What Is American Legal Net
American Legal Net (ALN) is a nationally based support services company that has been servicing the legal market for over forty years. Although the needs of our clients have changed and expanded, the primary focus of our company has not. Through a commitment to thoroughness and a belief that quality, speed of service and competitive pricing can exist, we work with our clients to meet their needs. Through the years our client base has expanded from regional to national using the same commitment to quality and service in fast , affordable court research and reporting.
All of our services, including civil and criminal record searches, court documents retrieval and court reporting, are provided on a nationwide scale through our own offices and through a select network of vendor processors, all of whom share our commitment to quality and top-notch customer service. All of ALN’s work is managed out of our main office located in California, which specializes in California reporting, background checks and investigations, with satellite offices across the nation.
Core Products and Services
American Legal Net’s flagship product is its Docketing program. This software is used by most large law and corporate law firms to manage and keep track of rules, regulations, deadlines and numerous other information. The product allows the legal community to create calendars to record information and facts relating to all important deadlines. Based on calendaring systems of the past, ALN has developed its software into one of the best Docketing programs available.
ALN’s second best-selling product is its Case Management software. This program brings ALN’s exceptional calendaring system together with its state specific forms and rules software and it covers all aspects of litigation, closing and litigation support. This software is now being offered as a Platinum version which runs from a web browser interface.
ALN’s third product is called Forms Work Flow. This is technically not a product but more of a service. Based upon ALN’s experience with answering telephone calls, taking orders and talking with attorneys, ALN has developed a highly experienced team of attorneys, paralegals and clerks to respond to all legal needs and requirements.
Advantages of American Legal Net
In addition to the convenience factors outlined above, the firm also benefits from improved risk management and compliance to a degree that many users may not be aware of. Having both the audit trail and the perpetual access to document images means that the firm can prove when each document was sent, received, and viewed by whom within the firm. This is critical in the event of fraud or litigation.
American Legal Net also helps firms mitigate risks through integration and standardization of a variety of disaster recovery plans. For example, the firm set up its plan for responding to an emergency involving a natural disaster to match the way the ALN system works. Each disaster plan is immediately uploaded into the system so that the people responsible for executing the plan can do so without question.
Alison advises, "We say that you should have Circuits, the court rules, the files – anything that’s specific to your practice area stored in ALN. That’s the best repository for these resources because the database is automatically kept up to date."
These systems also help the firm avoid fines or penalties by helping them to comply with laws. For example, the ALN system enables the firm to stay in compliance with anti-money laundering rules and anti-corruption regulations for all invoices and payment address changes.
User Reviews and Success Stories
One law firm that has employed the use of American Legal Net’s automated solutions is the Seattle based law firm of Williams, Kastner & Gibbs P.S. The firm’s Legal Information Manager, Terri Nebel, reports that the automated calendaring and deadline calculation solutions developed by American Legal Net has helped to virtually eliminate calculation errors for the firm’s 31 attorneys and 6 paralegals by automating the burden of calendaring related tasks, increasing the efficiency of these team members. With close to 40 years in the industry founder and CEO, Michael Coyne, has elevated the company to be one of the largest legal calendaring development companies providing a comprehensive approach to legal date calculation and calendaring.
When asked about the measures taken by the firm to ensure compliance with the rules of court, including consultation with court clerks and other applicable agencies, Ms. Nebel responded "We don’t jump when the Clerk changes their deadlines, we have ALN to do the work for us . " Not only does this aid in full compliance with the Rules of Court but it also works to decrease client risk and liability, allowing attorneys to better serve their clients. "Time is money and now there is more money in our pockets. To close the deal quicker we’ve found that increasing efficiency will get you the business," states Ms. Nebel.
Another firm operating in California has found that a legal calendaring solution provided by American Legal Net has saved approximately 300 hours a year in administrative time. The Atlanta based law firm, Chadwick, Washington, Moriarty, Elmore and Bunn, LLP, used to have two full-time administrative staff members handling basic calendaring related functions until March of 2002 when they adopted ALN’s comprehensive calendaring solution considered the most complete calendaring journal in the industry. "We have become more cost-effective because our 300 hours per year has a value of approximately $27,000. This means we are able to reduce our overhead and pass this savings on to our client," states Bob Harley, co-managing partner.
Getting Started With American Legal Net
Before law firms can immediately use American Legal Net’s resources, they first need to sign up. In order to use American Legal Net, a law firm or legal professional must sign up individually for the service. According to facts provided by American Legal Net, each individual employee of a firm must have their own unique log-in with the service. By having separate log-ins, access to features vary based on permissions given to that user by an administrator at their firm. While they are separate log-ins, users can manage them from a single screen.
American Legal Net offers free trials of their services to encourage firms to sign up and really get a handle on what exactly they are signing up for. For the initial free trial period, American Legal Net claims to not require a credit card number or any other private information. Firms that want to utilize the free trial time can do so by going to the American Legal Net website and filling out a simple form to sign-up for the free 14-day trial of the services. Even on the trial, American Legal Net claims they do not "send reminders, make automated sales calls or otherwise attempt to pressure you into signing up." For those who would rather sign-up over the phone, their customer service team is available to assist at 1-800-752-9471. Again, there is no credit card requirement to sign up for the trial period, so you can see hypothetically what American Legal Net has to offer without even entering a credit card number. As far as pricing information, there is no information listed on the American Legal Net website. Pricing information is available, however, when a user calls their information line.
The Future of Legal Technology and American Legal Net
The future of legal technology is an ever-evolving landscape that will continue to grow and change in the years to come. Among the most exciting possibilities for the near future are the advancements being made in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Legal AI is quickly becoming more sophisticated and advanced, giving law firms the ability to streamline processes, increase efficiency, and improve client services. For example, machine learning algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data and assist in contract drafting, legal research, case analysis, and even predict outcomes in legal disputes with remarkable accuracy.
Blockchain technology, which underlies cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin , has also emerged as a significant development for the legal industry. The use of distributed ledgers to secure and transparently record transactions may help reduce fraud and ensure the integrity of sensitive legal documents and agreements.
As American Legal Net charts a course for the future, the company remains committed to remaining on the cutting edge of legal technology advancements. The company has plans to enhance its solutions to deliver even greater efficiencies and innovative features to its clients. This may include the implementation of more advanced AI and machine learning capabilities, as well as improvements in user experience and integration with other technologies used in the legal industry.
The future of legal technology is bright, and American Legal Net is well-positioned to remain at the forefront of the most transformative developments in the industry.