Document automation and management

Legal documents take many different forms. Some are very simple and others are massively complex. In either case, your documents reflect:

• Your professionalism.
  
• The consistency of your firm's service.
  
• The quality of your legal expertise.

1. The expertise that goes into drafting these documents is clearly very important. You have trained for years to differentiate yourself and the expertise that you express via these documents is what makes you a better attorney than your opposition.
   
   
2. The efficiency with which you apply your expertise and the service that you give to your clients as a result of better efficiency.

1. You want the format; wording as well as the general look and feel of all your documents to be consistent. The documents you send out are part and parcel of your "corporate identity". You do not want lower level staff sending out documents that do not accurately reflect your corporate values, expertise and professionalism.
   
   
2. The more "manual" drafting that occurs, the easier it is to depart from your standard look and feel. So while in some cases a document needs to be drafted virtually from scratch, there is always a header; footer; logo or standard preamble which can frame the document and preserve the fonts; styles and general formatting.
   
   
3. Where appropriate, you want to automate documents completely and know that they are produced efficiently, but in your format (this would apply to pleadings; rules and notices; standard letters and the like).

• All emails; documents; faxes; scanned images.
  
• All fees; notes.
  
• All invoices; statements; receipts and payments.

• No searching through client folders.
  o Then having to search through your email inbox; sent items; archived items….
  o Then having to go through your accounts system
  o Then having to thumb through the physical file
  
  
• Finally putting the whole picture together before you have found what you needed.

1. You enter a matter number or select a matter on your Diary or search for it by name if it is not on your diary (and you don't know the matter number).
   
2. You realise that the next step is to send a letter to the client updating him/her of the latest progress and further requirements.
   
3. From the diary screen you select "Letter to Client".
   
4. A standard letterhead document pops up in Microsoft Word and inserts the clients details into the appropriate "Fill Points" in the letter.
   
5. You complete the letter and Save it.
   
6. GhostPractice prompts you to bill for the letter based on how the matter was set up (so you will be asked for the time; folios or pages as the case may be).
   
7. A copy of the letter has already been saved into the matter folder.

1. You receive 50 new instructions from one of your key clients.
   
2. You import the instructions from the spreadsheet your client sent you.
   
3. All 50 debtors are open on your diary in a matter of minutes, with all the information captured and updated from the spreadsheet…automatically!
   
4. You select all 50 debtors and produce 50 letters of demand in one click! All fees are captured automatically against the respective debtors and clients.
   
5. You select all 50 debtors and "Bulk Diarise" them for 14 days time.
   
6. You move onto a debtor that has not responded to a letter of demand sent 14 days ago and choose Summons. A screen pops up asking you to fill in information that you have not yet been prompted to capture (Court; District etc).
   
7. Click one button to generate the summons; the appropriate fee is automatically recorded (even the scale is automatic based on the capital).

1. You search for the matter by name and go to Transaction History.
   
2. The client mentions that he sent you a mail sometime in January of this year and has lost his copy. He knows that you replied and cannot find that either.
   
3. You change the filter to reflect transactions for January only.
   
4. The two mails are reflected on the 14th and 17th January respectively. They are hyperlinked and attached to the matter.
   
5. You click on the hyperlink's and both mails pop up.
   
6. You deal with the query and send copies of the mails to your client.
   
7. GhostPractice prompts you to bill for the mails as you attach them from within Microsoft Outlook.

1. Once you have the matter on your screen, you select "Custom Document"
   
2. You choose the agreement/precedent that you have attached to GhostPractice as a "Master Template".
   
3. The agreement loads in Microsoft Word and fills in the basic details (parties names etc).
   
4. You begin drafting for the next 30 minutes or so.
   
5. You save the document, and GhostPractice stores it in the matter folder.
   
6. You assign a task to one of the colleagues to please meet with the client to gather more information and draft the remainder of the document based on the discussions with the client.
   
7. Your colleague picks up the document by looking in the matter folder under "Document Management".
   
8. Your colleague drafts the changes into the document and selects "Save As".
   
9. Both the new version of the document and all revision/audit trail information is stored in the matters Document Management folder.
   
10. You come in a week later and review the changes that have been made.
    
11. As anyone works on the agreement, so all fees are recorded as "Unbilled".