1. Calendaring, Docketing, and File Tickling Systems Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program October 19, 2009 Sheila M. Blackford Attorney & Practice Management Advisor OSB Professional Liability Fund

2. Our Agenda What’s at stake? Calendar Control Docket Control File Tickling Control Resources Questions Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

3. Most malpractice claims involve missing a deadline. Stats are scary but in Oregon, the odds of a legal malpractice claim are 1 in 5. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

4. Malpractice Claims due to Administrative ErrorABA 2007 Profile of Legal Malpractice Claims Failure to File Document – No Deadline Failure to Calendar Properly Procrastination in Performance/Follow-up Failure to Calendar Properly Clerical Error Lost File, Document Evidence Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

5. ABA 2007 Profile of Legal Malpractice Claims Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

6. Malpractice Claims due to Administrative ErrorABA 2007 Profile of Legal Malpractice Claims Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

7. Calendar Control Do you have a reliable system for tracking dates and deadlines? Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

9. Calendar advance warnings prior to ultimate deadlines.

10. Follow up to see that the work was actually completed.Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

11. Calendar important dates Administrative hearings and deadlines Billing dates Client-imposed deadlines Court appearances Dates you and your staff will be out of the office Deadlines set by you and your staff Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

12. Calendar important dates Discovery dates Litigation deadlines Procedural deadlines Statute of limitations Tort claim notice deadlines Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

13. Docket Control Do you have a formal docket control system? Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

15. Double check all entries.

16. Task is complete when item mailed, filed, or served.

17. Follow up all tasks done prior to deadline.Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

18. Docket items All deadlines as they arise Reminder notices of deadlines – A few days, a week, a month Final reminders Final reviews Follow-up reminders Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

19. Docket items specific to practice Administrative Appellate Bankruptcy Corporations Foreclosures Immigration Litigation Patent Probate Tax Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

20. File Tickling Control Do you have a file tickling system to prevent files from being neglected? Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

22. Tickle file to be pulled and reviewed every 60 days.

23. Never put a file away without a future tickle date.Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

24. Tickling Don’t let files stack up on your desk. A good tickling system prevents vertical piles on your desk. A good tickling system prevents files falling through the crack because nothing has happened to create activity. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

25. Tickle Items Open files Follow-ups to requests from firm Follow-ups to requests from client Follow-ups to requests from opposing party Follow-ups to requests from court At file closing At file destruction Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

26. Resources for calendaring, docketing, and file tickling systems Professional Liability Fund www.osbplf.org Practice Aids and Forms ABA Books at 15% discount Oregon State Bar www.osbar.org CLEs & Publications Oregon Law Institute www.lclark.edu/org/oli CLEs & Publications Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

27. Resources for case management software that has calendaring, docketing, and file tickling systems – PC-based Amicus Attorney 2009 Small Firm Edition, $499.; Premium Edition, (SQL Server 2005) $699. www.amicus attorney.com PracticeMaster , Basic $199. free with Tabs3 Billing; Premier $295. www.tabs3.com ProLaw, READY (pricing 1-800-977-6529); www.prolaw.com TimeMatters10. (includes 1st year maintenance plan) $905. www.timematters.com Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

28. Resources for case management software that has calendaring, docketing, and file tickling systems – Mac-based Daylite $199. ww.marketcircle.com LAWSTREAM, $800. (includes year of support) Classic version still available, contact for price. www.lawstream.com Legal Suite – Case Management Software, $199. www.mdansby.com Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

29. Resources for case management software that has calendaring, docketing, and file tickling systems – Web-based Clio, $49. month. www.goclio.com Rocket MATTER , $59. month. www.rocketmatter.com Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

30. Avoiding Missed Deadlines is the GoalOutlook vs. Case Management Software Microsoft Outlook: e-mail, calendar, contact cards, to-do list, and free-form notes; can organize by person. vs. Case Management Software: E-mail, calendar, contacts, to do’s, and notes plus client information database, organizes by person and file; assembles documents in your cases; organizes documents in your cases; links to your billing system. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

