Building a Better Mousetrap

Many law firms (especially solo and small firms) are disorganized, decentralized and highly inefficient- despite their belief that they’re “doing well.”  Their workflows are deadline-driven, complex, stressful and tedious. Both lawyers and staff are constantly busy, often doing repetitive tasks the same way the’ve always done them.  To make things worse, people who “work together” have different ways of doing the same tasks- which breeds further inconsistency and invites all kinds of problems. These firms usually have few if any written rules or procedures- and even if they do, they’re not followed or enforced because they’re old, inaccessible, and often times embodied in a series of emails that were sent over a period of years- and perhaps read by whomever was working there at the time. Does any of this sound familiar? 

The legal industry is historically among the slowest to adapt to technology. Many firms are so focused on working and making money that their technology grows old and inefficient- and the longer that goes on, the more disruptive and expensive it gets to migrate to newer apps and platforms. Busy staff members are generally against making changes because they’re so comfortable with their present way of doing things- and they don’t have the time. Even when firms do take the initiative to make structural changes, many end up with incomplete (or failed) adoption. 

I’m a Process Guy. I like to study how things are done at law firms and figure out better or more efficient ways to do them. My goal is to Build a Better Mousetrap– which I define as coming up with a easier solution that involves fewer steps, more automation and better technology. I abhor doing anything that adds work or complicates the process further. Although there are plenty of great apps and systems that can help solve many of the challenges law firms face, the problem is invariably the people- who are often extremely comfortable with whatever they’re using- and who resist or outright refuse to even try a new solution.

I’ve always believed in helping law firms establish best practices, policies and procedures. That can be a gargantuan task- but it all begins with what specific problems the firm is trying to solve and their willingness to be objective and open minded to advice, suggestions, an new ways of doing things. Even after changes are made and workflows improved, everything can still fail if the firm doesn’t consistently enforce its rules, policies and procedures- and hold people accountable for failing or refusing to follow them. That’s the toughest part which often ends up being the fly in the ointment. 

On the other hand, firms that build better mousetraps and deploy them correctly will invariably be more productive and make more money. Therein lies my challenge as a Consultant.