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How Hybrid Law Firms Are Changing The Industry

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Five company directors in meeting with CEO in conference room.

More than three years after the COVID-19 pandemic started, the way lawyers work is changing forever.

While many law firms continue to work remotely, many of them saw the need for physical interaction with clients and teammates and decided to go back to the office. But the generational divide is clear:

The 2022 Practice Forward Report by The American Bar Association found that 44% of lawyers practicing 10 years or less were more likely to leave their current job for one that offers a greater ability to work remotely. At the other end of the age spectrum, only 13% of those practicing over 40 years would leave their place of employment for the greater ability to work remotely.

What this means is that there is not one generalized consensus about how remote work affects lawyers’ productivity and satisfaction. While some studies find that working from home increases productivity, other studies find that having no boundaries between work and life actually reduces productivity. While some studies find that workers feel more motivated working from home, other studies find that people’s mental health suffers when they stop those daily and spontaneous interactions with teammates and clients.

So what’s the truth? And what can law firms do to maximize their productivity and team retention, while saving costs on office space?

Enter the Hybrid Work Model

Instead of making people choose between remote work or on-site work, The 2022 Practice Forward Survey found that lawyers want the flexibility to decide for themselves when they work in the office and when they work at home. There is a strong desire to create flexible schedules and hybrid work arrangements, that will allow each person to control their day and tailor it to the way they know they can maximize productivity.

In other words, lawyers value optionality more than anything.

The Hybrid Work Model combines both in-person and remote work, offering lawyers and staff greater flexibility while maintaining the core functions of a traditional law firm.

This model allows firms to attract and retain top talent by offering a more attractive work-life balance, reduces overhead costs associated with maintaining large office spaces, and fosters agility and resilience in our age of disruptions.

However, there are 7 important factors to consider in order to implement the hybrid model effectively:

  1. Clear Policies and Guidelines: Clear policies and guidelines should outline the rules that will govern the hybrid work arrangement. Include expectations regarding work hours, communication, data security, client interactions, and performance metrics. Ensure that all employees understand and adhere to these guidelines.
  2. Technology Infrastructure: Invest in robust technology infrastructure to support remote work. This includes secure remote access to case management systems, cloud-based document storage, video conferencing tools, and cybersecurity measures. Ensure that employees have the necessary hardware and software to work effectively from various locations.
  3. Communication Tools: New communication tools and practices are required to maintain seamless collaboration among team members. Utilize video conferencing, instant messaging, project management software, and virtual meeting platforms to facilitate communication and document sharing.
  4. Performance Metrics: Develop key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to assess employee performance and productivity in a hybrid work environment. These metrics can include billable hours, case progress, client satisfaction, and project completion rates. Review and adjust these metrics regularly as needed.
  5. Training and Support: Offer training and support for employees so all of them can navigate the hybrid work model successfully. Provide guidance on using remote work tools, maintaining data security, and managing time effectively. Encourage ongoing skill development to adapt to evolving work practices.
  6. Client Interaction Strategy: Develop a strategy for maintaining strong client relationships in a hybrid work environment. Consider offering both in-person and virtual client meetings, ensuring that clients can access legal services conveniently. Communicate the firm’s commitment to maintaining high-quality client service.
  7. Employee Well-being: Prioritize employee well-being and mental health. Recognize the challenges that come with remote work and provide resources to support physical and emotional health. Encourage regular breaks, flexibility in work schedules, and initiatives that promote work-life balance.

The hybrid work model can represent a significant shift in how lawyers practice, so most team members will require support. By setting clear expectations and controls, but also trusting people will continue doing their jobs, law firms can successfully transition to this new model while maintaining high standards of service.

How Hybrid Law Firms Can Access Office Spaces — On Their Own Terms

At Amata, we saw long before the pandemic how the legal industry was shifting. Technological disruptions and changing attitudes towards work meant that people craved more freedom and meaning, while still prioritizing law firm profitability and growth.

This is why our office-as-a-service model is the perfect complement to hybrid law firms. It allows lawyers to work remotely and protect their bottom line, while still enjoying the benefits of a traditional office space.

Our shared office spaces allow lawyers and professional service companies to have a prestigious business address in Chicago, access a private office or a conference room for the day, and get support from paralegals and virtual receptionists only when they need it. This flexible office space plus support staff on-demand model is why more than 800 law firms choose us.

