Despite the technology revolution witnessed, most lawyers have never needed to incorporate such into their business regardless of their legal niche. What most of them never understand is the competitive advantage technology offers to all companies. However, the changing times have forced all lawyers to shift to technology to grow and sustain the business. There are new cases witnessed daily for criminal law, and if one is a criminal defense lawyer, he or she needs to know the best law firm technologies for the case.
One of the reasons criminal defense law firms, like Pyzer Lawyers, have been forced to shift to technology and opt for virtual processes in 2020 has been as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19, a global health pandemic, has led to lots of unprecedented challenges. For a start, most states have had to enforce measures that can guarantee limited or no social interactions to contain the virus’s spread. Some of the standards incorporated include the closure of non-essential businesses and people getting advised to work from home.
If one is a criminal defense lawyer who used to meet up with clients and other lawyers, the transition may be a daunting process. However, nowadays, there are arrays of technology for criminal lawyers, making the transition smooth. The switch to cloud-based technology even comes with lots of benefits. It allows round-the-clock access to one’s criminal case data, making it convenient. Besides, it is a cost-effective method, and this guarantees the firm minimization of the overall expenses. As a criminal lawyer, one also enjoys the regular updates that ensure new features present for easy comprehension of the criminal cases. Handling remote criminal cases can be made easy when one has the right technology, and some are listed below.
Use Of VOIP Phone Systems
For most criminal lawyers, the phone systems used in the office only get tethered to such space. However, such cannot work when one has to work remotely. It is wise to incorporate the voice over internet protocols such that from any location, one can still have access to unlimited calls. Besides, the VOIP allows one to conduct conference calls with other lawyers and clients and even receive messages that have various formats.
Use Of Video Conferencing Tools
Working from home should not be the end of your criminal lawyer career. You can still meet with your clients or co-counsel through video conferencing calls. As a result, their safety gets guaranteed, and criminal cases are not held pending. If one is skeptical about leaking the video information with the clients, one can opt for encrypted face-to-face video conferencing due to the enhanced security it offers. There are several video conferencing options one can opt for, and this may make the task of identifying the best one gets quite arduous. However, immense research on the best software for your business may be the way to go.
Use of law practice management software
Your law firm infrastructure will have to get effectively integrated to allow your staff to access the criminal case data remotely from their homes quickly. Law firm data includes several things, including billing, different contacts, documents, financial data, and all these needs to be centralized for your staff. Therefore, the law practice management software chosen for the firm needs to be practical and up-to-date for quality and smooth operation.
Use of scanning technology
Law firms have needed to transition to the paperless world. Such a transition is quite effective with the COVID-19 pandemic since it limits human interaction. Besides, communication via papers is one of the ways that facilitate its spread since it allows contact. One of the tools that can guarantee a paperless office includes the use of scanners. Your law firm staff need to have access to reliable scanners.
Use of online fax services
With the new reality, one needs to explore several options for effective operations. Most lawyers have been blind to the fact that online fax machines have tremendous benefits to their business. Online faxing offers a convenient way of sending and receiving digital data. Therefore, one will continuously get updated on any changes to the criminal case he or she handles. There are several online fax services that one can choose from.
Use of speech-to-text dictation
For the longest time, most criminal lawyers have been known to dictate their findings on a tape and pass it on to be typed by a staff member. However, things have had to change with the looming COVID-19. Lawyers need not worry about the new process as now they can incorporate the use of speech-to-text dictation for their findings. With this kind of technology, one gets to save on time and even cost as it allows for document creation. As a result, the need to have the document typed once more gets eliminated. The technology allows for voice recognition such that a text immediately appears once one starts to speak. Besides, various digital tools allow for effective dictation that lawyers can now choose from.
However, it is advisable that as a criminal lawyer who has little understanding of the virtual law tools, you take your time. Despite the need to go virtual and ensure that the business is operational, one still has to ensure that clients get quality defense representation. Therefore, one has to understand the features of the new technology they will be using for the law firm and check on the pricing. Besides, ensure that the staff is well trained on the software to understand the risks and handle malware of the technology.
As a criminal lawyer, one must understand that change is inevitable. The above tech use at criminal law firms ensures a smooth transition to the digital era. Incorporating such technology in your criminal law career can guarantee you that your business will not be at a standstill even at this challenging time. Clients still need illegal law services, and as a result, flexibility in the industry is imperative. Having the right law technology is a sure way of staying competitive during the COVID-19 pandemic period.
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Last Updated on February 19, 2021.
