Friday Five: SmartPhone Tools for Lawyers
Posted: January 18th, 2008
By: Zach Heller
Category: Business Development Skills, Friday Five, Lawline.com, Opinion Corner

At Lawline.com, you know that we are always paying attention to the newest and best technologies available.  It is quite obvious that the more technologies available to lawyers, the easier it is to manage the many obligations of the legal profession.  In this edition of the Friday Five, I want to pay special attention to the latest and greatest mobile devices and how they can help make the life of an attorney a little easier.

TOP 5 WAYS TO USE YOUR MOBILE PHONE OR PDA FOR LAWYERS

1. TRACK BILLING TIME.  Many of the latest mobile devices have time trackers and stop watches built in that are perfect to use anytime you are working on a case.  Simply stop and start every time you are in a meeting, on the web, or on the phone with clients.  This way you have an exact time instead of trying to remember your hours later.

2. ACCESS DOCUMENTS FROM ANYWHERE.  With the ability to access the internet and store documents, newer smart phones allow you to carry everything you need everywhere you go.  Instead of lugging around physical files and folders, or a laptop, you can access anything you need in the palm of your hand.

3. DO RESEARCH ON THE GO.  Again, the ability to get on the web from any location can come in handy if you need to do some research on a case out of the office.  This is great for commuters and travelers who spend a lot of time on the move.  You are no longer constricted to your office when it comes to researching case files.

4. MANAGE CLIENTS.  Wireless access to email and messaging services allows you to keep in touch with your most important clients no matter what.  Clients will appreciate this and it will help you retain more clients at one time with the ease and mobility of communication.

5. MANAGE YOURSELF.  With the countless personal organization tools on every Smartphone, it will be easier than ever to manage the many obligations you have.  Some examples of useful tools are calendars, phone books, schedules, alarms, reminders, maps, and GPS.  Use them wisely and you may find that you can juggle all your responsibilities and then some.

In addition, many new phones have multimedia abilities built in, making it possible to listen to Continuing Legal Education on the go.  That makes sense, especially for lawyers with busy schedules (most, if not all) who need to complete CLE requirements on their own time.  With these phones getting better, smaller, and more affordable, it makes sense to take advantage of all the tools that they provide.  It can make anyone’s life much more manageable.

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