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by Alan Alberts San Francisco Daily Journal LEGAL TECH SHOWCASES NEW DEVELOPMENTS |
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"One of the most interesting new announcements coming from the Legal Tech show in
downtown Los Angeles recently was from John Maxwell, a plaintiffs personal
injury attorney who was a computer science major before law school.
His software, P.I. Powertool, is interesting for two reasons. One is that it could make a real difference to a PI firm. The other is that it is a glimpse of how the computer is revolutionizing the practice of law. As with many areas of legal practice, personal injury cases involve lots of documents. These documents are essentially the same for every case - letters of representation, requests for police reports, requests for information about lost work time, requests for medical treatment information, Judicial Council forms, answers to interrogatories. Only the information like the client's name and the date of accident change. All of the information about a case is instantly available to anyone in the office on a computer screen. The advantage is that, if I call and say, "This is Alan Alberts. What's happening in my case?" anyone can answer immediately. This not only saves time looking for files, but it also provides great customer service. Other software that handles PI cases includes PINS, 21st Lawyer and Case Master. These programs, however, need a lot of setting up before you can use them. The advantage of using Pl Powertool is that everything is already setup. One of the most powerful features of the software is the Settlement Summary Screen, which lists all the clients injuries and calculates the client's net proceeds after expenses (and your fees). To get this information from competing systems takes some work on your part... " |