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Do you guard your e-mail address like it’s a state secret? Is your computer just like a really large typewriter with a delete key? Feel like you can’t get any work done because your Dictaphone is out for repairs? If this sounds like you, then it’s possible that your business is suffering from under-utilization of technology.

As clients become more technologically sophisticated, they will seek out lawyers who understand and use that technology, says Jennifer Gray, Technology Integration Specialist at McInnes, Cooper in Halifax. That means that lawyers who want to stay competitive must embrace the computer age. “Technology is an essential tool of practice,” she says, adding that even if you are too busy to become a tech wizard yourself, it’s important to hire staff who are capable in this area.

Learning to navigate in the digital age can be daunting, and that’s why Gray suggests focusing on a few areas to help increase your productivity. She says, for example, learning to use an e-mail task manager, such as Outlook, is an excellent first step. “People can get so much out of it. They can manage their contacts and tasks and use it as a bring-forward system, as a diary, a daily calendar and to journal their time. The use is limited only by your creativity, and no extra expenditure is required.”

Gray also highly recommends becoming very familiar with your word processing software. She likens it to the common statement that people only use 10 percent of their brains. “I think people only use about seven percent of Word in their day — it’s a very powerful tool.”

Lawrence Pascoe is a lawyer in a small firm in Ottawa, who uses technology to his advantage in his practice. He feels that technology is both an important time saver and a way to help keep costs down for clients. He says it is important to have the specialized computer programs for your area of law, at a minimum.

Pascoe also strongly advocates having a practice management program like Amicus or Time Matters (which is owned by LexisNexis, the publisher of The Lawyers Weekly). He has a second computer monitor set up in his client interview room so that clients can see in real time what changes he is making to their documents. He also believes that a website should be more than a business card, and that lawyers should make their websites interactive, with articles, quizzes and forms. Pascoe has his client intake forms on his website.

Prospective clients fill in and e-mail the form prior to the first interview, saving time and allowing him to hone in on the issues from the first meeting. His practice is completely digital, with all file information, from e-mails to documents, captured in one program and backed up twice, so that there is no requirement for paper file storage.

If you’ve already got the basics and are ready to take the next step in becoming tech-savvy, Gray says the next big area to focus on is buying tools that will make you mobile. “In this world, clients don’t always come to our offices; we may have to go to them.” Things like digital dictation, Blackberrys and air cards will allow you to work remotely from barristers’ lounges and clients’ offices, or even from home — an appealing thought. Skype can allow you to have video conferencing from across the globe. And there is now the capability to collaborate with clients online and share desktops from separate locations. Although some might feel that they can never escape from work this way, for many it is freeing not to be bound by the constraints of a physical office.

David Bilinsky, practice management advisor and staff lawyer for the Law Society of British Columbia and a frequent writer and speaker on practice management issues, is excited by the future technological possibilities available to small firms. In fact, he thinks small firms have an advantage over large firms in becoming frontrunners in the use of technology because of their smaller infrastructure and because there are fewer managerial hurdles to overcome in effecting change.

 Ten years from now, Bilinsky says, there will still be traditional firms that use technology in a limited fashion, but there will be many others who will be the leaders.  He says that now, with the introduction of the interjurisdictional practice protocol, it’s possible to build a practice that is national in scope even if you live in a small town or practice a niche area that might not be lucrative locally. You can use technology to market yourself and cast a wide net for your client base. Lawyers can also do innovative things like having a “virtual” law practice, with associates who are not physically present in the same city, let alone the same office — allowing you to hire that promising young associate, even if she doesn’t want to relocate.

However, Pascoe cautions lawyers not to get caught up in all the bells and whistles and to make sure that the technology you invest in is truly useful. He says it’s important to remember that clients come to you because of what you can do, not how stylish the graphics are on your website or how nice the font is on your contracts.

In order to avoid getting caught up in tech fads, Bilinsky suggests that the first step before buying should be education. There are many conferences on legal technology, some sponsored by the CBA and various provincial law societies. Once you are up to speed on the terminology and aware of what technology is available, Bilinsky says that’s the time to hire a consultant to help personalize the technology to your law firm. Finally, once your systems are in place, you can then set goals to grow your practice.

Bilinsky’s visions for the law firms of the future aren’t limited to getting lawyers to use Blackberrys and Skype. His vision is bigger. “I hope that those who do embrace technology will also embrace the access to justice crisis facing the middle class. That is the number one problem in the legal profession today, in my opinion.  If you look at other industries, technology was the grease on the wheel that helped place once-expensive goods within the reach of the middle class. Henry Ford did it with cars. Eli Whitney did it with cotton goods.  I’d like to see the same thing happen with legal services.”

Join the technological revolution today.