9 Tips and Technologies for Simplified and Streamlined Legal Work – Q4 2024 Facts & Findings
Legal professionals are increasingly burdened with managing extensive documentation, tight deadlines, and new technologies. In fact, according to NALA’s 2022 Utilization and Compensation Survey, around 85% of paralegals reported working more than their normal hours throughout the year. However, there are some simple tips and technologies that can ease the stress levels, pressures, and workloads of legal teams.
1. MAKE DEADLINES WITH AN ELECTRONIC DATE CALCULATOR
Most paralegals have heard of horror stories where a filing deadline was missed as the result of an incorrectly printed docket date wheel calculator. With an electronic filing date calendar, you can reduce the chance for error and calculate dates more precisely. There are various free versions that allow you to include or exclude weekends and court holidays, with the flexibility to search for dates before or after the date entered.1 Bookmark the page for fast access.
2. SAVE TIME ON SEARCHING FOR DEPOSITION, ARBITRATION, AND MEDIATION LOCATIONS
For paralegals and professionals needing out-of-state depositions or proceedings in unfamiliar locations, a quick tip is to start your search by asking your court reporting firm if it can assist with logistics. Instead of spending hours working through maps and making phone calls, let your court reporting agency find a comfortable, fully-equipped conference room for your proceeding. This can also include assistance in arranging challenging hybrid setups.
3. SAVE TIME WITH AI-GENERATED TRANSCRIPT/DEPOSITION SUMMARIES
AI-generated transcript summary services can quickly turn the once time-consuming task of summarizing a transcript into a much speedier process for legal professionals. Depending on the AI model implemented, different formats of transcript summaries can be created, including everything from a traditional page-line transcript summary with citations (useful for trial) to practice specific deposition summaries, like claims and impact reports for personal injury or workers’ compensation work.
However, the legal landscape is still new to the world of AI, and its output takes some getting used to. One tip is to understand that any AI-generated content should not be considered the final work product. Though a legal team member may be aided by AI in the creation of a transcript summary, that summary should then be thoroughly reviewed, edited, and modified for use by a human to ensure accuracy.
Questions to consider when using AI-generated transcript summaries:
Does the AI model keep my data secure?
The information within a transcript may contain PII, be copyrighted, need to remain confidential, or need to stay HIPAA compliant. Although it may be tempting to summarize a transcript with a publicly available AI model, remember that content placed into a public open-consumer-grade AI engine may be used for training the model and stored in the engine. Keep data secure by enlisting a vendor that can ensure privacy in its AI-generated transcript summaries.
Can you edit the transcript summary?
Many AI-generated transcript summaries are provided in a PDF format. This may seem handy, but you will want to review and edit any AI-generated content, so receiving the summary in an editable format will help you work efficiently. This way, you will be able to add any special notes and highlights pertinent to your specific case strategy.
What are my delivery options?
Sometimes, you need a rough AI-generated transcript summary draft immediately after a proceeding. Sometimes, it can wait until delivery with your final transcript. Search for a vendor that can provide the solution or options to fit your needs.
4. USE LEGAL RESEARCH RESOURCES
Black’s Law Dictionary and Burton’s Legal Thesaurus are both invaluable resources. Black’s keeps you current with new words and terms added to the legal lexicon so you can be precise with your legal terminology. Burton’s will enrich your writing with a bounty of synonyms. These are handy tools to have at your command for drafting documents, preparing arguments, and conducting research. They are even available as apps.
5. CREATE AND MANAGE MASTER CASE EXHIBIT LISTS
Keeping track of exhibits can be a real stressor if you lack a strong system. This is another area where a vendor can ease the burden and provide updated exhibit lists for an entire case after each deposition. The lists are often hyperlinked to the exhibits and formatted for easy keyword searching within the document, reducing many challenges when it comes to managing and numbering exhibits.
6. SIMPLIFY YOUR WORK WITH AUTOMATED REMINDERS
Schedule your email reminders and project management tasks in advance with tools that provide automation capabilities. Tools like Airtable allow you to create and automate reminders in advance and seamlessly integrate with communication platforms like Slack, for efficient legal team collaboration. Beyond basic reminders, you can arrange data to significantly enhance organization and project management. Integration with other tools, such as Google Calendar or Microsoft Teams, ensures that updates and reminders are synchronized across platforms, reducing the risk of missed deadlines or overlooked tasks.
7. IMPLEMENT STANDING ORDERS
For legal professionals, setting up standing orders with your vendors for cases that mandate a particular set of preferences can save you from reinventing orders each time, guaranteeing uniformity and streamlined communication.
8. USE A PASSWORD MANAGER
Using a password manager can really ease a legal professional’s mind. These tools keep your credentials safe while also filling them out for you, so you do not have to worry about forgetting them. They can allow you to log in on multiple platforms and devices so that you can spend more time focused on your case rather than administrative tasks.
9. STAY ON TOP OF LEGAL TECHNOLOGY WITH CLES
Stay ahead of the curve by attending legal technology CLEs. These sessions offer tips not just for lawyers but also for paralegals. Look for providers offering content shaped toward your role, with hands-on demonstrations of tools for exhibit sharing, remote proceedings, and document scanning. Ultimately, paralegals are champion multitaskers. Instead of running the risk of becoming overwhelmed, consider these tips and technologies to lighten your load and increase your efficiency in your everyday work.
Resources:
1 https://lawtoolbox.com/deadline-calculator/
https://www.casefleet.com/legal-deadline-calculator
Michael T. Murray is the director of client solutions for Veritext Legal Solutions. Murray stays on top of litigation technology trends and travels throughout the nation, speaking and providing informative and entertaining CLEs, educational instruction, and product demonstrations to legal professionals.
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