Practice Management
This treasure trove of guidance, practical tips and valuable insights, provides everything a lawyer needs to organise and run an efficient, profitable and enjoyable legal practice.
The detailed Commentary contains a wealth of knowledge on most aspects of legal practice, including:
- ethics;
- the solicitor/client relationship;
- the employer/employee relationship;
- matter management tools;
- risk management issues;
- client communications;
- costs disclosure and billing;
- employment including recruitment, training and retention; and
- financial management.
This publication can help firms make money – and reduce the stress levels of all team members.
The practice management guide is an excellent starting point for those interested in creating a strategic business plan for a new or existing law firm.
Also included is our comprehensive Legal Practice Health Check Tool, which allows a firm to readily assess its current performance and set goals for future development.
The related Reference Manual 101 Policies and Procedures contains most of the policies and procedures a small law firm will need. Adopt these policies completely or use them as a framework to establish your own.
Subscribe to this amazing resource today and take control of your legal practice’s future!
Recent updates can be viewed on Obiter - our News & Updates site.
Guides in this publication
MATTER PLAN
-
“ Contents Overview3 ”
-
“ A comprehensive manual on the essentials of operating a successful small law firm. Contents ”
-
-
-
“ REFERENCE SERIES ”
-
“ These policies and procedures cover most of the key issues which arise in the operation of a small law firm. They can be relied upon in their entirety for a start-up firm, employed as a basic template upon which any firm can build as it develops, or used as a check list to review an established ... ”
-
“ The firm’s procedure for achiving electronic files after the matter is completed and the file closed is: The firm’s procedure for achiving paper files after the matter is completed and the file closed is: ”
-
“ An asset register for the firm allows for the tracking of fixed assets and provides an estimate of their worth. It assists with taxation, insurance and potential sale-of-business compliance and provides an appropriate place to record detailed information such as serial numbers. An asset register is ... ”
-
“ Philosophy The firm strives to deliver the highest level of service and value to its clients. This means that team members are expected to be well mannered, engaged and responsive. This applies to all client communications – whether in person, by email and correspondence, or on the phone. ”
-
“ With LEAP: Open the matter in LEAP. ”
-
“ Our firm abides by a code of conduct that is displayed on our website and which aligns with professional standards and our own vision, mission and values statement. At all times our firm will: Serve our clients faithfully. ”
-
“ When a new file is opened, it is imperative to perform a check to verify if the firm has acted for any other party to the transaction at some other time. The Retainer Instructions require confirmation that the check has been made. If a conflict exists, the firm cannot act on the matter without the ... ”
-
“ Disclosure ”
-
“ The firm has a zero tolerance policy in relation to discriminatory behavior, harassment – including sexual harassment – and bullying. We believe all employees should work in an environment free from discrimination, harassment and bullying and we are committed to preventing these acts from occurring ... ”
-
“ Solicitors and conveyancers are professional people conducting a professional business, usually within an office environment and a larger professional community. Lawyers attending court must always be dressed in accordance with accepted courtroom standards. ”
-
“ Follow the client’s lead The firm is committed to communicating with clients in a courteous, efficient and professional manner at all times. Email is an essential tool of this communication. When to use and when not to use email when communicating with a client depends on the client. Even if a ... ”
-
“ Overview The firm considers its people as essential to its success and will use its best endeavors to attract team members who understand and promote its vision, mission and values. ”
-
“ Taking instructions Always use the By Lawyers Retainer Instructions provided in every matter plan. They not only assist in asking all the questions necessary to conduct that matter, but they also record the scope of the retainer, i.e. what the firm is instructed to do and not do. This is an ... ”
-
“ Staff member Take regular breaks: don't sit for more than 30 minutes at a time. ”
-
“ File colour coding helps enormously in managing files. Instant recognition. Rather than going through a bundle of files looking for say an estate file it is so much easier to simply look for the purple folders. ”
-
“ Internal While all team members should help each other out on their respective files whenever necessary and possible, files may not be transferred from one fee earner to another without permission from [insert appropriate person in the office] or the principal(s). ”
-
“ In the office All emails and correspondence related to a matter are to be saved to the matter and, if required, the hard copy filed in chronological order on the physical file as soon as practicable. ”
-
“ Incoming mail and documents [Insert name of appropriate person in office] will open all mail addressed to any member of the firm. They will date stamp and sort the mail, then hand all mail to the relevant team member for appropriate action. ”
-
“ An essential aspect of the efficient conduct of the firm are regular and structured meetings. Full team meetings wil be held monthly at [time]. ”
