A client portal usually includes things like communications, documents, and invoices. It can also include information like a knowledge base and resources like expert systems and document assembly. But I think there are more interesting possibilities, and I have been imagining what else clients might like to see when they visit their lawyer’s website.
Here are some ideas.
Litigation
This concept comes from my own experience representing clients in civil litigation matters. It shows clients the status of their case so they don’t have to call and ask what is going on. The Settlement Status card is something I wish I could have given to my clients to help them make make better settlement decisions.
Divorce
Getting divorced is an emotional challenge as well as a legal one. This concept incorporates an emoji-based emotional check-in for the client and their children. Allowing the client to select an emoji that fits their mood is more flexible than a linear 1–10 scale, but can still alert the lawyer to how the client is holding up.
In-House Counsel
In-house counsel as clients may need to keep track of multiple matters as well as their legal spend. This concept makes it easy to access active matters and puts the legal spend in context—as well as providing a way to pay now and a preview of the current month’s billables.
At least one in-house counsel likes the idea:
I’m an in-house guy — not a firm guy — IMHO firms SHOULD have this kind of dashboard — don’t know how many actually do
— Jeff Carr (@CarrNext) January 5, 2022
For now, these are just concepts. If you’d like to implement something similar for your firm, let’s talk.