INTRODUCTION
The world today has become an extremely fast-paced environment in both personal and professional spaces. The stakes are higher in professional environments due to the competition between industry players and the need to stay relevant. The advent of technology and its accompanying tools have made the level of competition even fiercer and amplified the need for more innovations in technology.
The legal profession is a broadly diverse profession with different parts working simultaneously for the common goal of client satisfaction. In achieving this goal, lawyers and law firms need to integrate technology into every part of their work, including substantive law practice and law office management. This will enable lawyers to remain competitive and maintain client satisfaction. Many reliable websites contain information on useful tools for lawyers in performing their duties. However, this article carefully highlights the top software for lawyers in the current age of legal practice:
MICROSOFT OFFICE TOOLS
As basic as they may seem, Microsoft Office tools have been hugely essential to the success of most law firms around the world. Being the office software with the largest market share in the world, Microsoft Office pioneered the corporate revolution that continues to evolve to the present day. Office functions like the creation of documents, sorting and collating numbers and financial data, sharing of messages between colleagues, and the storage of information have been made seamless through Microsoft Office and its accompanying products (Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Outlook and PowerPoint).
As basic as they may seem, Microsoft Office tools have been hugely essential to the success of most law firms around the world.
CLOUD STORAGE PLATFORMS
Legal materials and documents are extremely sensitive, and the corruption of a single document may invalidate the rest of the pile. The existence of cloud storage tools like Google Drive and iCloud eliminates this problem. Files can be saved immediately after completion to online storage platforms where they can remain safe and unfettered until they are next needed. Physically storing hard copy files and the cumbersome, energy-draining process involved is thereby avoided. In addition, storage on computer local files poses different risks, including hacking, virus corruption and the possibility of accidental deletion. Every one of these risks is hugely mitigated with the use of cloud storage.
VIDEO SHARING APPLICATIONS
Meetings with colleagues and clients do not always have to be physical, except when absolutely necessary, or provided by the law. Video sharing and real-time communication tools like Cisco, Skype, Microsoft Teams and Zoom are more than capable of providing reasonable alternatives in form of online video meetings, where lawyers can see and communicate with one another in real-time, as well as with clients. This function comes in particularly handy during emergencies, and when the parties find it impossible to leave their locations.
DIGITAL NOTEPADS
One thing lawyers do an awful lot is scribble ideas down, wherever they find themselves. It could be ideas that just hit them on how to strategise their arguments on an ongoing litigation case, or new agenda points for an upcoming meeting. Either way, they take notes in order to recall them when necessary and to share them with their colleagues. Platforms like Google Keep and Microsoft One Note allows for collaborative use, where content written by an individual can be viewed on another device. If utilised properly, these applications can be used by teams simultaneously, making work done faster and more efficient.
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EDITING AND AUTOMATION SOFTWARE
Finally, editing and automation software are probably the second most important set of tools to lawyers, after Microsoft Office tools. This is because it is not enough for lawyers to create relevant documents for their clients. They also have to make them devoid of errors and mistakes that could be costly to the case or transaction at hand. Grammarly is a prime example of such platforms, where document authenticity, grammar, and sentence structure, among others, are checked and accordingly corrected.
