Conferencing for Lawyers and Attorneys
Audio, web and video conferencing is the best tool that helps lawyers and attorneys in their daily tasks of moving their cases forward to completion. What is not so well known is that there are several apps and features that can assist attorneys in accounting for costs and improving their efficiency.
Accounting for audio conferencing costs
You should be able to easily identify which client matter code each conference call is assigned to. You can do this with a pass code/pin code system. After you dial the telephone number to the conference bridge, you put in your pass code, when prompted by the bridge. This gets you into the conference call. When enabled, the bridge will then prompt you to put in your pin code, which would be your client billing matter number.
After this system is utilized, it will give you complete accountability on which calls should be billed to which clients. You can either use the online portal or conference viewer of the bridge to view your call details or you can use the billing summary on your monthly invoice.
Individual Billing
The conference company should set up the billing for each party (law firm) that is on the call and then bill them for only their parties that are members of that law firm. In a class action law suit, there may be fifty law firms on the call. A conferencing company should be able to account for the individual costs of each law firm and then invoice each firm directly, instead of having one firm taking the time to divide up the bill and then collecting the money separately to remit to the company.
Deposition Conference Calls
With a deposition call, you can use audio only or audio and video together. Each party would dial into the conference bridge for the audio portion of the call and use their web cam with a web conferencing service for the video part of the call. Both audio and video should be recorded for future playback and a link to or a copy of the recording sent to the firm. Deposition calls eliminate the travel and time needed for in person depositions.
Court calls can be used to save judges, attorneys and their client's time and money by actually adjudicating cases via conference call. Again, either audio or audio plus video can by used to facilitate these cases. Typically all attorneys and their clients dial into the conference bridge. When all parties are present, the conference operator then dials the judge on the case and places everyone in conference. Video can be used with web cams and web conferencing software and both audio and video can be recorded.
These are just a few of the most utilized apps for attorneys and law firms. If you would like more information on these apps or conferencing services for the legal profession, please click here to contact us.
