secure), phone and Internet but does not really give us the details on what technologies these virtual law practices are using.  The focus is also on collaboration virtually between attorneys rather than online attorney and client communication. Let’s hope data security is a primary concern for these practices with whatever technologies they are using to deliver legal services.  Expect to see future articles that focus more on attorney/client online communication to deliver legal services online.

May 25, 2009
Twitter and the Virtual Law Office

I’ve been using Twitter on almost a daily basis since last summer as @StephKimbro. I started using it out of curiosity and am at over 1400 updates. I have met many new people both in the legal profession and in other industries through Twitter. Like anything else online, it requires savvy filtering skills. I use TweetDeck to help search and filter tweets.

Many blog posts have gone up about attorneys using Twitter for networking, marketing and client development. I’ll list a few below for reference. Since my virtual law office clients are online and more likely to be using Twitter themselves I wanted to give the application more time before blogging about it to see how it could have an impact on a virtual law practice.

So far, no new online clients as a direct result of using Twitter.  The difficulty is in narrowing in on my online client base here in North Carolina. My Twitter network knows no jurisdictional boundaries which I am held to by my law license. While I have a good number of North Carolina followers, the number of Twitter users is still not touching the general public enough that my posts about my law practice are reaching potential consumers of the online legal services that I provide. Of course, I am not directly advertising my services through tweets, just posting about what I am working on at the time on my VLO. I use other forms of online advertising that are targeted more towards my NC client base, but Twitter is just not able to tap into that base as easily— not yet.

That said, if I were able to connect with a prospective client through Twitter, I would immediately have to send them to my VLO to continue online communication. Even the use of direct messages through Twitter conveys via unencrypted email and would not be a secure method of conveying sensitive attorney/client communications. I would worry that a less sophisticated client might send a tweet with confidential information to me and the rest of the online world before I would have the chance to warn them. I know other attorneys have written about these concerns and some refuse to use Twitter at all for that reason, but I still think the benefits for the legal professional outweigh any risks. I’m keeping my eye out for a state bar ethics or advisory opinion to specifically discuss the use of Twitter. Clue me in if you’ve read one.

The value of Twitter for the virtual law practice is obvious — connecting with a network of other legal professionals on a closer level. I have gotten to know many attorneys, virtual assistants, legal software providers and law practice management advisers through Twitter. Sure, I have a LinkedIn, Facebook and other social and legal networking accounts, but Twitter lets me get a glimpse into the daily lives of these people and likewise, they occasionally see tweets about my family and my daily musings.  Tweets help to humanize the online networking process.

For some attorneys operating a virtual law practice may seem isolating if they are working from a home office or other remote location on their VLO. Twitter helps them stay connected to legal news and the opinions of other legal professionals across the world. I have asked my Twitter followers for general advice on law practice management in the past and received useful insights. Likewise, I have been able to share tips about VLOs and virtual law practice with others.

The network of virtual attorneys and virtual law firms on Twitter is growing which is helping to spread the word about VLOs and the delivery of legal services online. Here are some VLOs on Twitter:

@Olea_LLP

@TimFerraris

@FrameLegal

@PattiSpencer

@Debrina

In conclusion, I don’t think using Twitter has much of a benefit of pulling in clients directly to a VLO. However, it is a great tool to use for networking and learning from other legal professionals and a way to continue to grow the online presence of a virtual law practice. As more of the general public joins Twitter, it is possible that the general advertising of a VLO website and services through tweets will over time help an attorney to grow his or her online client base.

Here are a list of some popular blog posts that have gone up about the use of Twitter by legal professionals:

Twitter 101 For Lawyers, Nicole Black (@nikiblack)

145 Lawyers (and Legal Professionals) to Follow on Twitter, Adrian Lurssen (@jdtwitt)

Lawyer Marketing with Twitter, Steve Mathews (@stevematthews)

Lawyer Marketing with Twitter has Arrived, Kevin O’Keefe (@kevinokeefe)

How to Use Twitter as a Lawyer, Grant Griffiths (@grantgriffiths)

May 5, 2009
Metadata – NC Bar Proposed Ethics Opinion

A proposed ethics opinion by the NC State Bar covers the review and use of metadata. The proposed opinion dated January 22, 2009 states the following conclusion,

…a lawyer must use reasonable care to prevent the disclosure of confidential client information hidden in metadata when transmitting an electronic communication and a lawyer who receives an electronic communication from another party or another party’s lawyer must refrain from searching for and using confidential information found in the metadata embedded in the document.

