Time is gold: What Practical Guidance can do for small firms with big goals

Jacqueline So of NZ Lawyer sat down with Pippa Maessen Product Manager, Pacific Core Product at LexisNexis^® NZ to discuss the big problems that plague small law firms, and how LexisNexis Practical Guidance tools can help small law firms gain more time.

Small law firms are an important engine of New Zealand’s legal market. However, without the resources that are available to large law firms, small firms often find themselves struggling with being able to maintain smooth and compliant operations.

A significant theme that emerged from recent research conducted by LexisNexis NZ was that in the long term, many small firms are aiming to broaden their client bases, modernise to keep up with the rapid pace of technology, and stay on top of operations. However, major concerns for small firms when it comes to running their practices include time management, business development information, AML compliance efficiency, automation and cost reduction. Firms also noted that they needed to bolster staff management, the establishment of director leadership goals, career progression and integration of technology.

“To this day, there isn't a lot of information on that all in one place – you have to shop around a bit to find all this. And being a managing director or partner in a small firm, you don't often have a lot of time. You're trying to run your practice at the same time as being a lawyer”, Maessen explained.

Larger firms typically engage practice managers to handle the day-to-day operational needs of a legal practice, but with small law firm leaders often being time restrictive, this means that important aspects like succession planning, compliance with staff requirements and staying abreast of developments in cybersecurity and privacy tend to fall to the bottom of the list for them – even though the consequences of non-compliance could be harsh, she warned.

LexisNexis Practical Guidance tools have become valuable to small firms looking for tools, tips and guidance; thus, based on the findings from its research, LexisNexis NZ looked into developing a module that would factor in all of the major concerns raised by research respondents.

“LexisNexis^® Practical Guidance | Practice Compliance contains resources, guidance, checklists and precedents like all Practical Guidance modules, but it really is focused on the smooth and compliant running of a legal practice”, Maessen said. “That involves a few topics like managing staff, data privacy, planning ahead for unforeseen things like pandemics, maintaining compliance, and managing breaches and complaints”.

The module is also a great starting point for lawyers wanting to branch out and start their own firm, as it focuses on the business side of operating a law firm, capitalising on LexisNexis’ existing legal research database and integrating regularly updated precedents and checklists.

Maessen noted that the New Zealand module took inspiration from the fact that “being a lawyer is a type of business in itself”.

“That is an area that our lawyers are spending a lot of their time on, so we thought about how their entire workflow and journeys are important to what they do and not just where they're accessing research”, she explained.

With the time given back to them through the adoption of a practical guidance tool, lawyers would be able to keep their attention on what they want and are qualified to do.

“Ideally, what we really want is to be able to give that peace of mind and confidence to lawyers knowing that they've covered things, that they can save time not having to focus so much on the operational side of things and do the work that they love – which is being lawyers, helping the community, and helping people”, Maessen concluded.

Bio: Pippa Maessen is a Product Manager in the Pacific Core Product Team at LexisNexis and has been working with legal technology and research solutions for the last eight years. Making legal research efficient and simple has always been a passion, especially when it aids access to justice and furthers the rule of law.

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