-
“ The firm keeps records of all new client enquiries, where the enquirer spoke to a solicitor. Records are kept whether the enquiry is received by telephone, by email or other electronic means, or in person. Notes should be made by the solicitor. Copies of these records are kept in [TBA] file. Use ... ”
-
“ Security Procedures Security problems and violations cannot be addressed in a constructive and preventative manner unless management knows or is advised about them. We believe security is the responsibility of all employees. Our policy therefore puts great emphasis on reporting of incidents as they ... ”
-
“ [Insert name of appropriate person in the office] is responsible for petty cash. Petty cash is to be used for: [e.g. coffee for clients] ”
-
“ Privacy Policy Privacy Act ”
-
“ The LEAP system has a comprehensive records management system which must be kept carefully and accurately at all times. All document movements must be recorded in accordance with the system. ”
-
“ The following actions and procedures must be followed at all times. Perfect the retainer ”
-
“ There are occasions where documents such as wills, certificates of titles, powers of attorney and leases, need to be kept in safe custody for clients. A fire rated filing cabinet or safe is used for this purpose. Document Register ”
-
“ This must be read and understood by all staff. It makes it quite clear what conduct is unacceptable in the workplace. The lessons are clear and behaviour that offends the principles discussed will likely result in dismissal. Sexual harassment is prohibited in Australia by the Federal Sex ... ”
-
“ The very worst problem in an office, and perhaps one of the most common, is running out of stationery items. This can easily be overcome. Someone must be appointed stationery officer. ”
-
“ Of the Practice The principal(s) has ultimate responsibility for the firm and supervises every aspect of the firm’s operations. ”
-
“ Telephones Answering the phone ”
-
“ The proper termination of a retainer is most important. Often files will become inactive for one reason or another. These files must not be left to languish. The risk is that whist languishing an event might occur that is ignored as there has been no contact with the client for many months and it ... ”
-
“ See also Employment, above. Continuing legal education (CLE/CPD) ”
-
“ The firm has a reimbursement policy for travel expenses. If any team member is required to travel in connection with a client file, the travel should be undertaken in the most reasonably efficient and comfortable manner available. Travel should be approved by the client and [insert appropriate ... ”
-
“ The firm probably uses the accounting functions within LEAP which complies with the relevant legal requirements. All accounting records particularly trust accounting records must be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. ”
-
“ An undertaking is a formal promise which binds the firm under the principle of ostensible authority and must be respected. No undertakings are to be given without the approval of the principal. ”
-
“ The safety, health and well-being of our entire team is of the utmost importance and all team members should regard these as their highest priorities. Everyone has a responsibility for the prevention of accidents and health risks in the work environment. All employees are expected to take care of ... ”
-
-
-
“ Contents ”
-
“ FEDERAL Business & Franchise ”
-
“ General companies4 Partnerships5 ”
-
“ Property6 Leases7 ”
-
“ Criminal Offences11 Traffic Offences11 ”
-
“ Proceedings for defamation in NSW – Civil Trials Bench Book – Judicial Commission NSW Defamation Act 2013 (UK) ”
-
“ FEDERAL Fair Work Commission ”
-
“ Probate and Letters of Administration15 Family Provision Claims17 ”
-
“ General18 Children18 ”
-
“ Code of Conduct – Schedule 2 of Migration Agents Regulations 1998 Department of Home Affairs ”
-
“ General21 Bankruptcy of Individuals21 ”
-
“ Courts in general22 Local/Magistrates Court22 ”
-
“ NSW Land and Environment Court ”
-
“ Motor Vehicle Accident28 Personal Injury29 ”
-
“ Costs Costs guidebook – The Law Society of New South Wales ”
-
“ NSW NSW Online Registry – Lawlink NSW ”
-
“ IP Australia IP Australia – Australia Government ”
-
“ Wills34 Power of Attorney & Enduring Guardianship36 ”
-
-
-
-
“ All affidavits and statutory declarations within the By Lawyers For Lawyers publications now conclude with the required attestation clause discussed below. The Identification Legislation Amendment Act 2011 No 45 commenced on 30 April 2012. ”
-
-
-
-
-
-
“ General Let’s Talk – Legal Practitioner Community – ATO Engagement with Legal Practitioners ”
-
“ Costs 101 Trusted and useful sites by area of law ”
-
-
“ The fact that 3 of the 10 hours of continuing professional development required annually, must be on subjects that are unrelated to the law, points to the perceived need by the profession for management training. This is largely due to the fact that the majority of negligence claims flow ... ”
-
-
-
“ The fifth habit of a highly successful small law firms is the dedication of time to building the firm as a business. ”
-
“ Principals of small law firms wear many hats. They may be a sole practitioner, in which case the hats are all piled on top of each other, or they may be partners in a partnership or co-directors in an incorporated legal practice, in which case the hats can be shared around a bit. But there are ... ”
-
“ Policies and procedures The foundation for management of the business of a legal practice is to have policies and procedures which record and effectively automate the firm’s operations. ”
-
