General Resources

These pages are GENERAL collections of tools, information, tips and ideas on day-to-day issues of running a law practice. Find SPECIFIC topics under "Management" on the Toolbar.

• Australian Law Management Journal (free) - (for Members of Legal Practice Section of Law Council of Australia)
• Association of Legal Administrators - USA
• ALA Resource Centre topic on "General Management"
• American Bar Association Law Practice Management Section. Page includes link to Law Practice Magazine
• ABA Law Practice Today
• Canadian Bar Association Practice Link (Not all links available to non-members).
• The Journal Online of the Law Society of Scotland. Search the articles archive.
• Findlaw Law Firm Business Centre
• 50 Essential Business Tips for Every Lawyer
• Tips and how to guides on running a business
• Business Plans & Checklists
• Practice Succession Planning - ABA Feature

The Australian Legal Practice Management Association.

ALPMA is the peak Australian body representing managers and lawyers with a legal practice management role. It holds events in each State and has a National Conference.

Solo and Small Firms

• The American Bar Association has a General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Section. They also have their own online GPSolo Magazine.
• MyShingle.com, is a web site for and about solos and small law firms,
• The Law Society of South Australia has a Small Practice Committee. They address legal, technological, social and education needs as well as giving practical assistance. Their meetings are an ideal opportunity to network and discuss practice issues with fellow practitioners. If you are not on their mailing list, Email Michelle Griffith (CRP) at the Law Society.

Trends and ideas

• The Future of Legal Practice ABA Feature edition Feb 2010
• Canadian Bar Association page of theory, legal reform, radical or even revolutionary ideas in the practice of law. Everything from case studies and reports on collaborative law and prepayment arrangements to musings, merriment, and machinations are at your fingertips.(Not all links available to non-members).
• Amazing Firms Amazing Practices - Gerry Riskin
• LawBiz Collection of Articles
• The Greatest American Lawyer - Changing the way law is practiced
• Two interviews with Susskind, author of "The End of Lawyers?"
• TED: Ideas worth Spreading Search law, interesting article "Four ways to fix a broken legal system"
• Trends in Legal Project Management

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Law Society of South Australia

www.lawsocietysa.asn.au

The Law Society of South Australia provides professional services, resources, support and benefits to its members and the legal profession in general. It undertakes community education concerning the law and the legal profession and engages in activities designed to improve access to justice.

Benefits of Membership

Computers & IT

Web sites that have a focus on the use of technology in Legal Practice:

• American Bar Association Legal Technology Resource Centre
• ALA Resource Centre topic on "Technology & Information Systems"
• Canadian Bar Association Technology PracticeLink(Not all links available to non-members).
• Findlaw Legal Technology Centre
• Stay Smart Online Government information about internet security
• Time & Billing Software: Comparison Chart
• Case Management Comparison Chart
• Litigation Support Software Comparison Chart
• Choosing practice system authoring software
• Blog Provider Comparison Chart
• Comparison of generic time tracking software
• Software Solutions Guide 2009 Different software from Australia, but interesting for features to look out for
• Protecting Client Data
• Tag, You're It! Best Practices for Tagging on the Web
• Tips and Tricks for Developing a Document Management System
• Hands-on pointers for Everyday Applications
• E-Mail Netiquette for Lawyers
• The Mac Lawyer - Using Macs in the practice of law
• Subscribers to the Financial Review can access their IT pages (printed Tuesdays)

Open Office

Open Office is the free alternative to Microsoft's software for use in the office.

Open Office can open Word documents and save its own documents in Word format.

Open Office has a toolbar like the older versions of Word, rather than the ribbon used in Word 2007. It has a more user friendly method of automatic numbering of paragraphs. If you have a document with complex numbering and Word is the standard software in your office, then consider preparing the document in Open Office then saving it as a Word document. 

There is also a lot of other free open source software available. See the Open Source Software Primer for the Solo and Small Firm Lawyer.

Starting or Closing a Practice

• For information on starting your own legal practice there is a collection of resources at MyShingle.com It covers all the important topics from making the decision wisely, new ideas and trends in small practice, planning, accommodation, marketing, setting fees and collecting them, technology for small practice and "Ideas for Tending Yourself and Growing Your Practice"
• "Flying Solo – A CBA Guide to Solo Law Practice in Canada" can be downloaded from the Canadian Bar Association.
• Web Directory of resources on starting a Law Practice.
• Winding up a Firm: A Checklist (Canadian)
• Winding up a Sole Practice: A Checklist (Canadian)