The American Bar Association 2024 Legal Technology Survey Reports of Law Office Technology, Marketing and Communications, Online Research, Litigation and Technology Basics, and Security are comprehensive analyses of how attorneys are utilizing platforms in each of these disciplines along with their satisfaction of these technologies. To report comprehensively on these five survey reports would require a treatise in and of its own; this report condenses these surveys to a brief overview of trends in the industry, broken down into the following demographics: solo practitioners, firms of 2-9 attorneys, firms of 10-49 attorneys, firms of 50-99 attorneys, firms of 100-499 attorneys, and firms of 500 or more attorneys.
When I last prepared this survey report in 2022, lawyers were still adopting new technologies to modify their “post-COVID” practices. After the pandemic, companies rolled out new legal platforms, promising that their products could deliver more efficient and effective solutions to lawyers’ clients. The practice management options for lawyers can be overwhelming. To add to the mix, along comes the concept of “Artificial Intelligence” and lawyers are now faced with a panoply of AI platforms which are presently disrupting the legal industry.
It is widely accepted that there are four (4) pillars of law practice management: technology, finance, marketing, and management. The 2024 Survey Reports referenced above cover each of these disciplines in greater detail, with the first three pillars mentioned providing the technological foundation for the “management” of one’s practice. This report will provide a general analysis of the current practice management trends in 2024 based on the responses solicited.
There were 435 respondents to the Tech Basics and Security questionnaires. The demographics of the respondents were as follows: eighteen percent of the respondents were solo attorneys, 33% at firms of 2-9 attorneys, 23% at firms of 10-49 attorneys, 4% at firms of 50-99 attorneys, 9% at firms of 100-499 attorneys, and 13% at firms of 500 or more attorneys. Of those who participated in the survey, the percentage of fees based on specific methods was as follows:
The highest number of respondents who reported that they charge hourly fees was from practitioners in firms of 100 or more attorneys (84%). Solo respondents reported the highest percentage of fixed fees (25%). Respondents from firms of 2-9 attorneys reported the highest percentage of contingent fee practice (23%).
An often forgotten but important element of law firm fiscal responsibility is budgeting for technology. Sixty-five percent of firms reported budgeting for technology in 2024, the same percentage as reported in 2022. The percentage of those who budget for technology increases with firm size: 41% of solo respondents, 55% of firms with 2-9 attorneys, 65% of firms with 10-49 attorneys, and 90% of firms with 100 or more attorneys. The average annual spend on technology in 2024 was $13,991, compared with $14,106 in 2022.
I will discuss later in this article the percentage of users who reported using practice management software in their practice. Solo respondents reported spending less than $3,000.00 annually, with respondents in firms of 2-9 attorneys reported spending between $10,000-$20,000.00. Respondents in firms larger than these demographics were those who made up the majority of the “don’t know” demographic.
As for hardware (computers, scanners, printers, etc), solo respondents reported spending $1,000-$2,999 annually on hardware (37%), followed by 24% reporting an annual spend of $599-999. Among respondents from firms of 2-9 attorneys, 22% reported spending $3,000.00-$4,999.00, 19% reported spending $1,000.00-$1,999.00, and 21% reported that they didn’t know. The majority of respondents from firms with more than 10 attorneys reported that they didn’t know their firm’s budget for hardware.
Respondents in general were asked to select their firm’s top technology spending priority over the next twelve (12) months. Twenty-three (23%) reported hardware, 19% reported security, 12% reported litigation software, 9% reported mobile productivity, and 9% stated product/software development.
Solo respondents and respondents from firms comprising 2-9 attorneys reported hardware as the top technology spending priority. Security and litigation technology was the top priority for respondents in firms of 10-100 attorneys, while most attorneys in firms of 100 or more attorneys did not know the top budgeting priority.
It seems as if there has been little to no change in how attorneys budget for technology in their practices. This may be due to the fact that they purchased new technology after COVID to enhance their practices. However, technology is always evolving, and so must budgets. To that end, it appears as if solo practitioers and laawyers in small firms are aware of this and are planning accordingly, while attorneys in medium to large firms are not as aware.
The Marketing and Communications survey report is a standalone volume (Volume 2) of the Tech Surveys. It contains valuable information regarding recent trends amongst lawyers. There were 445 respondents to the survey questions presented.
Of the respondents to this Survey, 22% are solo attorneys, 27% were from firms of 2-9 attorneys, 26% were at firms of 10-49 attorneys, 5% were at firms of 50-99 attorneys, 8% at firms of 100-299, and 12% were at firms of 500 or more attorneys.
Ninety (90%) percent of the firms that responded to the survey reported having a website, down from 94% in 2022. Seventy (70%) percent of solo practitioners reported having a website, up from 61% in 2022, 91% in firms of 2-9 attorneys, 98% in firms of 10-49 attorneys, and 100% in firms of 100 or more attorneys.
Most respondents reported that their firm website was managed by an outside consultant, followed by a lawyer in the firm, and then a marketing staff.