The concern with metadata is that it may reveal privileged or confidential client information. With even basic computer skills, if you know how to look for metadata, it’s easy to obtain information about who wrote a document and when and to find detailed notes and information embedded in the document.  Attorneys must observe “reasonable care” to protect and preserve confidential information when they are using forms of electronic communication.

Likewise, when receiving an electronic communication, the opinion states that the attorney should not actively seek out metadata. This is in line with ethics opinions issued in recent years by the NY State Bar followed by other state bars and backed up by the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility.  Visit the ABA’s Legal Tech Resource Center for a complete list of Metadata Ethics Opinions in each state.

How does metadata relate to a virtual law practice?

With a web-based virtual law practice, the attorney may be transmitting documents to clients and other attorneys in digital format by uploading documents for review or in allowing uploads to the virtual law office from another attorney or client. Depending on the file format being transferred online and the circumstances, metadata may be embedded in those files.

Accordingly, the virtual law practitioner should use metadata removal programs on their applications immediately before uploading them to the VLO.  Microsoft and even Open Office have metadata removal programs and techniques available for their software suites. Another option is to convert the files, such as Word, Excel, OpenOffice, and PowerPoint, to PDF before uploading them to the VLO. However, some online clients may not be able to edit the application on their computers as a PDF. So if the purpose of the transfer is to allow your clients to add anything to the document, then conversion to PDF may not be the best method of avoiding metadata. Another free option would be to convert the document to Rich Text Format (RTF) but this would most likely create layout and formatting problems and not be worth it.

There are metadata removal applications from a number of companies, including Workshare, Payne Consulting Group, Esquire Innovations, Inc. or iScrub. Depending on the virtual practice, an attorney may want to invest in an annual license for these programs just to avoid any malpractice risks.  Given the availability of these programs and methods, it is clearly the responsibility of the attorney to ensure that he or she has removed any metadata from a file before uploading it to the VLO and sharing it with clients and other attorneys.

How a virtual law practice may help prevent malpractice risks from metadata

If an attorney is required to use reasonable care to protect their client’s confidential, then should attorneys be using unencrypted email to communicate with clients and to transfer documents as attachments? The risks involved in using email are well-known and the attachments sent through email may contain metadata if not carefully cleaned.

Even more of a security risk are the use of public email accounts, such as those provided by gmail, hotmail and yahoo.  If there is a safer option that is easily available to transfer information securely, then doesn’t this proposed NC State Bar ethics opinion and others like it require that the attorney use “reasonable care” to seek out a safer method?

With a virtual law practice, the attorney can tell their client that the attorney is acting in the best interest of the client by refusing to communicate and transfer legal documents via email. The attorney can explain that using the web-based VLO is the safer way for the client to interact with the attorney and that even more communication tools are available to the parties through this method.

I have done this with my online clients and once they understand that the technology is no more complicated than email, and safer to protect their confidential legal matters, they are excited to have 24/7 access to their own homepage and legal case files. Rather than emailing me their private legal issues on unsecure email or attaching documents for me to review, they are able to post on the discussion thread to me their legal issues and all of it is contained in their case file for future reference. Likewise, if I’m working with another attorney on a case file, he or she may send me a private note using the same method which will show up on the case file rather than being sent through unencrypted email.

The risks of malpractice from metadata embedded in documents may be limited by the use the secure online communication inside a VLO. The attorney and client may conduct all of their legal work securely online. Rather than having multiple folders containing draft documents in email attachments, the client’s online case file after drafts have been completed may be limited to the single legal document controlled by the attorney who may then use a method of removing metadata when transferring it back and forth to the client or another attorney for review.

While a VLO may not remove all of the malpractice risks associated with metadata, it can help legal professionals comply with ethics opinions requiring “reasonable care” and to help them protect their client’s confidential information when using electronic communication.