“ The importance of managerial controls cannot be overstated. They provide the basis of profitable and low stress practice. Profit is not necessarily related to size or location or how busy a firm may be. Research shows that busy firms are often poor profit performers due to poor managerial ... ”
-
“ Privacy Act requirements The Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) provides for mandatory reporting of eligible data breaches. These requirements apply to data held by ‘an Australian privacy principles entity’, or a credit reporting body, or a tax file number recipient. ”
-
-
-
-
“ File notes File notes are a critical item in terms of risk management. Without effective file notes the file is incomplete and the practice is exposed. File notes must record what happens on a matter, what instructions are received, what advice is given, what actions are taken. They represent ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
“ Firm documents Documents including letters, precedents and pleadings need to be standardised for consistency and to save the effort involved in constant re-invention. ”
-
-
“ The essential difference between an agreement and a deed is that of consideration. An agreement must have consideration moving between the parties. It usually involves a promise made for a promise - for example, I will transfer ownership of this horse to you in return for payment of $1,000. ”
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
“ The third habit of highly successful small law firms is that they employ smart people and treat them really well. Research by the Centre for Work + Life at the University of South Australia has concluded that the cost of being a bad place to work outweighs the cost of paying above average wages ... ”
-
“ Staff costs are the biggest overhead for any law firm, so recruitment must be given due priority and adequate resources. It is false economy to save money on recruitment if that means costing the business time and money later by reason of internal disharmony, poorly performing team members, poor ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
“ The firm should have an induction policy and a procedure for applying it. When a new employee commences at the firm it is an opportunity to cement the relationship from the start and show them that they are joining a well-run organisation within which they, like all other team members, are valued ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
“ Employees need a clear career path. This may be towards partnership or towards undertaking work that is more responsible. It may be to learn new skills by attending training courses. Not everyone needs to be aiming for something completely life-changing all the time, as long as there is a path to ... ”
-
“ Employers have a duty of care at common law and also statutory obligations to their employees. Legal practitioners have additional professional obligations to behave appropriately towards employees. Government authorities in each state provide substantial assistance, including template documents, ... ”
-
-
“ An internet usage policy assists all members of a legal practice to understand and be clear about the firm’s rules and guidelines in relation to the use of equipment, the office network and the internet itself. Such a policy protects the firm as well as the employee. As a starting point employees ... ”
-
-
“ Bullying Bullying is a workplace health and safety issue. ”
-
-
“ Review of staff performance is a matter requiring careful attention by the principal or by any appointed manager. Reviews should be regular and scheduled. They should be conducted with discretion. Employee reviews should be a private discussion between the principal and each team member to hear ... ”
-
-
“ It must realistically be accepted that, for some people – especially young lawyers, their career path will probably take them out of the firm. Sometimes no matter how well employees are treated, no matter how highly they are valued, they need or want to move on. Although it can be frustrating as a ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
-
“ The relationship between solicitor and client is multi-layered. The fundamental basis of the relationship is the retainer; this is essentially a contractual relationship that may be evidenced by a written document, oral agreements or implied conditions. In addition, the proximity of the parties to ... ”
-
“ to the solicitor/client relationship The Australian Consumer Law, found in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, is generic consumer protection legislation. The Legal Profession Uniform Law and the rules made pursuant thereto are specialised consumer protection legislation aimed ... ”
-
“ Solicitors receive many enquiries from potential clients, some that result in opening a file and a matter proceeding and others that do not. Just as a record of any initial conversations with clients who proceed to instruct the firm are then kept on the client’s file, it is also important to keep a ... ”
-
-
“ An actual conflict of interest between solicitor and client is in breach of the solicitor’s duty to the client. Such a conflict may arise directly, where the personal interests of the solicitor conflict with the interests of the client, or indirectly, where the interests of another of the ... ”
-
“ to third parties A solicitor may be liable to a third party in negligence if a duty of care can be established. This will be so even if no retainer can be established: Vagg v McPhee [2013] NSWCA 29. A third party who relied on a representation by the solicitor that the solicitor was acting on ... ”
-
“ Solicitor's lien A solicitor has a common law possessory lien over a client’s documents until the solicitor’s costs have been paid. This includes documents held on behalf of the client in relation to matters other than the matter in relation to which the costs are owed. ”