Blogging remains an important yet often neglected aspect of marketing. Respondents of firms of over 100 attorneys comprise the majority reporting they have a blog (58%) followed by respondents in firms of 10-49 attorneys (23%), 19% from firms of 2-9 attorneys, and 11% of solo respondents. Seven (7%) percent of respondents report that they personally maintain a legal topic blog. 9% are from firms of 10-49 attorneys, 8% are solo attorneys, 6% are from firms of 2-9 attorneys, and 4% are from firms of 100 or more attorneys.
When asked about why they personally maintained a legal topic blog, 70% of the respondents reported that they enjoyed the writing and client outreach, and 52% reported maintaining a legal blog for networking and development.
Respondents were further asked if a new client ever retained their firm in response to a blog posting. Thirty-three (33%) reported that they have, including 48% from firms of 1-9 attorneys, 45% in firms of 10-99 attorneys. Nineteen (19%) percent said they have not retained a client through blogging, and forty-two (42%) did not know.
The majority of respondents reported some use of social media as a marketing tool. Interestingly, the number of respondents in 2024 (80%) is a decline from 2022 (89%). The primary online tool is LinkedIn (76% in 2024 compared to 89% in 2022), followed by Facebook (53% in 2024 compared to 62% in 2022), followed by X (Twitter) and Martindale (Avvo). Ten (10%) percent of the respondents reported maintaining a presence on YouTube.
Ninety (90%) of the respondents in firms of 100 or more attorneys reported having an internal marketing staff, as compared to 1% of solo respondents, and 7% from firms of 2-9 attorneys and 28% from firms of 10-49 attorneys. 11% of solo attorneys reported outsourcing their social media marketing to a third party, 18% for firms of 2-9 attorneys, and 17% for firms of 10-49 attorneys.
Twenty-six (26%) of respondents reported that their firms produced video to help market their practice, down from 31% in 2022. Respondents from firms of 100 or more attorneys were most likely to produce a video (41%, down from 47% in 2022), followed by firms of 2-9 attorneys (23%), 10-49 attorneys (20%), and solo practitioners (17%). The trend for each category was down from 2022.
The following graph represents respondents’ responses to their confidence in their respective marketing campaigns:
The average confidence rating for all respondents was 2.9, Respondents from firms of 100 or more attorneys was the highest at 3.3, followed by those in firms of 10-49 attorneys (3.0), and solo practitioners and those in firms of 2-9 attorneys (2.7).
A slim majority of respondents (51%) report that they or their firm will place the same emphasis on marketing in the coming year, with 21% reporting they will place more emphasis on marketing, 7% will place less emphasis on marketing, and 21% “don’t know.”
Firms with an “in-house” marketing team, usually those in firms of 50 or more attorneys, seem to stay on top of emerging and existing marketing platforms, while solo practitioners and those in small firms must balance their marketing strategies with the other facets of effective practice management. Whether it's time, money, or failure to stay up to date with emerging marketing tools, it appears as if a large number of solo attorneys or those in small firms are not utilizing marketing techniques to promote their practice.
Of course, technology is the primary topic of the 2024 Survey Reports, so each article will focus on this. However, as technology is an important cornerstone of a successful practice, I will briefly summarize some of the interesting points contained in these five volumes.
There continues to be a downtrend in the percentage of respondents using a desktop as their primary computer. Thirty-six (36% of respondents reported the desktop as their primary computer, down from 41% in 2022. The use of laptops as the primary computer rose to 61% compared to 56% in 2022.
The highest usage of desktop computers as primary computers is solo attorneys (57% in 2024 as compared to 34% in 2022). However, that was the only demographic to see an upward trend. Those in firms of 2-9 attorneys were at 51%, down from 59% in 2022, firms of 10-49 attorneys (31% in 2024 as compared to 51% in 2022) and 100 or more attorneys (12% in 2024 versus 13% in 2022).
The highest usage of a laptop desktop computer is conversely the opposite – 87% in those in firms of 100 or more attorneys (down from 88% in 2022), 68% of those in firms of 10-49 attorneys (up from 43% in 2022), 43% in firms of 2-9 attorneys (up from 38%) and 38% of sole practitioners, down from 58%.
In terms of where the desktop use as primary computer comes from, 59% of those respondents are from firms of 2-9 attorneys, followed by respondents from firms of 10-49 (51%), solo attorneys (35%) and 13% from firms of 100 or more attorneys. Conversely, respondents from firms of 100 or more attorneys report that their primary computers for work are laptops (88%), followed by solo attorneys (58%), firms of 10-49 attorneys (43%), and firms of 2-9 attorneys (38%).
The Law Office Technology Survey indicates that the use of laptops as primary computers is increasing in larger firms, while the use of desktops is increasing with solo attorneys and small law firms. Personally, I would have thought the exact opposite. As many large firms are requiring their attorneys to return to the office post-pandemic, it would make sense for them to return to their desk and desktop computers. On the other hand, solo practitioners are practicing from their homes or remote workspaces, while solo practitioners and small firm lawyers are out of their workspaces vying for new business. Perhaps the reason for high desktop use in large firms is due to the fact that they are now accustomed to having a “hybrid” practice, working from both home and the office. As for solo practitioners, perhaps since the majority of these practices are not in expensive office spaces, they can maintain a low-lease office or office sharing arrangement where they can have a less-expensive CPU with significantly more speed and storage than a typical laptop.