March 16, 2009
BigLaw Attorneys Taking to Virtual Law Practice

The ABA Journal published an online article today about the progress that Virtual Law Partners (VLP) has made in recruiting attorneys from large law firms. One of the reasons for the growth is the downturn in the economy and large law firm layoffs. The beneficial reasons cited for the move to a virtual law firm by the former BigLaw attorney include having to put in fewer billable hours for the same return in client revenue and he was able to take with him the majority of his clients and continue to work with them remotely.

VLP has an interesting structure for a virtual law practice because each attorney in the virtual firm works independently, but all of the attorneys pool resources as a single network. I’m not clear on the actual technology and security they use to work remotely with each other or with their clients. However, it will be interesting to see how their network holds up as it continues to grow and add attorneys.

From their example, solos and small firms can see the benefits of practicing law online and how this option can be available for an attorney who may never have been interested in working for a large large firm. It does not take the infrastructure of a brick and mortar law office with a huge staff and a fortune in marketing and advertising to be able to provide quality legal services to the public online. As the way of the future, virtual law practice will allow the solo practitioner and small firm to really compete on the same level and to form the same online and social networks as attorneys who formerly worked for BigLaw. It’s already happening on a small level and will continue to grow as the technology remains affordable and allows for increased attorney collaboration. The playing field is leveling off.

March 9, 2009
Recipient of the ABA James Keane Memorial Award for Excellence in ELawyering

I’m excited and honored to announce that I have received the 2009 ABA James I. Keane Memorial Award for Excellence in eLawyering.  From the ABA’s Law Practice Management website:

“The James I. Keane Memorial Award gives recognition to law offices or legal organizations that have developed legal service innovations delivered over the Internet. Thus, the focus of the award is the innovative delivery of personal legal services, with special attention given to firms and entities that serve both moderate income individuals and the broad middle class.”

The James I. Keane Memorial Award will be presented during the annual ABA TECHSHOW in Chicago following the keynote presentation by author Richard Susskind.  A description of my virtual law practice will also appear in the ABA’s Law Practice Magazine and other ABA Law Practice Management Publications.

For the past three years, I have operated my web-based virtual law office (VLO), Kimbro Legal Services, LLC, in North Carolina providing estate planning and small business assistance online to clients state-wide.  The Keane Award is recognition for this work, and I can’t express how grateful I am to be this year’s recipient. I hope that my VLO encourages other attorneys to consider virtual law practice either as a completely web-based system or to add some component of technology to their law practices that will allow them to provide more accessible and affordable legal services to the public.

February 25, 2009
Tech Review – Keeping in Touch with Clients Outside the VLO

Check out my tech review of iContact that came out in the Law Practice Today Webzine this week. I handle all confidential communications and transactions between myself and my clients through my virtual law office. However, iContact is a service that I’ve used to send newsletters and updates to clients regarding specific areas of law or about my virtual law practice in general. The tech review discusses ways that you can use the application to keep in touch with clients and to help continue your relationship with them even after the final legal product has gone through the VLO.

February 19, 2009
New Toy for the Virtual Law Practice

Last week I purchased a notebook, the Eee PC 1000H, for my virtual law practice and I want to recommend it for those attorneys taking their practices online. Since my law office is completely web-based, I have a number of different computers, including a PC and MacBook, which I switch out depending on where I will be working that day and what other programs I have installed on each.

I decided on the Eee PC because I’m not that fast at typing on a smartphone, and my laptop and MacBook, while not that heavy are still too big to comfortably sit in my lap while I work. The Eee PC is just the right size for me.

After I migrated over most of the data I wanted on the machine, I added TrueCrypt and set up the backup to an external harddrive. Basically, I stick in the Alltel wireless card and I’m good to go. Given that it is easily portable and I can type just as fast on it, I think it was well worth the under $400 that I paid.

Some of the drawbacks have included the need to attach an external cd drive in order to install software. The right side shift key is also a little off that of a traditional-sized keyboard so that has taken some adjusting to. Otherwise, I think it will be a valuable tool for my VLO.