31. Time Matters: The Daily View Change staff or view by selecting different options from top of screen Display as little or as much information as you want – you choose! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

32. View Multiple Days at Once: One PracticeMaster Calendar View Calendar Tasks Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

33. Display Multiple Staff on a Single Calendar Day! Time Matters: “Margie, are you busy at 2:00PM?” Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

34. “Tony, What’s my calendar look like for the next 3 days?” You can change the number of calendar days displayed by selecting one of the options shown. You can also define your own! Initials designate entries for different staff members. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

35. The Modern Group Calendar: Case Team Management at last! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

36. “But I Liked My Day Planner!” Amicus Weekly and Monthly Calendar Views These views combine the power of the Amicus database with a traditional paper calendar type view. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

37. The Time Matters Approach to Group Calendars: Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

39. “But I Liked My Day Planner!” Time Matters Weekly and Monthly Calendar Views Compare the detail of views to your tradition paper calendar… Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

40. Warning - Avoid the Traps! TimeMatters warns you if you try to double schedule Trying to schedule an event at the same time as an existing event generates an immediate warning of the potential conflict. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

41. Warnings About Warnings Multitasking doesn’t mean you can be in two places at once! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

42. Alerts, Reminders and Watches Screen: Time Matters Neglect Prescription for Busy Lawyers! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

43. Forget becomes Neglect – No More! Select your criteria for which records you want watched and periods of inactivity Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

44. Rx for Neglect Add Filters for tighter control over watched items… Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

45. Alerts and Reminders: have them your way… Generate reports useful to you and your case team. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

46. Amicus Has its “Dailies” - the Electronic Legal Assistant Click on an item and get the details or click “Today’s Overview” . . . Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

47. Difficult to miss Today’s Appointments, Outstanding To Do’s, Unreturned Phone Calls, and Outstanding E-mails with Amicus! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

48. Practice Master’s Incomplete Task List Warns of Incomplete Tasks both Past and Future... Past items are in “red.” Future items are in “black.” Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

49. Time Matters Event Record Not Just Date and Time…. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

50. Time is money! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

51. Rules Integration Partners with: Amicus Attorney, PracticeMaster. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

52. Legal Deadline Calculation Service. Prices range from $5.00 to $99.00 per research result. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

53. Time Matters Date Calculator: Simple Steps for Avoiding Missed Deadlines and Blown Statute of Limitations! 1. Decide whether to count weekend days as well as Court and Legal Holidays. 2. Select time period -- days, weeks, months or years. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

54. Time Matters Date Calculator 3. Select from date calculations you have saved. 4. Add, Change or Delete date calculations. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

55. Time Matters calls them “Chain” Templates….. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

56. Creating the Chain: Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

57. All entries appear in the related records tab of the matter…. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

58. Events, ToDo’s and other records can be automatically created by the chain Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

60. Once created, a Calendar Plan Template can be used over and over again.Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

62. Unhappy with lawyer’s failure to keep them updated on a regular basis; and

63. Unhappy with lawyer’s failure to provide them with timely and adequate communications regarding their matter or case. Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

64. Cure for the Causes of Unhappy Clients and Complaints of Lawyer’s Failures: Calendaring, Docketing, and File Tickling Systems especially when combined into your Case Management Software program! Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

65. Resources from the PLF for Calendaring, Docketing, and File Tickling Systems See www.osbplf.org – Loss Prevention – Practice Aids & Forms: Docketing and Calendaring: Docketing & CalendaringChecklists, common time limitations, and practice-specific docketing tips are also available. Last UpdateTitleMay 2009Calendaring and File Tickling SystemsMay 1996Calendaring NoteMay 2007Diary/Tickler SystemsFebruary 2009Docket Control ChecklistJune 1992Docket SheetFebruary 2009Docket Sheet (Fillable)September 2008Follow-UpJanuary 2009Supplementary Local Rules Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program

66. Questions? Thanks for listening! Sheila M. Blackford 503-684-7421 sheilab@osbplf.org Lewis & Clark School of Law Graduate Fellows Program