-
“ Cash Solicitors must make any payments from their trust account by cheque or electronic funds transfer: s 144 Legal Profession Uniform Law. ”
-
“ The fundamental rules relating to costs are set out in Part 4.3 of the Legal Profession Uniform Law and Part 6 of the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014. The seventh habit of highly successful small law firms is they confront the challenges of getting paid and solve them. ”
-
-
-
“ Communications between solicitor and client are privileged if the communication was confidential and made for the dominant purpose of giving legal advice, or use in existing or anticipated legal proceedings. Privilege may exist under either common law or the uniform evidence law where applicable. ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
-
“ The ethical obligations of lawyers are based on the obligations assumed by all members of a civilised society and extended because of the special relationship that the lawyer has with society as a member of the profession which establishes and administers society’s laws. An obligation to practice ... ”
-
“ The lawyer’s ethical duties can be divided into three categories: Duty to the court; ”
-
“ The existence of an ethical issue will often be self-evident. The vast majority of lawyers will feel a sense of unease when an ethical issue arises, even if in the early stages of development of that problem they cannot identify the exact nature of the problem. Experience tells that the best way to ... ”
-
-
-
“ Practitioners need to step back from the daily demands of legal practice periodically to assess how the practice is performing, health-wise. Is the practice performing to expected performance levels? What can be improved on? Where are potential risks and oversights occurring? The benefits of ... ”
-
-
“ Leadership is the key. If the strategic framework is developed only as a hypothetical standard or a management tool and is not driven by the principal and the leadership team, the result is more likely to be cynicism, poor morale and a negativity that will be detrimental to the firm’s performance ... ”
-
-
“ It is essential to have a plan. Failing to plan is in fact planning to fail. After using the Legal Practice Health Check Self-Diagnostic Tool found in the A. The business plan folder in the matter plan, the next step is to incorporate the data it provides into a business plan for the practice. ”
-
-
-
-
“ Everything the firm does Branding and marketing is a part of everything a firm does. It is not a separate function or someone else’s responsibility. A firm has thousands of client touch points each year: in the office, on the phone, emails, mail, advertising and in the community. Every touch point ... ”
-
-
-
-
“ Within the legal practice the fee earners must be assessed for their contribution to profitability. Key performance indicators can be used as benchmarks. These might include file volume, file velocity, the quality of the work, contribution to client relationship management and development or ... ”
-
-
“ Currently there are compulsory contributions to be made for employees and these are presently payable at a percentage of the gross wage. See the Australian Tax Office Super guarantee percentage page for the latest rate. An employee is eligible if they: ”
-
“ An asset register for the firm allows for the tracking of fixed assets and provides an estimate of their worth. It assists with taxation, insurance and potential sale-of-business compliance and provides an appropriate place to record detailed information such as serial numbers. An asset register is ... ”
-
-
-
“ Warning If you are horrified at the thought that your credit balance at the bank is in fact a debit balance in your accounting ledger, then skip this bit and invest in a computerised accounting system, hire a bookkeeper and regularly visit your accountant. ”
-
“ It is important that good accounting computer software is purchased and the records maintained by a competent bookkeeper or accountant. The most popular computer software programs in use by small business today are Xero, Quicken and MYOB. Prior to selection it might be wise to consult with your ... ”
-
-
-
-
-
“ The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an approved accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures for the handling of trust money. All accounting records are required to be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. The trust ... ”
-
“ The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an approved accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures for the handling of trust money. All accounting records are required to be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. See the ... ”
-
-
-
“ The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an approved accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures for the handling of trust money. All accounting records are required to be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. The ... ”
-
-
-
“ The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an approved accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures for handling trust money. All accounting records must be accurate, up to date and regularly monitored. The Ethics and Practice Unit ... ”
-
“ The simplest way to comply with state trust account regulations is to use an accounting software package with appropriate written delegations and procedures for the handling of trust money. The requirements for dealing with trust accounts are set out in Part 9 of the Legal Profession Act 2008 and ... ”
-
-
-
“ First published on LinkedIn - August 2018 By Richard Hugo-Hamman ”
