THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL 60 | MARCH 2025 Law Practice Tips The Law Firm Automation Manifesto and Law Firm ‘Cookbooks’ By Jim Calloway LAST MONTH IN THIS SPACE, we discussed document automation for law offices. Given the improvement in document assembly tools and their anticipated future path of improvement, more lawyers should be creating “first drafts” through a more automated process, even if it is something as simple as creating Word templates for documents they prepare regularly. Now, we will turn to a topic I have touched on frequently over the years: office procedures manuals (which are sometimes informally called law firm cookbooks). These are of increased importance in 2025 because of the impact of emerging automation tools beyond document assembly, such as allowing clients to schedule appointments online. “The client needs to come in. Please contact them to schedule an appointment,” is evolving to, “The client needs to come in. Send them an appointment scheduler email (or text).” This communication includes several suggested times among which to choose and a brief explanation of why they need to schedule this appointment. But the first method involves manual processes and staff time. The second involves typing the reason for the meeting in the scheduler email and hitting send. No further action or time is required until you hear back from the software that an appointment has been scheduled, or X days have passed with no response. Using technological tools to reduce time spent on manual processes is very important for law firms’ futures, as is standardization. The goal is for everyone to accomplish tasks the same way. I’ve visited law firms with three partners who each insisted on handling tasks in their own unique way, including how the client files were organized. It became challenging when that lawyer’s assistant was absent for an extended period. While other staff members in the firm might have been willing to step in and assist, it was frustrating with different client file organization, processes and even different forms. Standardization is good and makes your daily operations run more smoothly. Here are some tips on building your law firm procedures “cookbook.” TAKE IT FROM BILL GATES One of Bill Gates’ most quoted observations is: “The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency.” His observation offers valuable lessons for lawyers aiming to enhance law firm operations. Here’s how it can apply. Prioritize Process Optimization Before Automation Lesson: Lawyers must evaluate and streamline their workflows before introducing or upgrading technology. For example, if the intake process for new clients is disorganized, automating it without improvement will only create more confusion and inefficiencies. Action: Conduct a detailed review of existing operations to identify bottlenecks, redundancies or gaps. Focus on creating efficient systems first, then use automation to enhance them. Focus on Quality, Not Just Speed Lesson: Technology can make tasks faster, but it won’t fix errors in poor processes. For example, automating contract drafting with templates and automation will only work well if the templates are accurate and well-crafted. Action: Ensure the foundational work – like legal templates, precedent databases and workflows – is robust and error free before automating.
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