Grekin on Paperless (Electronic) Law Offices for Real Estate and Other Practitioners; Save Money, Time, and Trees

Save paper! Save money! Save time! In the Analysis, Nancy N. Grekin shares her tips for lawyers to maximize their use of electronic documents and explains the practical advantages. Even practitioners who have not yet started thinking about "saving paper" can benefit from Ms. Grekin's insight and experience. She writes:

     I know what you're thinking. A paperless lawyer is an oxymoron. How much time do you spend every day looking for documents in files? One hour? If your hourly rate is $225 you've just lost $50,000 in billable time! If it was all on your computer (and you had it organized properly) you could find anything with a mouse click or two. It is surprisingly easy, inexpensive and exceptionally efficient to be as paperless as you can be.

     If you want to be more paperless you will need:

•One or more scanners.

•An Internet fax account.

•Adobe Acrobat and/or PaperPort or other image management program.

•A big hard drive and careful back-up procedures.

     ....

Extranets

     An extranet is a password protected Internet site where you can store documents and allow access by clients and other lawyers. There are two types of extranets: server-based where a law firm runs extranet software on an in-house server, and so-called "deal rooms" which are Internet sites which sell storage space and access.

     Server-based programs are available from virtually all document management software companies, and from independent software companies. The programs offered by the DMS companies are integrated with the DMS and allow quick and easy upload and download of documents. Both deal rooms and software extranets provide version control, calendaring, listservs and chat capabilities, contact databases and a number of other features for tracking and organizing documents.

     The advantage of using extranets to store documents and to provide access to them in a deal is that they eliminate the need for e-mails to multiple clients and lawyers, and provide a way to track what version is being negotiated. They facilitate client service enormously by allowing a lawyer to store all of a client's documents in a password-protected site which provides convenient and constant access. This can be used both for deals and for client documents of all kinds. A corporate client which forms many entities can have ready access to organizational documents, including partnership agreements, operating agreements and By-Laws, the SS-4 form with the Federal Tax ID, contracts and agreements.

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