Before & After: How did we track time on-the-go before Juris Go?

Time has always played an essential role in organizing our thoughts and activities. So, it comes as no surprise that timekeeping would be an asset when working in a professional setting. In fact, it is especially crucial because time is now equated to money.

Timekeeping has evolved with increasing accuracy and has become integral to our day-to-day schedules. Technological advances allow antiquated forms of timekeeping to be a thing of the past. Long gone are the days of loose timekeeping by watching clocks or guesswork. We are now presented with various options of timekeeping devices: phones, watches, computers, etc.

It’s important to be able to track and enter business-related activity in real time, regardless of your location. In the legal field, accurate timekeeping can be the difference between a failing and prosperous firm. For lawyers, time is everything. Juris^® Go, the newest app from LexisNexis^®, gives you an easier way to track billable hours while out of the office.

With the creation of apps like this, it’s as easy as tapping your phone’s screen to record your time. But it wasn’t always that easy. How did we manage before apps, and what is it about Juris Go that makes it so easy?

Before apps: Stopwatch/chronograph watch might be used for timekeeping
By the time billable hours became common place, you could use a stopwatch or wear a chronograph watch and keep time that way. But then, you’d still have to write that time down somewhere and remember to keep track of your notes.

Today: Simply designed, built-in timers make it quick and easy
With an easy app like Juris Go, all you have to do is hit start on your mobile device to begin tracking your time. You can use multiple timers at once for complete time captures and send any or all of those directly to Juris.

Before apps: Accounting info was kept on hand-written ledgers
In the past, law firms used accounting ledgers to keep track of time associated with each client and case. Not digital ledgers—paper ledgers. Which meant a lot of paper, a lot of space, a lot of time spent writing. Not to mention a lot more time expended when needing to reference the details of a client or case.

Today: Software keeps track of, and integrates, billing and accounting data
Juris Go allows you to securely associate individual time entries with the correct clients and cases. Reference or enter billing and accounting information in an instant, all linked to your firm’s Juris^® software.

Before apps: Wrote timekeeping and notes on sticky notepads, legal pads
Before laptops and mobile devices, if you wanted to keep track of your billable hours and client notes, you had to write them down. Notes may have been written on a legal pad. Hours may have been jotted down on a sticky note. Either way, it wasn’t always easily accessible later on. It was almost impossible to get a current view of the hours spent working on a case.

Today: It’s simple to access at-a-glance billable hour updates
Keep a running tally of hours billed to your clients and cases in the Juris Go app. You’re always up-to-date on the number of hours you’ve entered—no “guesstimating” required.

Before apps: Wrote down time manually with a pen
In the past, after clicking stop on your chronograph watch (if you were really sophisticated), you still had to record the time somehow. And as mentioned earlier, you had to keep track of where you wrote that time down, which was often challenging.

Today: Voice-to-text means faster time and data capture
With Juris Go, there’s no writing, typing, or texting required; you can dictate time information. This results in more detailed client bills that are less likely to be disputed.

Before apps: Double entry and proofreading
In the past, you would write work details by hand or maybe send an email. When it came time to enter the work details into an accounting system, it would have to be keyed or copied in and then proofread. This is a slow, error-prone process.

Today: Skip the middle man and enjoy spell check
Juris Go not only sends your time directly to accounting, but it also spell checks your entries and notes as you go, for more accurate and professional record- keeping.

Thanks to apps like Juris Go, you don’t have to worry about keeping up with timesheets, journals, and yellow sticky notes. Everything you need is right at your fingertips.

Learn more about how Juris Go can help you capture your time on-the-go, account accurately, and bill faster and more efficiently.