When you work in the legal sector, you want to be able to devote as much time as possible to the needs of your clients. However, there may be other tasks that are essential to the running of your business that can, at times, seem tedious and long-winded. While some larger firms might have administrative staff to undertake clerical duties, smaller firms, or even self-employed legal representatives, may not have this luxury. Due to this, it is important to find ways to streamline your administrative processes, giving you more time for both your work and leisure.

Invoicing

Sending invoices to your clients is imperative if you wish to be paid for your work. Creating these invoices can be incredibly time-consuming, even causing you to end up needing to stay late at work to ensure that they have been created, filled in, and sent out correctly. Instead of making bespoke invoices for every single task you undertake, it can be far more beneficial to start implementing an invoice template – see here – which can allow you to work off of a basic invoice, tailoring it to your needs, rather than needing to create a brand new sheet every time. While this may only seem like a few minutes saved, this time can quickly add up, allowing you to have a bit more control over your schedule. 

Scheduling

Taking the time to fill your diary, from making calls to responding to emails, can also seem like it amounts to a large part of your day. In addition to this, when working as part of a team, there is the risk that you will end up becoming over-booked, meaning one party will not be able to have their needs met. While traditional diaries can be useful, it might be a good idea to look into a digitalized calendar. This will allow you to synchronize your schedule, meaning that you can check it while on the move, and your colleagues can also see when you are available. 

Filing

The way in which you keep your records can depend entirely on what works best for you. Whether you work with digital or paper-based records, you want to make sure they are filed correctly. Implementing an easy-to-follow filing system can assist with that. For digital records, this means ensuring that you, and your colleagues, understand how to securely store data, as well as how to find it again. When it comes to paper-based records, it can be easier to have numerous filing cabinets for type of job, or simply to use an alphabetical format, usually by the client’s surname, so that everyone can easily find specific dates. Regardless of your methodology, it is vital that these records are kept protected, either via passwords or locks, and confidential at all times.

By finding ways to expedite your administrative processes, you can get back to the real reason you chose to work in the legal sector: to help your clients.