Family Law Attorney Janet Reed publishes third article in a series about Technology & the Law

JACKSONVILLE, N.C. - Nov. 30, 2018 - PRLog -- In her third article in a series, attorney Janet Reed discusses the advancements and impact of technology upon the Family Law practitioner, and how it is being utilized to enhance the client experience in terms of satisfaction and customer service. As technology reshapes all of modern personal and professional life, the legal profession is no exception. The complete articles will be published on the blog of Ms. Reed at https://janetreedesq.blogspot.com/

Technology is advancing, and the legal profession must keep up with these technological and societal changes. Many of us still remember when they first saw a personal computer, when cell phones became widely available, and when cell phones turned into smart phones that have become indispensable for many.

Incorporating technology into a law practice can make the practice more efficient and increase client satisfaction. In fact, technology may enable the practitioner to exceed client expectations. Here are a few, simple-to-implement options.

Phone Systems

Phone systems have advanced greatly. A wealth of call forwarding technologies enable clients to call a central number to reach an attorney anywhere. Skype enables you to conduct video conference calls during which you can share a screen and exchange documents.

But with phone forwarding, you may even have a remote answering such as Ruby Receptionists (www.callruby.com), which then takes a message or forwards the call to a specified phone number. Other services with great flexibility include Ring Central (www.ringcentral.com), Ooma (www.ooma.com) and Jive (www.jive.com).

Suddenly a physical office or geographical distance are less important. It has become almost normal for clients to work with law firms at a greater distance from their home or business location. Having an office close to your clients (or close to the courthouse) is suddenly not as critical.

Janet Reed notes that this also benefits clients, as they may decide to hire an attorney whose office is not nearby. It affords clients access to much greater legal talent and improved access to quality representation than was once available to them in smaller towns/markets.

What used to be an in-person consultation can now be done by email or a video conference. Since the number of in-person meetings is reduced, the cost to clients is reduced as well.

Virtual Meetings

Getting together for face-to-face meetings with clients can sometimes be difficult, especially when it includes travel. Skype (www.skype.com) and EZ Talks (www.eztalks.com), www.GoToMeeting.com and other video systems allow you to offer the experience of a live meeting, which can be much more productive and stimulating than a simple phone call, since human beings communicate to large extent non-verbally, through gestures, facial expressions, etc. Numerous Web-conferencing tools provide such visual and human elements of a live meeting. They allow attendees to communicate, collaborate on documents and even give presentations in real time.

In fact, there are free (or almost free) services with a lot of functionality that are useful for sharing and discussing on-screen documents, giving a presentation, recording and chat capabilities.

Client Portals

Online Client Portals are an option especially for a high-volume practice such as bankruptcy or Family Law law. Instead of answering innumerable phone calls with questions such as "What is the status of my case?", the firm offers access to a Portal where clients can see their exact case status in real time. In fact, password-protected portions of a law firm's website may be a more secure alternative to email. Clients can access their case information day or night, comment on drafts and get updates on court dates. Examples include Practice Panther (www.practicepanther.com) and One Hub (www.onehub.com). - To be continued. The complete articles will be published on the blog of Ms. Reed at https://janetreedesq.blogspot.com/

*NOTE: The inclusion of a technology or app in this article does not mean an endorsement or approval. The listed technologies are just for illustrative purposes. None of these particular technologies are endorsed or recommended by this author.

Janet Pittman Reed, Attorney in North Carolina

Janet Pittman Reed is an attorney in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and handles Family Law cases such as Divorce & Separation, Personal Injury, Traffic, Criminal Law, Driver's License Restoration Services, and Civil Litigation cases.

Website: https://janetreedlaw.com/
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