And there’s more. With Amata, you can access:

  • Scalable office plans where you can add or drop office spaces during the term of the contract, without penalty, so that you can stay agile without the hassle of relocating.
  • Flexible legal support staff (both in-person and virtual) that act as an extension of your work, without the costs and risks of hiring full-time employees.
  • On-demand paralegals, administrative assistants, and virtual receptionists. All pre-vetted for you.
  • A business address in a prestigious area in Chicago, so you can impress clients and keep their trust.
  • Mail handling, scanning, and forwarding.
  • Conference rooms & private offices for the day.
  • Professional live receptionists to meet and greet your clients.
  • Networking events, so you can keep building relationships and growing your business even if you are fully remote.
  • And much, much more!

If you’d like to adopt a hybrid work model for your law firm, but do not want to lose the support services and productive environment a traditional office provides, Amata is for you. Our flexible plans and scalable solutions ensure you protect your profitability, while having access to modern offices that meet your exact needs.

Contact us today to schedule a tour of our locations. Discover how can we support your growth, whether you choose to work remotely, on-site, or opt for a hybrid model.

Discover our virtual offices in Chicago.

The New Office Model for Attorneys

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The “office-as-a-service” model, often referred to as OaaS, is a flexible approach to providing office space and related services to professionals, including attorneys. This model saves costs and provides law firms with all the support they need to thrive, with the flexibility to stay competitive in today’s changing marketplace.

In this article we’ll explain eight benefits of the office-as-a-service model (OaaS) for attorneys, and why it is perfect for solo and small law firms.

Benefit 1: Flexible Workspace

Most lawyers start their own law firms seeking freedom – the freedom to have more control over how they work and to generate higher revenue from the book of business they’ve built.

Freedom and profitability. The problem is that large offices with long-term contracts give you none.

With Amata, attorneys can rent office space on a flexible basis, whether they need it for a few hours, days, or months. This flexibility allows you to adapt your office space to your specific needs, such as client meetings, research, or collaborative work with colleagues.

For example, our conference rooms can be used in 15-minute increments, and you only pay for the time you use (they are not rounded up to the nearest hour).

Most lawyers do not need to come into the office on a regular basis. You can free key resources by having a flexible workspace that adapts to your exact needs. 

Benefit 2: Cost Savings

Instead of committing to a long-term lease and incurring the associated costs of maintaining a traditional office, attorneys can save money by paying only for the space and services they use.

In today’s economic environment, the ability to adapt by adding or removing office spaces without penalties is crucial. That’s why our plans offer 12-month lease terms with a 30-day notice period for adjusting office space, allowing you to reduce costs and maintain profitability when needed.

Benefit 3: Access to Prime Locations

You probably don’t need a 240-square-foot office with a lavish library. What you need is a space that conveys professionalism and is strategically located near courthouses, government offices, and transportation routes for your team.

Our offices are located in professional and prestigious addresses in Chicago. All locations are within walking distance from major public transportation, and some are even steps away from the courthouse.

This enhances your law firm’s professional image and accessibility to clients. We have 3 locations to choose from and meet your exact needs.

Benefit 4: Fully Equipped Offices

You don’t need to be an AM250 firm yet to access top-tier support. Amata’s offices come fully equipped with essential office amenities, including furniture, high-speed internet, phone lines, printing and scanning facilities, and conference rooms. This minimizes your need to invest in office infrastructure.

Benefit 5: Support Services

One of the downsides when transitioning from a big corporation to running your own solo or small law firm is giving up the numerous support mechanisms that make life easier.

That is why Amata provides on-demand (hourly) support services in the form of admin assistants, paralegals, receptionists, and business phone/phone app services that free your time to focus on billable hours and enjoy your life.

Imagine having:

  1. Hourly paralegals that work as if they are on your staff.
  2. Administrative assistants that work with you virtually and in person, depending on your needs and circumstances.
  3. Paralegal assistants that go to city hall, the Recorders Office and deliver courtesy copies to judges for you.
  4. Live receptionists who can screen your calls, handle new clients in-take, and greet your guests.
  5. Notary/witness service program at all locations; plus a remote notary/witness service program that includes video recording.

These are all examples of what our law firms get with our Attorney Support Services.