Another benefit of this notebook is that I now have a backup Internet connection for my VLO. For anyone practicing with a virtual law practice, I recommend some form of secondary Internet connection if you do not trust what you currently use. Should the connection in my house become unreliable, I have the wireless card in my Eee PC as a backup and can just access all of my law office data and VLO that way. The wireless card is not as fast as the DSL at times, but it hasn’t been that noticeable so far when I’ve been using it around town.

Anyone considering going online with their law practice should check out these notebooks as an affordable mobile device. Have any other new hardware recommendations for the virtual law practice?

February 11, 2009
Three Years into My Virtual Law Practice

I’ve been preparing materials to teach a course on virtual law practice for Solo Practice University (SPU). Lawyers USA just published an article about SPU here. I hope some of my blog readers will join me for the virtual law practice course.

One of the topics I’m covering at the beginning of the course has to do with taking the leap from a traditional law practice management method into a virtual law practice.   In helping others make the decision to go completely web-based with their solo or small firm or to add some virtual component to their law practice, I’ve been thinking about why I left my position as an associate in a small, traditional law firm to go solo with a VLO.

It’s been three years since I opened my web-based virtual law office, Kimbro Legal Services.   In 2006, I hung my virtual shingle using the beta release of the VLOTech virtual law office software. As with any business, after a couple years you realize that your goals and expectations have changed from when you launched, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the support I’ve had from other attorneys and from the great public response over the past three years.

Reasons why I initially formed my virtual law practice:

1. The birth of my first child. I wanted to work from home and spend as much time with her and my family as I could. Childhood is a short time and I didn’t want to miss it.

2. From my experience in the small firm, I noticed that there was a clear market need for individuals of middle income and moderate means to be able to conveniently access and afford legal services. Yet many of them were going to their office supply store and buying legal kits or purchasing LegalZoom documents online. They weren’t consulting an attorney for the guidance they needed because they were 1) afraid they couldn’t afford it, or 2) were just too intimidated to sign a traditional engagement letter with an attorney and put up a sizeable retainer.

Those were my main reasons for opening my VLO. Three years later my reasons for practicing with a virtual law practice are the same, but I have some added observations and experiences that reinforce my decision.

1. Clients want this. The general public response to the VLO in the past three years has been amazing. My clients appreciate the convenience and accessibility to legal services. They have their own homepages on my secure VLO where they can drop me a note at any time, upload and download documents, fill out online forms, pay their invoices, review their invoices, etc. I think the ability for them to access their own case files and review our work together helps them to feel more in charge of their legal needs and more connected with me as their legal representation.

2. Client revenue has come in from across the state. I have not had the collection problems that I was warned about by other attorneys when I first opened my solo practice. I expected it to be a big hassle and in three years I’ve been limited to two or three small collection issues that were not that difficult to resolve. Clients receive their invoices online. They pay me online. We set up recurring billing or payment plans. Maybe it’s the convenience of the invoice being online or maybe it’s being able to pay by credit card. Whatever the reason, ease of collections has been a pleasant surprise.

3. Attention to customer service results in client loyalty  They don’t really teach you this in law school, but running a law practice requires business skills. I stopped trying to act like an attorney and instead focused more on being a good business owner. This has made all the difference in the world. I relate to my clients on personal levels through our dialogue on the VLO. I take the time to address all of their concerns and questions with patience and it has resulted in a growing client base for my virtual law practice.

4. Virtual law practice in some form is the way our profession is headed.   If you haven’t already, read Richard Susskind”s End of Lawyers?: Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services. The traditional law office will not cease to exist, but it may find ways to incorporate a virutal law practice component to address the needs of its clients and to facilitate attorney online collaboration. In the past three years, I’ve been overwhelmed with the number of attorneys who support web-based virtual law practice and who see it’s benefits for the public as well as the legal profession. It’s a growing trend in our profession that would be foolish to ignore.

As I’m working more with other attorneys through VLOTech to set up other virtual law practices, I’m spending less time on my own VLO.   Fortunately, we just opened up a new VLO in North Carolina where I can refer some of my online clients and we are in the process of launching another VLO, a multi-attorney firm in NC, this week.

Three years may not seem like a long time to have been in business, but considering the novelty of the concept when I started and how popular virtual law practice is becoming now, I’ll give myself a birthday pat on the back for taking the leap.

February 2, 2009

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