Management Matters: Here to help
Vol. 77, No. 1 / Jan. - Feb. 2021
Affinity Consulting Representatives1
In early 2020, The Missouri Bar launched a new Law Practice Management Center at mobar.org/LPM to help lawyers even better serve their clients. The Law Practice Management Center is organized to follow the life cycle of a law practice, helping lawyers open, build, manage, protect, and wind down. Here, we’ll talk about what you will find in each of those areas of the website – and what to do if you need additional resources.
Open
In this section of the website, members will find technology checklists, purchasing guides, tips for finding the best deals on legal technology, and links to Missouri Bar member benefits, including discounts on services and products. Members will also find a guide for starting a law practice and a new lawyer’s guide to the bar.
Build
Tools for marketing, advertising, navigating social media, earning referrals, and, of course, links to articles and relevant ethics opinions on these topics are located under this section. We worked to think of everything bar members may need in one spot, so it’s easy to find, and easy to use.
Manage
This is the most densely populated area of the site, with helpful checklists and whitepapers on practice management; time billing and accounting; documents; e–filing; technology; time management; hiring and firing; working with clients; and limited scope representation. There are also comparison charts to help lawyers navigate software and technology options.
Protect
Lawyers have an ethical obligation to protect client data, and with so many devices being used to access and consume client and matter information, protecting it can be overwhelming. Lawyers owe it to their clients, employees, and law licenses to check out this section. Here, members will also find information for disaster preparedness, cybersecurity planning, and more.
Wind Down
Whether members are closing their practices and planning for retirement or merging law offices for a new venture, in this section of the website they will find helpful checklists to makes sure they have left no stone unturned. Succession planning checklists and guidelines live here, too – and it is never too early to start planning.
Ask an Expert
The resources don’t stop there. If bar members don’t find what they are looking for, they can email Affinity Consulting any question about the management and technology at their firms. While Affinity Consulting can’t provide legal advice, their experts can connect lawyers with the tools and re-sources to help open, operate, and wind down their practices.
Members can also schedule a short consultation with one of Affinity Consulting’s consultants. Best of all? These services are included in your Missouri Bar membership. No extra fees, and no separate login; just the resources Missouri Bar members need to make good decisions and run a successful law practice.
The Law Practice Management Center can be Missouri Bar members’ go-to resource for all their law office management and technology needs. Get started at MoBar.org/LPM.
Endnotes
1 As a Missouri Bar member benefit, lawyers can speak with Affinity Consulting experts regarding legal technology and law practice management questions. At no cost, Missouri lawyers can email their question to an expert or schedule a one-on-one, remote consultation. Learn more at MoBar.org/LPM.