Virtual Accounts Service Liberates Lawyer

When lawyer Jane Levy decided to go it alone after 10 years working for other firms, she was determined to maximise her fee-earning time by reducing office administration.

Jane had considered employing an accounts clerk before setting up as a sole practitioner earlier this year, but was concerned about the costs this would incur. Her growing practice in Bayham Street, London specialises in residential conveyancing.

But Jane then visited the Legal Software Suppliers Association website and read about a new, web-based legal accounting service. Called Virtual Practices it provides a secure cashiering service that includes monthly reports plus on-going analysis of a firm’s financial performance.

Accounts are managed on-line by a team of skilled specialists who create and maintain records to Law Society standards for a set monthly fee. Developed by leading legal systems provider Solicitors Own Software (SOS), Virtual Practices also offers full practice management features including legal time recording, fee earner software and matter management.

“What I really like about Virtual Practices is that it gives me access to quality legal accounting support but costs far less than employing a legal cashier,” said Jane. “This represents a huge cost saving for a sole practitioner like me.

“Virtual Practices deals with all my legal accounting headaches, which means I don’t have to worry about this side of the business. For example, it looks after all my monthly bank reconciliations and prepares a VAT analysis report which makes it easy for me to complete my VAT returns.

“This frees up valuable time so that I concentrate on developing my practice and devote my time to doing the job that I was trained to do.”

Jane continued: “As well as saving me time and money, Virtual Practices also gives me peace of mind because I know that client data is held securely. I can access information 24/7, so it’s just like having my own full-time accounts department.

“The fact that Virtual Practices has been developed by SOS, who has been at the forefront of the legal software market for two decades, was another important deciding factor when choosing to use the service.”

Virtual Practices is ideal for smaller law firms as it also offers the full functionality of the SOS Connect matter management software – without the need for capital investment in hardware or human resource.

Connect offers clients many benefits including an automated email management system, intuitive time recording that ensures more billable time is captured, and the ability to scrutinise key performance indicators more closely.

SOS Director Stephen Parry said: “Virtual Practices offers a secure and money-saving accounting solution for smaller practices and sole practitioners like Jane and its capabilities can expand as a firm grows.

“Because Virtual Practices provides virtual legal cashiers whenever required, firms save on salaries while the accounting and matter management features can liberate fee-earners from time-consuming administrative work, helping to make smaller practices more profitable.”

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Virtual Practices deals with all my legal accounting headaches… this frees up valuable time so that I concentrate on developing my practice and devote my time to doing the job that I was trained to do.

Jane Levy, Lawyer

+44 (0)1225 787710