Justin+B.+Snell

5 Benefits for Virtual Law Practice


 * 1) Increased flexibility of when or where attorney works
 * 2) Greater efficiency leading to reduced costs to client
 * 3) Allows for documents to be transferred between attorney and client faster
 * 4) Clients may be more open talking to an attorney from the comfort of their home, rather than in an office setting
 * 5) Clients with medical conditions can be better served than requiring them to come to an office

5 Negative Aspects of a Virtual Law Practice
 * 1) The possibliliy of data or other information being compromised (hackers, theft of laptop, etc.)
 * 2) Some clients may not be comfortable with only conducting business through the internet (prefer to meet face to face with attorney)
 * 3) The possibility that a few bad actors in the area of Virtual Law practice could stigmatize the field
 * 4) Increased reliance on technology which sometimes fails
 * 5) Some attorney prefer to work with hard copies of documents rather than looking at digital images

Definitions:

From Wikipedia: [] A ** virtual law firm ** is a group of lawyers with diverse expertise that are banded together through technological means to provide a suite of services to its clients.

From an article by Joe Kashi entitled "Building a Virtual Law Firm: Changing Opportunities" [] 
 * 1) Has a stable core group of attorneys;
 * 2) Has established collaborative relationships with other, specialized law firms that possess expertise that’s occasionally needed;
 * 3) Is glued together with appropriate computer and telecommunications technology; and,
 * 4) Expands and reduces personnel as needed.

From an article by Jay Fleischman entitled "Death of the Virtual Law Firm" []

Virtual does not mean “a law firm operated online.” It means, strictly speaking, “kind of, sort of a law firm.” And though the techno-geeks among us are happy to call it a “virtual law firm,” let’s think about what clients hear when those words are uttered. They hear that their lawyer is operating something less than a real law firm.