8 Technology Tips for Attorneys

Are you looking for ways to practice law more efficiently and travel more painlessly? Try these Technology Tips to improve the quality of your life as an attorney.

Followupthen

Never lose a lead on a new client or fail to realize you need to follow up on a case. When you use this free service, you send a BCC (blind carbon copy) message to followupthen.com preceded by the interval you want to use, such as 30days@followupthen.com. In 30 days, you will get a reminder email, enabling you to take action to follow up. You can select any time interval: hours, days, months, years, or a specific date.

Lastpass

Never forget a password. Store all of your passwords on a safe, free and secure site. All you need to remember is one username and password to access the data. Multiple layers of encryptions protect Lastpass from access by others.

Tripit

Heading out to take a deposition of a witness? Your spouse asks, “What flight are you on? Where are you staying?” Tripit enables you to keep all of your travel related details together. The Pro version, which has a nominal fee, enables you to share your itinerary with others. It also notifies you when the fare for your flight drops so you can take advantage of a refund.

Paperless Boarding Passes

Some airlines have apps that enable you to use your smartphone to display a boarding pass. Either turn on your phone and place it over the scanner at the TSA checkpoint or take a photograph of your screen by pressing the power and home buttons simultaneously.

TSA Precheck

My husband and I are frequent flyers on Southwest and now have TSA Precheck designation. We did not have to pay for this. We do not have to remove shoes, belts, coats computers or liquids when we fly on Southwest. By paying $100 for a 5 year TSA Precheck designation, you can get these privileges on any airline. Speed through security in a special TSA Precheck lane, and avoid going through Customs when you return to the US.

Flight Data

Get these apps for your smartphone: FlightBoard and FlightTrack. Is your plane on time? What gate should you head to? These apps for smartphones will give you the answers.

Word Lens

You are in a Spanish speaking country and see a sign. With this app, you can point your smartphone at the sign and get a translation in English. It is also available in French, Russian, Portuguese, Italian, German, and more languages to come. You don’t need an international data plan to use this app, either.

EverNote

With its distinctive and clever logo of a profile of an elephant, EverNote makes good on the promise to capture anything, access your information anywhere and remember everything. You use it to store notes, thoughts, maps – all of the bits of data that are important to you. Using keywords, you can locate notes, agendas, photos, articles, and much more in the data you’ve stored. A premium service adds enhancements to the free service.

Thanks to Dave Nelsen for sharing these ideas at the 2014 Winter Conference of the National Speakers Association.

Med League is a legal nurse consulting firm that assists attorneys handling cases involving medical negligence, personal injury and other litigation with medical issues at stake. Call us for assistance.