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Similar to Case Closed: How to Optimize Your Legal Intake Process for Efficiency
Case Closed: How to Optimize Your Legal Intake Process for Efficiency
- 5. If your businessclients are calling or emailing you directly... there’s a better way! Link to Download in Chat!
- 6. High, consistent volume Channelswitching Inaccurate information Little-to-no triage Messy assignment CONSIDER THIS... = Legal Department…. Or Emergency Hotline? ‘Old School’ intake process:
- 7. Let's Dive In! TOSMARTER LEGAL INTAKE EIGHT STEPS …Let’s Dive In!
- 8. POLL 1 1 2 3 Do yourinternal clients know and follow protocols about when to contact the Legal Department? In development Yes, but not well No 4 Yes, we do this well
- 9. BEGINNER LEVEL One-page guide: •when to contact Legal Department • who to contact in Legal Department • resources that can be used to self-resolve • define ‘trip wires’ (e.g., marketing new products, client complaints) that must have Legal Department review Control your inputs! STEP 1: ESTABLISH A PROTOCOL OF “WHEN TO CONTACT LEGAL” Avoid last-minute material issues Avoid routine pestering Manage Business Units: Be disciplined in following your own rules
- 10. Get what youneed the first time: Key information: • Requester’s name • Business Unit • Summary of issue • Deadline • Involved parties (with execution details) • Relevant documents Then, educate your business units on the necessary information. BEGINNER LEVEL STEP 2: CREATE STANDARDIZED LEGAL REQUEST FORMS Low tech: Word document sent to ‘Legal’ inbox > auto-reply with list of requirements.
- 11. To show: • LegalRequest • Matter Deadline • Business Unit • Legal Department Contact Ensure "who's doing what" visibility! Your triage dashboard should: • provide certainty you aren’t missing deadlines • ensure you are not overwhelming 1or 2 team members • show trends by business units, work type, and more BEGINNER LEVEL STEP 3: TRIAGE ALL ASSIGNMENTS IN ONE PLACE Higher tech: Matter Management Dashboard Implementation Low tech: spreadsheet or Word document
- 12. AT THIS POINT,YOUR DEPARTMENT HAS MADE HUGE STEPS FORWARD! NO, REALLY.... NEXT.... You have a system: • Business clients are making the right requests. • You are consistently capturing the right information. • You can track all of your work in one place. • You begin each matter with the intel you need With all this in place, your efficiency is improving. Are you ready to take it to the next level?
- 13. Make collaboration easyand build goodwill! •Relay major milestones: notify clients when: ⚬ A matter is received (confirmation builds trust) ⚬ A matter is assigned (client knows the contact) ⚬ Delivery dates change ⚬ A matter is completed •Make collaboration easy: ⚬ New or changing instructions ⚬ Requesting more information or clarification ⚬ Share additional documents (business) or completed documents (Legal) INTERMEDIATE LEVEL STEP 4: SEND PROGRESS UPDATES TO CUSTOMERS ON THEIR PROJECTS Higher tech: Automated messages from matter management systems Low tech: Template emails and routine updates in standard (manual) procedures
- 14. POLL 2 1 2 3 We havelegal request forms that have specific and responsive questions based on the request type. In development 4 We do this, but not well We do this well We do not do this
- 15. Different work requiresdifferent information. INTERMEDIATE LEVEL STEP 5: USE DYNAMIC LEGAL REQUEST FORMS Draft checklists: • Commercial context • Confirmation of compliance with business process • Details of authorization received • Documents required for specific work type Higher tech: Matter Management software with dynamic request forms Implementation Low tech: specific (paper or Word doc) request forms for each work type
- 16. Make it easyfor YOUR CLIENTS: • Single sign on • Single interface • Integrations with business systems Make it easy for your LEGAL DEPARTMENT: • One system • Full visibility • Integrate with business systems INTERMEDIATE LEVEL STEP 6: INTEGRATE INTAKE SYSTEM Higher tech: Connect matter management software to business systems for a fully streamlined outcome. Implementation Low tech: Intake forms on the intranet, or email inbox plus systems plus spreadsheets.
- 17. NEXT.... You’ve made itso much easier for clients to engage your team: • Your templates give you the information you need in a systemized manner. • They always know the status of their projects. • Your system works with technology they already use. With all this in place, your internal credibility and trust is high. NO, REALLY.... Are you ready to take it to the next level? AT THIS POINT, YOUR DEPARTMENT IS OUTPERFORMING ITS PEERS!
- 18. An advanced intakesystem will allow you to flag frequently asked questions and provide: • Standard answers • Links to documents • A checklist of steps to be taken by your clients before they tap into the legal resources Educate your clients to help themselves. STEP 7: PROVIDE CLEAR FAQs FOR CLIENTS Many of your requests are repeats! But they don’t need to be repeated effort. ADVANCED LEVEL Higher tech: An interactive, online ‘Legal Portal’ for searching and finding answers. Implementation Low tech: Provide desk references such as boilerplates and checklists.
- 19. STEP 8: PROVIDESELF-SERVICE TOOLS FOR REGULAR, LOW RISK WORK Sometimes the intake process is … no process at all! Empower your business clients with: • Knowledge and training • Playbooks and checklists • Templates • Self-configuring documents ADVANCED LEVEL Higher tech: Legal ‘portal’ and automated document generation. Implementation Low tech: Training, checklists, template documents via intranet.
- 20. Data can empoweryou to make better, more well-informed decisions about your resourcing, budgeting and more. Specific to intake, you can measure: BONUS STEP: USE DATA FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT Check out our complimentary e-book: In-House Legal Data Analytics for Beginners FOR EVERYBODY
- 21. YOUR TEAM HASMASTERED THE ART OF INTAKE & TRIAGE! BEGINNER: Step 1: Establish protocols for when to contact Legal Department Step 2: Create standard Intake Forms Step 3: Triage all assignments in one place INTERMEDIATE: Step 4: Use dynamic intake forms Step 5: Send progress updates to customers Step 6: Integrate intake system ADVANCED: Step 7: Provide FAQs for clients Step 8: Provide self- service tools for regular, low risk work FOR EVERYBODY: Use data for continuous improvement Intake is one of the most important stages of the Legal Department workflow.
- 23. Looking to learnmore about legal intake and see it in action? Sign up for a Xakia demo webinar:
Editor's Notes
- #6 173 requests from business clients 173 sets of parties, deadlines, and terms; and 173 opportunities for incomplete information, miscommunication, and heartburn.
- #9 Less than half of business customers follow contact protocols well Push your business clients back to the “rules”
- #10 Now that your business unit clients know when to request your help, offer guidance on how to structure it.
- #11 Danger: things fall through the cracks!
- #13 Reduce "status update" queries Despite high transparency in other services, two-thirds of Legal Departments lack systems for regular project updates.
- #15 In-house legal work rarely has a “one size fits all” solution. Contracts, litigation, and patents each require different approaches
- #16 Business clients accustomed to a hotline may resist standardized intake. Integrate with existing tech to ease the transition.
- #18 your organization renews a deal every year with a certain supplier or issues a standard noncompete. Use small team survey info here – free up time to focus on the things you need to learn for the first time
- #19 Collect data!!! Set yourself up for AI.
- #20 Fun Fact about Xakia’s name…