Benefit 6: Networking Opportunities

Growing a solo firm can be, as the name implies, pretty lonely. But with Amata’s model it doesn’t have to be this way.

You’ll get to meet professionals from other industries, which can lead to new clients, referrals, or joint ventures. We also organize monthly meetings with over 600 other attorneys, where you can expand your network and business opportunities.

Benefit 7: Scalability

When your revenue goes down, as a business owner you need to reduce expenses to maintain profit. Amata allows you to drop or add offices during the term of the contract without penalty, resulting in true office flexibility.

Whether your law firm grows or downsizes, you can easily adjust your office space needs without the complications of breaking leases or finding new locations. This scalability in your office space costs (which typically represent a significant portion of expenses) can be invaluable during fluctuations in client demand.

Benefit 8: Virtual Office Services

Working from home can be phenomenal, but there’s one problem: you can’t use your home address for client services!

That is why we provide a virtual business address, so clients associate your organization with Class A, prominent office buildings in the Chicago area. A virtual business address also entitles you to receive correspondence at the location, receive phone calls, and enjoy mail processing and forwarding from the on-site staff.

The New Office Model, Perfect for Solo and Small Law Firms.

The Office-as-a-Service (OaaS) model was born to provide attorneys and law firms with flexible office terms and help them reduce costs while improving operational efficiency.

This enables legal professionals to focus on billable hours, serve their clientele, and enjoy life on their terms. You can access fully equipped offices in prime locations, along with a suite of AM250-level support services, all tailored to your unique needs.

For more than 21 years we have helped attorneys like you to serve more clients without sacrificing their health, family life, or profitability in the process. Give us a call today if you’d like to explore our flexible and scalable office solutions.

Discover our offices for lawyers in Chicago.

How to Access Top Legal Support Services Without Being an AM250 Yet

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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.

Discover our legal support staff for lawyers in Chicago.

Office Flexibility and Cost Controls

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By Ron Bockstahler

The most common question I’m asked lately is “What is happening in the office space sector?”.  With a client base of over 800 law firms and businesses, I usually have a good read on what is happening in the office sector of the real estate industry. Throughout June we have seen an increased demand for office space, but more specifically, the demand for flexible office space has been a top priority. Clients are placing a high priority on office flexibility and cost controls in their office selection.

JUNE CONTRACTS

This last week of June alone, Amata signed 12 contracts and/or amendments with existing clients and new clients. Eight of these were to take additional or new space and four were to reduce space. One virtual client, converted to have a full-time office and a California based law firm sign an amendment to have Amata manage their phone system and answer their phones. In each conversation clients were focused on cost controls by exercising the flexibility in their agreements.

FLEXIBILITY

Not included in the above-mentioned new contracts is a 500+ employee New York based law firm, that renewed their agreement with Amata, adding additional offices. The deciding factor to remain with Amata versus signing a lease for their own space was the flexibility Amata provides. Adding or removing an office during the contract term, without any penalty is crucial in this business environment. Another firm dropped an office from their agreement the first week in June, then added a workstation this past week. Successful firms are adapting to the fast-changing business landscape and controlling costs by taking advantage of the flexible lease and staffing solutions provided by Amata.

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

One of Amata’s greatest competitive advantages is the flexibility to manage expenses quickly to match changes in revenues. The cost structure with traditional office landlords makes it impractical and unprofitable to provide tenants this type of flexibility. When a company signs a lease, the landlord amortizes the cost to build-out the space, cover concessions, and brokers fees. Amortized costs do not go away when tenant downsizes and no longer requires all the space. Expanding beyond the initially leased space, without increasing the lease term, further locks in fixed expenses.

Learn more about how you can add flexibility and cost controls to your office expenses by contacting Amata.

Discover our offices for lawyers in Chicago.

Selecting The Best Virtual Office

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How do you select the best virtual office program? There has been a big increase in the demand for these programs recently. With the increased demand  many new players, looking to make a quick buck, have entered the playing field. Some are marketing companies, with no direct responsibility for the services you are receiving.

Others have very limited resources and experience in providing clients the services they need. When selecting a virtual office provider be sure to look into their history and to make sure they will be accountable for providing the services you are paying for. The most successful companies survive on their reputation, so providing the best service possible is how they win new clients.

Amata Office Suites has been providing Virtual office services for more than 21 years. Understanding how to take care of our clients is what we do better than anyone in the industry.

WHO USES VIRTUAL OFFICE PROGRAMS

Large firms are using virtual office programs to open in new cities. Since the pandemic began many small firms have converted to virtual office programs to reduce costs. Midsize firms that have given up traditional office leases now maintain a combination of physical office space in a coworking office, with a virtual presence for those employees that do not come into the office on a regular basis. Almost every business, regardless of size or the nature of the business, can benefit from maintaining some type of virtual office program.

SECURITY PROTECTIONS AND PROFESSIONAL IMAGE

When selecting the best virtual office, it is important they provide adequate security protections. Providing a home address and personal phone number can expose an owner to unnecessary risk. By using a virtual address for the company, an owner is better able to insulate their private lives from that of their business. In much the same way, separating an owner’s personal cell phone number from the business phone number helps to keep personal information separate from that of the business.

For most businesses a professional image influences their pricing models. Businesses with positive images in the minds of their consumers have more pricing power than those with a negative or neutral image. Companies with a prestigious address in a desirable location, immediately create a positive impression with clients.

COST SAVINGS

Renting or buying a physical office space can be a significant expense for businesses, especially startups or small businesses. Virtual offices offer a cost-effective alternative as they allow businesses to have a prestigious business address at a fraction of what a traditional office space would cost.

Virtual offices enable businesses to operate remotely and have a distributed workforce. Employees can work from anywhere, and the business can have a presence in multiple locations, creating a global presence. Firms can have local addresses and phone numbers in various countries or cities, helping them establish credibility and connect with local customers. This flexibility allows for increased productivity, profitability, and work-life balance for employees.

SUPPORT SERVICES

Virtual office services can include mail handling, a prestigious address, and many additional services that are provided a’ la carte. Many providers specialize by industry. For example, Amata Office Suites provides call answering with client in-take for law firms and professional service companies. Using a provider that provides a phone and phone app eliminates the expense of sourcing a separate business phone provider.

Administrative support can include the use of professional administrative assistants, paralegals and virtual assistants. Taking advantage of these resources will reduce a company’s fixed expenses, reducing risk.

Access to conferencing facilities is another benefit to using a virtual office service. The most prestigious virtual office providers provide access to meeting rooms, with the latest conferencing technologies to host in-person and virtual meetings. This provides businesses access to prestigious meeting rooms when needed, without the need for a dedicated office space.

Speak with an Amata team member to find out how your firm can benefit with a virtual office program. Contact us today.

Discover our virtual offices in Chicago.

Maximizing the Value of a Full-Time Employee

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Employee utilization rates may be the most ignored or misunderstood stat in small businesses and law firms. Instead of using quantifiable data, many small businesses rely on emotions or intuition to determine when it is time to hire a new employee.

What metrics is your company using to ensure an employees’ time is effectively utilized. Is there accurate data available to help determine when to make a new hire?

It is hard to imagine a law firm that generates revenue through billable hours hiring an additional lawyer if their current lawyers are only billing 10 hours each week.

EMPLOYEE UTILIZATION USING BILLABLE HOURS

We define employee utilization as the hours an employee is engaged in productive work divided by the total hours the employee is paid.

Generally, employees are paid for 2,080 hours annually (including vacation and sick time, excluding overtime). If you expect your employees to generate 1,352 billable hours each year, their utilization rate will be 65%.

Once an employee consistently reaches the utilization rate goal, it is time to hire an additional employee to continue growing your business. If the employee continuously fails to reach the utilization rate goal, it may be time to reevaluate if you have the best employee for the job.

ALTERNATIVE WAYS TO MEASURE EMPLOYEE UTILIZATION

For employees that do not generate revenue through billable hours, such as my companies accounting team members, require them to maintain a work log each day detailing what they worked on and how long it took. A simple spreadsheet is easy to create for each employee to log into throughout the day. This is a valuable tool for employees that work remotely and those that work in the office.

Understanding how much time employees spend on productive work versus time spent surfing the internet, emailing friends, and shopping will help companies increase productivity. Just knowing accountability measures are in place will quickly increase productivity among team members. A Google search on office worker productivity statistics may surprise you. The average office worker is productive 31% of their workday. In an 8 hour day, employees are not doing productive work for 5.5 hours, yet companies are paying for those hours.

BEST PRACTICES

To maximize employee utilization, here are some best practices to consider:

  1. Effective Workforce Planning
    Analyze your business needs, forecast workloads, and plan your workforce accordingly. This involves understanding the demands of different projects, departments, or seasons and aligning your staff resources accordingly.
  2. Clear Communication and Goal Setting
    Ensure that employees have a clear understanding of their roles, responsibilities, and performance expectations. Set specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals with your employees.  This enables them to prioritize their tasks and utilize time effectively.
  3. Efficient Task Assignment
    Match employees’ skills, expertise, and interests with the tasks they handle. Assign tasks based on strengths and provide opportunities for growth and development.
  4. Optimize Work Processes
    Streamline workflows and eliminate unnecessary steps or bottlenecks that can hinder productivity. Encourage employees to provide input on process improvements and implement their suggestions when possible. This will lead to increased efficiency and reduce time wasting activities.
  5. Regular Performance Monitoring
    Implement a system to track and monitor employee performance, enabling management to identify areas where employees may be underutilized or overburdened. Provide constructive feedback and offer support to help them overcome challenges and improve performance.
  6. Training and Skill Development
    Invest in training programs and provide opportunities for employees to enhance their skills. This helps them become more versatile and capable of handling a broader range of tasks, improving their overall utilization.
  7. Flexibility and Cross-Functional Collaboration
    Promote a culture of flexibility and cross-functional collaboration. Encourage employees to share their skills, knowledge, and experiences with one another. Foster a dynamic and resourceful workforce that can adapt to changing needs and fill gaps in different areas.
  8. Effective Time Management
    Work with employees on how to set priorities, avoid multitasking, and minimize distractions. Encourage breaks to maintain a healthy work-life balance and avoid employee burnout.
  9. Technology and Automation
    Deploy tools to streamline repetitive tasks, minimize manual effort, and free up employees’ time. Implementing the right tools can significantly increase overall productivity and employee utilization.
  10. Recognition and Rewards
    Recognize and reward employees for their achievements and efforts. A positive and motivating work environment can boost employee morale, engagement, and overall productivity.

Remember, maximizing employee utilization is not synonymous with overworking employees. It is crucial employees are able to maintain a healthy work-life balance. An alternative to overworking employees or hiring new employees before revenues justify them is Amata’s on-demand virtual assistants, executive assistants and paralegals. Amata can assist with overflow work, back-up when a full-time staff member is out or on a temporary basis while the company is searching for a new full-time employee.

Would you like to speak with Amata team members to find someone that is a fit for you? Contact us today.

Discover our legal support staff for lawyers in Chicago.

Work-From-Home Lawyer? 5 Things You Need to Outpace Your Competition

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Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s become more common for lawyers to implement a work-from-home model for their law practice. Working from home certainly comes with benefits like less commuting time, flexible work hours, and access to the best snacks in the fridge.

But adapting your law practice to a work-from-home model takes planning and hard work. While working from home can be a welcome transition for many legal professionals, it’s important to have the right tools in place to keep up with the competition and remain relevant in the legal sphere.

Here are our top 5 suggestions to help your law firm operate remotely and still achieve success.

 

#1 Create a Dedicated Work Space

If you don’t already have a home office, dedicating a space for work is a must. Creating a functional, private space helps spark productivity and delineates a boundary between home-life and work-life. Maintaining work / life boundaries is particularly important for your mental health, since legal work is often all-consuming and stressful. When you have a separate work-space it’s easier to set aside your professional concerns and rejoin your family when the day is over.

Although some folks have a tendency to overwork themselves at home, it’s also easy to procrastinate and do chores around the house, watch TV, or get distracted by family or roommates. Having a separate work space enables you to limit distractions and tackle the task at hand with greater efficiency.

 

#2 Focus on Marketing and Advertising

Now that your law office is operating remotely, it’s more essential than ever to advertise your skills to the public. Folks might expect you to have a brick-and-mortar location and may be confused by your lack of permanent address. To combat this confusion, it’s wise to broadcast your availability online.

You can market your law firm by:

–          Making sure your website is full of accurate and SEO keywords the target the types of things your clients are looking for. 

–          Investing in specific ways to point people to your website like advertising on spaces like law organization websites and Google Adwords or creating engaging content to post regularly on social media.

–          Starting an email newsletter with frequent updates and answers to general legal questions.

–          For more ideas on marketing strategy, just ask us! We have partners ready to help you take control of your digital marketing.

#3 Use Video Conferencing Software

Video conferences have become a ubiquitous form of communication. There’s no doubt that online meetings are the new normal and more folks are comfortable navigating online forums. To keep up with the ever-evolving legal world, it’s imperative to have the latest and fastest video conferencing software. 

Double check to make sure your camera is updated, your internet can handle video calls, and your microphone provides sufficient audio. Once you have your video-chat set-up complete, you’ll be ready to take meetings with clients and conduct interviews from the comfort of your home office.

 

#4 Embrace Tools for Collaboration

If you work in a firm with multiple partners, paralegals, and assistants, it’s crucial to maintain fluid communication even when working from home.

  •         Implement Online Chat Services – Instead of relying on text messages or phone calls to communicate, invest in online communication services to keep your team organized and on the same page. This way, you can keep communication all in one place and instantaneously send and receive messages through a secure platform.
  •         Use a Virtual Mailbox – You don’t want to receive business-related correspondence at your personal address. Aside from the obvious infringement on your privacy, receiving sensitive documents at a non-secure location may cause heightened anxiety. A virtual mailbox service provides you with all the benefits of a physical address without the need to pay any rent. Your mail will be directed to a real, secure address and instantly scanned and uploaded to an online server by a licensed courier. A virtual mailbox allows you to view your mail online instantaneously, and you don’t need to worry about packages being stolen or clients sending sensitive mail to a PO box or personal address.

#5 Employ Virtual Legal Assistance

Running a successful law firm entails completing a lot of paperwork and conducting extensive research. To help lessen the load, consider hiring a virtual legal assistant. Virtual assistants, or virtual paralegals, offer your firm the support you need on a case-by-case basis. Instead of hiring a full-time employee, virtual assistants offer all the expertise of highly trained legal professionals on a flexible scale. If you find yourself facing an increased caseload, or are going through a dry patch, you can scale-up or scale-down as needed to receive the support you need to tackle your workload.

 

Work with Amata Law Office Suites

At Amata Law Office Suites, we offer lawyers and legal professionals in-person and virtual law office opportunities. We are dedicated to fostering a community where lawyers can work, meet, and utilize legal resources to improve their business. 

Amata Law Office Suites provides the tools you need to upscale your virtual office, including virtual mailbox services, in-person conference spaces, and professional phone services. Come and join the Amata community today!

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3 Considerations for Becoming a Virtual Law Firm

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The COVID-19 pandemic has offered a hard reset to the legal profession. No longer are lawyers confined to big firms in big offices, and clients are happier than ever to take meetings from the comfort of their home computer. Becoming a virtual law firm comes with a host of benefits that can not only benefit your business, but makes your clients more satisfied.

But what does a virtual law firm need to succeed in today’s legal landscape? In this blog, we examine three pivotal considerations when deciding to make the switch to becoming a virtual law firm.

What is a Virtual Law Firm?

A survey conducted in an ABA Legal Technology Survey Report shows that the term “virtual lawyer” means many different things to many different legal practitioners. The most common consensus is that a virtual lawyer lacks a traditional office space. As lawyers have entered the 21st century, the common notion of a law firm has developed and evolved, particularly for solo or private practitioners.

Yet in the wake of COVID-19, the definition has once again evolved, as over 80% of law firms transitioned to working remotely some or all of the time. With this meteoric change, the way lawyers work has changed dramatically, and their tools with it. Nearly every law firm might now be called a “virtual law firm” to some degree.

The unprecedented shift towards virtual business across nearly every segment of the economy has also changed how customers engage with law firms. 

Minimum Requirements for Becoming a Virtual Law Firm

No matter how a lawyer defines a virtual law office, lawyers who use the internet to conduct business must make careful considerations around how they interact with clients. Failing to acknowledge certain aspects of your practice can put you in legal hot water, including:

  • Office Address Requirements
  • Client Engagement
  • Cybersecurity
  • Practicing Within Your Jurisdiction

Office Address

Two different types of office address requirements exist in the legal field: a physical office requirement, and an advertising office requirement. Depending on your state or jurisdiction, these requirements vary widely.

For instance, some states with an integrated bar requirement mandates a physical residence address necessary for Board of Governors elections. These are different from mailing addresses, which often don’t need to be tied down to a working space. In these cases, a physical office is mandatory.

An “advertising office requirement” is an adaptation of the ABA Model Rule 7.2(d), requiring that all legal marketing materials include the name and contact information of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content. Most states have some variation on this rule.

The internet offers a robust network for expanding your client base through online advertising. By targeting online content to prospective clients, lawyers can quickly net qualified leads by leveraging digital marketing strategies based on search inquiries. Before you start practicing law virtually, ensure that you check any office address requirements in your area.

Client Engagement and Cybersecurity

At the beginning of the pandemic, the speed at which lawyers were able to adapt to a new working environment was largely contingent upon whether they were a paper-based or paperless law office.

Paperless law firms provide lawyers with tools that help streamline their day-to-day operations, such as quick retrieval of documents and electronic signature authentication, all without being present in an office setting. Not only can this help put hours back in your day, it can also be of tremendous benefit for those who work off flat fees.

To successfully pull this off in a virtual law office setting, you will need to consider how you will engage with your clients without being present in the same room. Cloud-based client portals are quickly becoming a requirement for keeping a client and their lawyer aligned on a case, provided that due diligence is taken to ensure that their information is safe from cybersecurity attacks. The Illinois State Bar Association has outlined several methods for selecting a cloud-based service provider.

Taking the time to digitize existing paper documents can be arduous, but it future-proofs your legal practice and makes it easier to serve clients in the long-term.

Practicing in Your Jurisdiction

While your practice may be virtual, your ability to practice in different states is not.  Virtual law offices need to be extremely diligent in avoiding the unauthorized practice of law, or UPL.

Even if your business is not actively soliciting clients from other jurisdictions, you can only serve clients in regions you are licensed to practice in. Marketing efforts can usually be tailored from state-to-state, but the best digital strategy you can use to ensure you can serve your clients comes from the intake process.

Whether you opt to use an online form or virtual legal receptionists, your intake process should be clear about what states you can and cannot represent. The more structured this process, the less likely you will represent a client out of your jurisdiction.

Amata Law Office Suites: Providing Tools for Tomorrow’s Virtual Law Office

With more lawyers opting out of a physical office for a virtual one, Amata Law Office Suites provides clients with all of the tools you need to succeed in today’s legal environment. We provide a community where lawyers can work side by side and access the expertise across a wide variety of specializations, which can also be accessed on a hybrid or virtual model. Come in for client meetings as-needed, or utilize our legal services to bolster your business. Virtual receptionists and contract paralegals are all a part of our services, making us the premiere legal office experience. Full program and pricing details available here.

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How to Find a Virtual Legal Assistant

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We Are A Full-Service Support Solution For Professionals

One of the biggest issues facing lawyers today is the accrual of billable hours. During the early days of 2020, lawyers were forced to work remotely and reconfigure their entire practice. This led to a decline in billable hours across the board, with legal practitioners struggling to make ends meet. One study suggests that most law firms were only able to net an average of 2.5 billable hours each day.

To make a profit as a lawyer, you must net as much billable time as possible. Particularly for solo or private practice lawyers, this task may be insurmountable with the tools at hand. The best way to overcome this problem is through delegating tasks to support staff. But in a world that has largely moved towards home offices, finding paralegals and secretaries isn’t as easy as it once was.

The cost of hiring staff has also risen. In a labor market where even the biggest corporations are struggling to procure talent, it takes more money and time to interview and train employees. According to the U.C. Berkeley Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, recruiting costs for a new employee can range from $2,000 to $7000, and the cost of a bad hiring decision can cost a minimum of 30% of that employee’s salary.

For lawyers working remotely that don’t have the resources to recruit new hires, a second option exists: hiring virtual legal assistants through an alternative legal services provider (ALSP). How do I find a virtual legal assistant, and what can these services provide my law firm? Read on, as we explore how ALSPs are revolutionizing the legal practice.

What is a Virtual Legal Assistant?

A virtual legal assistant offers a vital solution to the problems faced by lawyers today. Rather than working alongside you in an office, you can delegate various tasks to a decentralized team of virtual legal assistants that work with the same efficiency as in-house staff. 

Many virtual legal assistants fall into two categories: virtual paralegals, and virtual secretaries.

  • A virtual paralegal can perform the brunt of your non-billable work. Aside from routine law firm tasks, virtual paralegals can handle billing clients, document management, client communication, and more.
  • Virtual legal secretaries can handle your inbound calls and process leads that are suitable for your business. 

Hiring a virtual legal assistant through an alternative legal services provider means you can avoid the costly process of interviewing, vetting, and training your own team. They aren’t under your payroll, meaning you don’t have to pay for their benefits. Virtual legal assistants can be utilized as-needed, meaning they can hit the ground running to help provide greater time efficiencies in your practice as well as scale with your workload.

How to Find a Virtual Legal Assistant

Finding a virtual legal assistant on your own can be just as taxing as hiring an employee in-person. You’ll have to vet their work ethic, communication, project management skills, and work history. Once you’ve selected a candidate, you’ll have to spend time better spent on billable hours training them in on your process.

Alternative legal service providers like Amata Law Office Suites do all of the hard work on your behalf, so you can start seeing immediate results. Amata’s virtual legal assistant services are designed around the most pressing needs lawyers face. We charge our services by the minute, rather than by the hour, meaning you can rest assured that you are getting precisely the value you are paying for. For small practices, this can be an immense boon – you only have to pay when they are working.

Are you ready to start delegating and net more billable hours? Contact us today for more information about our services.

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An International Perspective: How One Attorney’s Network Expanded

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Sandra Chiarlone

When international lawyer Sandra Chiarlone traveled to the United States from Italy to practice law, she immediately knew she was in for a challenge. Despite only having law experience in Europe, and a language barrier to contend with, Chiarlone was determined to make Chicago her home.

“I visited the US and came here as a nobody,” Chiarlone said. “I was a small fish in a big pond.” And it was exactly what she wanted to be.

Luckily, there was a way to make that pond feel much smaller. Chiarlone’s practice, SC International Law Offices, operates out of one of four Amata Law Offices locations and utilizes the support staff to help manage her practice.

With COVID travel restrictions loosening worldwide, the reliable support team at Amata remains a crucial piece in the growth of international law practices everywhere but especially in Chicago where most of its 700+ lawyers are based, allowing Charlione to flourish.

Reliable Legal Support Services Fit Attorney Schedules

Between juggling multiple time zones and remaining sensitive to a myriad of cultural differences, the schedule of an international attorney can be complex. Amata’s in person and virtual support services can help make working from any city feel like home.

“Amata has been very important to my career. The solutions suggested for my office have been fantastic,” Chiarlone said. “[Before COVID] I used to travel every three to four months and Amata allowed me to run my international law practice no matter where my travels took me. I rely on the wonderful staff to help me.”

Chiarlone also noted that Amata-sponsored events have helped her connect with other lawyers and grow her practice in Chicago.

“I could refer cases to colleagues and they could refer to me, I was able to expand my network through the legal community that Amata has built and the events it organized,” Chiarlone said.

Much of the work Chiarlone is involved in deals with clients who are based in the United States and have ties to Italy, or vice versa. Balancing proceedings in multiple countries requires a dedicated and reliable team, such as Amata’s team.

“When I was abroad I could count on the Amata staff for the needs I had,” Chiarlone said.

Flexibility and Support Even During the Most Unusual Times

While most of Chiarlone’s cases revolve around Italian inheritances, property management and estate planning, the past year saw a flood of clients applying for dual citizenship. In 2020, American applicants for Italian dual citizenship alone grew considerably.

This increase in demand for international lawyers as a result of the applications for dual citizenship coincided with changes in workflow due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even with these changes, the Amata team ensured that lawyers such as Chiarlone could continue to focus on their clients and keep things running smoothly.

“It was the best during the pandemic because I could count on the staff, as I always can, with no problem,” Chiarlone said. “Now I work virtually. During the pandemic I had to meet in-person with some clients. I felt safe because of the investment Amata made to its offices. It was prompt in thinking about the safety needs of its attorneys, our clients and their personnel.”

Choice is freedom. That’s what Amata offers–the freedom to practice in a way that suits you, your firm and your clients best, and grants you a balanced life while you watch your practice flourish and grow. Learn how Amata can support your business by filling out the form below.

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