Bert De Keyser, Law Firm GD+A
" If time is money, Cicero Lawpack already earned us a lot of money."
Bert De Keyser is one of 5 partners in the Law Firm GD+A in Mechelen. The Law Firm specializes in administration law and tax law. 40 % of their clients consists of local governments and administrations who mainly need tax advice. The other 60 % are SME's, whom require assistance with environmental licenses, urban planning and general matters. The firm employs 10 advocates and 2 secretaries.
The work of experts
It's not just law firms who focus on specific fields of expertise. Within the bigger firms, expert matters like administration law and tax law are increasingly being handled exclusively by a dedicated expert in the field. At GD+A Bert De Keyser has that position: "Of the 5 partners, I am the one who uses Cicero Lawpack the most. We work on a hourly tariff or on a set price that is agreed upon with the customer. It therefore is important to manage the cases and files as correctly as possible. It can mean the difference between winning and losing a case."
Support with management tasks
"At any given moment I can run a check using different parameters, which enables me to see who is doing what, and what the results are. In the olden days keeping track of what had been done was a puzzle that took a lot of time to solve. Nowadays, however, the effort involved is minimal. On top of that, I can generate all kinds of reports on different aspects for myself, and e.g., can follow-up on how my clients are doing."
The Database is the base of everything
Advocate De Keyser is in favour of well maintained databases: "Even with an excellent application like Cicero Lawpack everything depends on how well the data are put into the database. Jobs that aren't booked or incorrect hourly rates could cause many problems. It was therefore important to sensitize all collaborators from the very beginning to the correct implementation of Cicero Lawpack. "
What was the name again of that other program?
"New collaborators get the habit fast. If there is a problem, we ask Sarah De Neys to come over and organise a short and specific training session. This personal approach makes a world of difference, compared to the software we used to have and which never really worked for us. I can't even remember its name. All I remember is that the CDs were green." (Laughs).
Link: www.gdena-advocaten.be
