What You Need to Know About Law Firm Information Technology

Part of being a lawyer or a manager of a law firm is being keen and aware of how technology has taken the legal industry by storm. Major technological changes have redefined how information/data are handled within a law firm on a day to day basis. According to statistics, the number of law firms in New York alone using cloud computing services have been on the rise for the past at least five years. In fact, the past one year alone has seen a jump of up to 50% in the number of law firms using such services in the United States. This is according to the 2012 AM Law Tech Survey.

Without a proper record management system, you could lose cases and even clients. This creates the need for a proper and reliable law firm IT in New York and elsewhere for a firm that has its operations in the city. Law firm IT New York services includes computer hosting services. The services are tailored towards offering law firms with no need of expanding or spending so much money on buying servers or the related costs. In addition, as legal professionals position themselves to succeed in the legal industry, a number of distinct information technology trends have emerged. These include:

E-Discovery

Law firm IT in New York City has tremendously benefited from the recent amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure which made information stored electronically in the form of emails, voicemails, instant messages, and data held on  smart phones or any other device, discoverable during litigation. The growth in ESI (Electronically Stored Information) has increased the complexity and cost of litigation processes.

Virtual Law Firms

Law firm IT in New York incorporates the use of different hosting platforms. One advantage of cloud computing services includes saving the firm considerable sums of money and allowing legal professionals to work from home or virtual offices. In addition, you can access the files from a courtroom, something that can make you as a lawyer win a case. The concept of virtual law offices has been found to be alternative methods of practicing law in NYC and other big cities. This is because it permits flexibility in practice of law by law firms in both big cities and small towns.

This is not only for lawyers, in places like New York City, law firm IT enables legal professionals including paralegals to serve clients more effectively and faster while at the same time modifying their schedules to accommodate both personal and family needs.

In addition, such an information technology service can help lawyers access case files from everywhere, from the court room, to the law office, to another law firm’s law office, to home, to even the beach. The possibilities are endless.

To learn more about how law firm information technology, or to find out how to access such a program, contact Madison Technology.