Try Echosign for Electronic Signatures
By Michael Morse | November 11, 2010
Electronic signatures are getting more and more popular. Federal courts now accept electronic signatures, state courts are starting to, and businesses use them to execute contracts.
If you are considering using digital signatures for your practice, try Echosign.
Just upload a digital copy the document to Echosign’s website. Then, the site will send an email to your recipient. The recipient has a variety of signature options. They can sign with an e-signature, or their cursor can turn into a stylus, which allows them to “write” their actual signature in digital form, this option does require a paid plan. Recipients can also print the document and fax back an actual signature page.
The site supports electronic signatures from mobile devices, and has a demo video to watch. Digital signatures from a mobile device looks promising!
With Echosign you can do up to 5 transactions a month with a free account. After that, there are a variety of pricing options.
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Organize Your Inbox
By Michael Morse | September 14, 2010
Gmail has a brand new feature to help you stay better organized. It’s called priority inbox. Google has designed formulas that determine whether an email is important or not. They figure this out based on which emails you read and which emails you don’t read.
Gmail then automatically organizes your emails into separate folders. If you don’t like the preset folder options, you can customize it to your liking. If emails end up in the wrong folders, you can essentially train Gmail with two buttons so that it will adapt.
If you are constantly overwhelmed with all of the emails in your inbox, give this a try and let me know what you think!
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Do You Need a Smartphone?
By Michael Morse | September 9, 2010
The decision to use a smartphone as an integral part of your law practice is one that can make you significantly more efficient. Think about it! Once you have a smartphone your office becomes portable. You can read and answer all of your emails. Many law firms expect attorneys to answer emails 24/7. Having a smartphone makes this much easier than carrying a laptop and can help you provide much better service to your clients.
Smartphones can do lots of other “non-office” functions.. If you have a blog or a social media campaign, you can manage all of that from your phone. No matter where you are you can read other blogs, write your own posts, or even review pleadings that have been sent to you. If you travel for work, your phone probably has a map or GPS system, which can prevent you from being late to court or getting lost in an unfamiliar part of town.
Efficiency is so important in our daily busy lives as lawyers. Smartphones can help!
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Electronic Signatures On Adobe
By Michael Morse | August 25, 2010
Legal documents travel through cyberspace and fax machines. As many of you know, Federal Courts have also moved to e-filing. Adobe has a program now that allows parties to electronically sign documents.
The program works by uploading a document to the Adobe site, and then choosing your recipient. You can decide whether you want to sign first, or have the other party sign first. Once you have submitted the document, the recipient will be notified the document is ready for their signature.
Once the document has been signed by all parties, all parties receive notification that a fully executed document is available on the Adobe server. The fully executed document has a signature page, which includes the digital signatures of all parties, as well as the date they signed the document. The document is time and date stamped, to make sure it is valid.
Remember though, just because you are willing to digitally sign something, your recipients may not be! Also, whatever document you are signing sits temporarily on Adobe’s servers. If you are worried about security and/or confidentiality, this could be an issue.
For attorneys who are comfortable working digitally, this is a great option to have.
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Line2 iPhone App
By Michael Morse | August 2, 2010
Line2 is an iPhone app launched in March with lots of cool features. My favorite is that Line2 turns the iPhone into a dual-mode phone. This means you can place and receive calls using either the AT&T airwaves like always, or over the internet. Any time you’re in a wireless hot spot, Line2 places its calls over Wi-Fi instead of AT&T’s network.
Think about that. Cell phone reception is usually worse whenever you’re indoors and inside is where you have W-Fi. Line2 in Wi-Fi means rock-solid reception indoors. Wow.
Line2 also runs on the iPod Touch. When you’re in a Wi-Fi hot spot, the iPod Touch becomes a full-blown cell phone, and you don’t owe AT&T a dime. Wi-Fi calls don’t use up any AT&T minutes. You can talk all day long, without worrying about going over your monthly minutes. Wi-Fi calls are free forever. Check it out and let me know what you think!
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Check Out Google Docs!
By Michael Morse | July 12, 2010
Google Docs can now scan PDFs and image files with Optical Text Recognition (OCR). Most lawyers use Adobe Professional to run the recognition. If you do not have that program, or you are mobile, Google Docs is very helpful. Say opposing counsel sends a settlement agreement, and you need to revise it. Google Docs can convert the document and you can edit away.
Google Docs allows you to quickly and easily create an exhibit, or need to insert a picture into a document. You may rarely need to do this but it’s good to know you can do it online, from any computer.
The major downside to Google Docs is privacy issues. There are three settings, private, anyone with the link, and public. Private allows only you to access the document and is the default setting for all documents. The second option allows anyone with the web address of the document to see it and make revisions. For a law firm, this is problematic. Of course, having unsecured documents on the web can be a disaster. The third option, public, would have little use for a law firm.
Let me know how you like it once you get started with Google Docs.
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Michigan Bans Texting While Driving
By Michael Morse | July 1, 2010
I previously wrote a blog post about Michigan’s new law banning texting while driving. The new law goes into effect today, and should make our Michigan roads safer. We get calls every day from Michigan auto accident victims who were hit and injured by someone who was texting and driving. Check this link for more details including information on fines and using your cell while driving.
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Try Skype!
By Michael Morse | June 17, 2010
Skype is a great service because you can use it on your computer and on your mobile phone. Changes are pending that will make it awesome to use on an iPhone. First, the new operating system will allow multitasking, so you can talk over Skype and run other applications simultaneously. Secondly, you can make Skype calls over the 3G network. That is a huge upgrade, and an awesome feature to have. Plus, your office phone goes where you go. Of course it features videoconferencing and also allows you to use your computer as a phone. With all of these features and flexibility, it’s time to give it a try.
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Social Media Management
By Michael Morse | June 1, 2010
Successful social media campaigns use multiple platforms—Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, blogs, etc. Each platform by itself, does not necessarily take a huge time investment. If you’re trying to manage multiple platforms one at a time, you can spend hours per day updating posts, etc. Outsourcing these tasks is something to consider, or you can try the do-it-yourself approach with a program like Sendible. Sendible can manage several accounts and also allows you to send status updates, emails, blogs and RSS feeds. You might like the flexibility you get with this type of program.
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A Great Alternative To Trips The Post Office
By Michael Morse | May 21, 2010
A great new tool for increasing efficiency is available now. Stop trips to the post office by printing certified mail labels from your desktop, Simply enter the addressee and return address information on SimpleCertifiedMail.com’s website, then print the label. Labels can be printed on standard paper, folded, and placed in window envelopes the company provides. You can also choose to receive an email alert when the return receipt has been delivered. The service costs 35 cents for a #10 envelope. Larger 9 x 12 envelopes cost 50 cents. The company’s website indicates accounts are typically setup like a postage meter.
This is a great alternative to multiple trips to the post office.
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