According to the American Bar Association (ABA), the average American lawyer works 50 hours per week. But what if we told you only 35% of that represents billable work?

That is what the 2022 Legal Trends Report by Clio found: only 3.5 hours of most attorneys’ long work days are billable. The rest of the time is spent booking calls, mailing clients, running meetings, and doing admin work.

This runs contrary to the reason why most small firm founders started their practice. Attorneys can easily fall into high-stress, low-pay months, daydreaming about the support services AM250 firms enjoy.

But what if you could have the support system of a coveted AM250 firm, but with the flexibility and affordability you require now?

Enter Amata’s Lawyer Support Services

For over two decades, our mission has been clear: Support law firms in serving more clients while enjoying a healthier work/life balance.

Let’s say you started your solo practice after leaving an AM250 law firm. You went from billing $450/hour to $325/hour, but it was okay because that convinced some of your clients to come with you. You expected less overhead, higher profitability, and more control over your time.

The problem is that without assistants, senior paralegals, and accountants, you had to work longer, non-billable hours just to keep up. A 10% drop in billable hours can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars less in potential business that could be developed. That is the opportunity cost of trying to do everything by yourself.

But what if you decide to hire support and focus on billable hours? The list of support services can be long, but very worth it depending on your case:

1. Copy & Mail Handling: A virtual assistant can manage your office mail and make copies of essential documents when needed.
2. Deliveries: Office staff can assist with physical document deliveries and handling paper checks for legal fees.
3. Research Assistance: A virtual assistant can handle legal research and document requests through Lexis-Nexis.
4. Paralegal Support: A paralegal can manage caseloads, client intake, deadlines, court paperwork, and client inquiries.
5. Administrative Help: Office and virtual assistants can provide support with tasks like mail retrieval, email management, project management, marketing, social media, proofreading, and document scanning.

The question is, how can you afford these services without being an AM250 law firm yet?

Flexible Support Services Without the Overhead

The demand for legal services has been volatile over the last 3 years. Firms need to manage staffing and resourcing effectively to remain flexible and serve clients without the stress.

Here’s how Amata legal support services in Chicago help you do that:

1. On-Demand Paralegals

No longer do you need to worry about keeping a paralegal busy for a full eight-hour day. We vet paralegals who can act as an extension of your team and bill only the hours you require.

Our senior paralegals have 20 or more years of experience and specialized knowledge. We also can connect you with junior paralegals ready to handle:

1. Editing appellate briefs and other briefs per your notes
2. Handle the back-and-forth aspects of discovery, which can last for months
3. Draft simple complaints and motions
4. Assess and prioritize cases
5. Close on real estate transaction

All so you can ease your caseload while paying only for what you require.

2. Legal admin support

With the right support, lawyers are able to boost their productivity, grow their practice, and do what they do best — practice law.

Amata’s legal support services include receptionists and administrators who can help scan documents, track packages, and review court filings. We also understand you don’t have time to train, and that is okay. All our staff is experienced and vetted to understand your unique needs.

3. Virtual assistants

The traditional formula for growing a law firm is billing more hours or increasing rates, but there comes a point where that approach goes against the client’s best interest.

With virtual assistants, there is a third option. Eliminate all under-utilized time and expenses, delegate administrative work, and focus on billable hours. This increases your profitability and allows you to scale, while serving your client’s best interests.

Some of the tasks virtual assistants can handle for you are:

1. Document review, organization and summarization
2. Data entry
3. Calendar management
4. Meeting scheduling and coordination
5. Technological support
6. Invoice preparation and payment
7. Social media assistance
8. Non-legal correspondence, transmittal letters, and email
9. Case management system update
10. Internet and public database research

4. Live receptionist

Busy lawyers require professional receptionists. And with Amata, there is a better alternative to hiring, training, and retaining full-time, in-house receptionists yourself.

Our legal virtual receptionists ensure that you never miss a caller. They can screen calls, schedule appointments, reply to messages and return phone calls for you. All the information is updated in your database, so you can follow up at your own pace while clients are taken care of.

Hiring the exact receptionist support you need for only the time you need is possible. This significantly reduces the risk when hiring staff to support your operations.

5. Office options

Amata’s revolutionary concept is that office space should be consumed and paid for the same way we use and pay for software. You wouldn’t purchase 5 licenses of your practice management software when you only need 2, so why do we sign long-term leases for space with 5 offices when we only need 2?

Modern law firms require office plans that can be scaled up and down without penalty.

Imagine a place where you can enjoy the comradery of other attorneys, meet with clients in an impressive law office setting, and enjoy coming to the office. If an associate leaves or joins your firm, you can give up or add offices as needed. It’s all about only paying for what you need, not wasting money on office space you are not using in anticipation of growing into the space.

Access AM250-Quality Legal Support On Your Terms

Amata’s paralegals, paralegal assistants, law clerks, and virtual assistants act as an extension of your law firm. Here is a list of some of the services we can give you access to:

1. Notary/Witness Service (Amata Location or Remote, includes video recording)
2. Court Runs (Including the assembly, print, and preparation of courtesy copies.)
3. Mail opening/scanning
4. Assistance with certified mailings
5. Scanning/copying documents
6. Faxing documents
7. Preparation of FedEx
8. Set up assistance and coordination of services (phone, copier codes, messenger)
9. Bank deposit
10. Catering support/ordering
11. Faxing support
12. Special orders/3rd party ordering
13. Video conferencing set-up
14. Hand Deliveries/Pick-Ups
15. E-Filing
16. Preparation of Notice of Filing, Notice of Motion, Certificate of Service, and forms.</span
17. Review of local rules, court’s standing orders, & any temporary procedural orders in place.
18. Spindle or piggyback motion hearing dates, and any communications with the court clerk.
19. Confirm acceptance of filing by the court clerk.
20. Document Translation
21. Interpreter – Remote or On-Site
22. Preparation of Table of Authorities
23. Formatting appellate briefs
24. Skip Tracing
25. Asset Search (bank accounts)
26. E-Recording

Inquire today to learn how our on-demand, flexible legal support services can help your law firm increase profitability without the stress.