Case management systems for the legal profession are not new, but Michael Houlihan & Partners, a law firm with offices in Ennis, Shannon and Dublin, claims it is the first legal practice in the country to implement a Web-based version.
The firm also wanted to be able to alter the software as it becomes more heavily used, and so it contracted the Web development house Magico Software to custom-build a CMS for its needs.
Called MagiCASE, it is a secure, centralised database of clients and case history. It includes features for automated workflow management, time recording, task scheduling and comprehensive management reporting. According to Gerry Flynn, the firm’s partner in charge of IT: ‘We’ve always placed a lot of emphasis on IT and we thought this was the next step’.
When the system is launched, the firm’s clients will be able to access information about their cases through a password-protected Website. From the legal firm’s standpoint, this aspect has two main benefits: The system eliminates relatively routine telephone calls to its solicitors about the progress of cases and it can be accessed any time of the day, even after office hours.
The workflow element becomes apparent when the client logs on, as each case has tasks that have been allocated to it. ‘What the client sees is the workflow that is assigned,’ explains Flynn. ‘When it is up and running, it will be client-driven: We’ll know the client is looking at the file, so it will keep the pressure on us to get the work done.’
Traditionally, solicitors’ work involves a lot of paper, but Michael Houlihan plans to move away from a paper-oriented process, adds Flynn. ‘As it stands, every new file we open is on the case management system, it’s part of our daily working life. As we take on new solicitors or train apprentices, they will know no other way of working than this.’
Flynn says that the new system, which is already in use internally at the firm, is ‘superb’ for document and file management. ‘We act for most of the insurance companies, defending cases on their behalf and in an instant I can see the last letter that went out on a particular file. I don’t need to go to my cabinet to root out the file.’
The firm steered clear of ‘off-the-shelf’ case-management products, owing to what it found to be a lack of on-site support and usability issues. Instead Magico’s offering can be tailored to suit the firm’s needs.
‘The system I see today may look different 12 months down the road,’ says Flynn. ‘The beauty of it is, we can change it as we go along. We are getting feedback all the time from the solicitors who are using it in the office.’
The CMS has an inbuilt warning system that issues alerts based on the statute of limitations; in the case of personal injury, proceedings need to be underway no more than three years after the original accident. A colour-coded tab appears on the screen, indicating to users that there may be a case where legal proceedings have not been issued yet.
The CMS incorporates an experts database, where expert witnesses—such as actuaries or psychiatrists—employed in any given case have their details recorded.
As the system is Web-enabled, the application also has links to external sites such as courts.ie or statute bodies, allowing for searches through legislation at the touch of a button.
There is also a reporting function. In the future this will be integrated with the firm’s accounts system, with be a facility to add ‘time’—indicating how long has been spent on a particular case—which is vital to how solicitors firms estimate the cost of their legal fees.
‘Ultimately, it will make us more efficient and will save us time and money,’ reflects Flynn. ‘The way I see it going forward is that it will become an invaluable aid to the way we do business.’
Subscribers 0
Fans 0
Followers 0
Followers