Editorial note: this is the first of a regular series of posts by Legal Cheek’s new tech columnist, i@n davison
Many so-called “experts” claim the billable hour is dead. However, I disagree.
I believe that charging by the hour will always have a place in a changing market for legal services, even if its popularity declines as clients push ever harder for alternative fee arrangements going forward.
One of the consequences of the unpopularity of the billable hour right now is that many of the tech innovations we are seeing in other areas have passed it by completely. For example, why is there no fusion – or even discussion of fusion – of time recording software with social media? Wouldn’t it be great to share information with other Twitter or Linkedin users while working on a file?
That is the thought process which led me to create an app that allows users to bring together their billing data across a number of social media platforms in order to dialogue with other users.
But once I had created the app, and began playing around with it, a thought hit me as I got up to make a cup of coffee. I figured why not go further and combine fusion of time recording and social media with a way of rehydrating without having to break off from whatever you are doing in a three-way app?
I’ve posted a copyrighted image of the beta prototype here. Feel free to make coding suggestions, and I’ll incorporate the best into my final version of the app.
i@n davison is a senior in-house lawyer at a leading global solutions management company