The use of multiple monitors continues to increase. Fifty-nine percent of respondents report having two monitors attached to their computer (compared with 55% in 2022. Interestingly, the greatest increase of use of multiple monitors is with firms of 10-49 attorneys - 74% of firms of 10-49 have two monitors attached to their computer (compared 51% in 2022). In the other demographics, the use of multiple monitors remained steady, except, surprisingly, for solo attorneys, where the use of multiple monitors decreased slightly, from 50% in 2022 to 46% in 2024.
Eight percent of respondents have three monitors attached to their computer and 1 % have four or more. Three percent report that they do not have separate monitors.
Looking at the same demographic that used two monitors, it appears as if these responses are skewed. Of course, some of this could be answered by the eight percent of respondents who reported having three monitors and one percent using four or more monitors!
The survey responses show that the use of multiple monitors is increasing, although slightly. Solo attorneys might be using three or more monitors because they have the freedom to make their own decisions about hardware. Lawyers in large firms may be limited by IT decisions and budgets. Despite these differences, it is important for all lawyers to have at least two monitors for various reasons. The benefits of this investment are significant.
The Law Office Technology Survey Report provides a comprehensive review of attorneys’ usage of the various software platforms available. The Report discusses document assembly, PDF creation, accounting and billing, calendaring, redlining software, contact management, and remote access software, among others. For this article, I am going to concentrate on the use of practice management software and related platforms.
Of those surveyed, fifty-three percent of the respondents reported the availability of case/practice management software at their firms. This number is down from sixty-three percent in 2022. The availability of practice management software has increased steadily in every demographic since 2019. This represents a significant drop in the availability of case management software in law offices.
In terms of the use of case/practice management software, the numbers are dropping across the board, except for firms with 100 or more attorneys. The percentage of responses for solo practitioners decreased from 45% in 2022 to 37% in 2024, for firms of 10-49 attorneys, the number decreased to 43%, down from 46% in 2022, and firms of 10-49 attorneys reported a 36% use, down from 42%. For firms of 100 or more attorneys, the number rose from 19% in 2022 to 27% in 2024.
The decrease in the actual use of case management platforms in firms with fewer than 100 attorneys can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, the price of these platforms is a significant factor. Companies continue to build additional features into their products and often charge users "a la carte," or individually per add-on to the original product. Gone are the days when case management platforms offered simple pricing options for the entire product. Secondly, users may find cheaper solutions for their practice by purchasing individual software solutions tailored to their specific needs from various vendors.
In general, the respondents to the survey remained “somewhat satisfied” with the overall features of the software they were using, followed by “very satisfied,” then “not very satisfied,” and “not at all satisfied.” The responses were consistent when those surveyed were asked to rate their satisfaction with the following platforms:
The majority of respondents (74.7%) stated that they have used cloud computing technology for work-related tasks. 14.8% stated that they did not. Of those who responded, 10.5% stated that they did not know if they used cloud computing technology for work-related tasks. This was further broken down as follows:
The leading technology providers used for cloud-computing based on the survey responses were as follows:
Volume V of the 2024 Legal Technology Survey Report is actually titled “Technology Basics and Security.” For purposes of this discussion, I will only provide a breakdown by demographic of security use in one’s practice.
For general security measures taken by lawyers, the leading security tools were reported as follows:
A review of the data indicates that attorneys in firms of over 100 members make the most use of the above security tools, while solo attorneys make the least use of these tools.
As for the use of security tools for performing cloud computing tasks, the responses were as follows:
Of the respondents, 23.8% of solo attorneys stated that they had no security measures in place for cloud computing tasks, followed by 23.5% iun firms of 50-99 attornbeys, 22.8% in firms of 10-49 attorneys, 16.3% in small firms of 2-9 attorneys, and 15.8% in firms of 100 or more attorneys. In most cases, less than 5% in each category stated that they “didn’t know” if they had cloud-computing security in place.
It is certainly concerning that even a small handful of respondents did not know if they had cloud-computing security in place. It is equally concerning that lawyers across the demographic spectrum acknowledged that they had no security measures in place.
The 2024 Legal Technology Survey Report provides some eye-opening statistics regarding lawyers’ uses of existing and emerging technology to manage their practices. While the majority (71%) of attorneys acknowledged their responsibility to understand the benefits and risks of technology as part of their competency requirement, this means a decent minority do not.
I believe that the first law, rule, or mandate in any treatise is always the most important. In this case, I am referring to the ABA Model Rule of Professional Conduct. In 2012, the American Bar Association amended Comment 8 to the Model Rule of Professional Conduct 1.1. Comment 8 reads:
To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology, engage in continuing study and education, and comply with all continuing legal education requirements to which the lawyer is subject.
To date, over forty states have formally adopted the revised comment to Rule 1.1, and many have now implemented a mandatory CLE for technological competency.
My takeaways from the reports I reviewed are as follows:
