Using LawOffice 97 Document Management

An INTRANET/EXTRANET Solution

FOR FORMS AND DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

Using LawOffice Forms/Document Organization and Searching

Last updated 4/24/00

Executive Summary:

LawOffice^TM Forms/Document Management is an add-in to Microsoft Word and NT Server that helps you save, find and open Forms and/or other documents in a quick, easy and powerful way.

Every time you SAVE a Form or document, the SmartSave^TM function assists you in naming and describing the document and telling the computer about the client, matter, author, case type and document type. It will automatically save the document on the network and on the local drive, and it will automatically save it in the right folder. If, for example, you needed to save a commercial lease document as a "good form" to a Forms folder for Commercial Leases, LawOfficeä would save this in the correct folder, and it would be available to all authorized users via the Firm's Intranet, using technology that the Firm already has as part of its Microsoft network software!
When you want to OPEN a form or document, LO DocMan gives a choice:

If you know the client/matter number (or Form Folder identifier), you can go right to the folder for that form or matter.
You can do a full-text search of the entire database of documents, combining searches on properties (client, matter, case type, document type, author) with full text searches. And you can use the power of "boolean logic" (combinations of AND, OR and NOT) and "proximity locators."

You can search for documents on your local network or through the Internet/Intranet/Extranet using Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. In other words, we make use of known and FREE technology that the Firm most likely already owns and uses, and that every internet user is familiar with. Training time is reduced to nearly "zero."
WinDraft and macros can automatically fill in all of the retrieval information when a document is saved.

Any law office will benefit from a powerful Forms/document management system. The large return on investment is well documented. This can system can be used as an adjunct to PCDocs and will integrate with the Firm's client and matter database, if so desired.

LawOffice harnesses the power of Microsoft Word's "document properties" and the power of tools built into Microsoft NT Internet Information Server and Index Server to bring you the most important benefits of forms/document retrieval and management systems without the cost and management headaches of a separate database server and SQL licenses for the document management application.

The system is smart, powerful, and easy to use, and makes it easy to save and retrieve huge numbers of documents.

Best, it is completely integrated into the Microsoft Office and BackOffice environment, and works great on a LAN or a WorldWide Intranet.

We offer an adjunct to PC DOCS, not necessarily a substitute for it. We offer known and proven technology to get the job done at a low cost. Here are our basic concepts, applied, for example, to Forms management:

Just as with DOCS Open, I-Manage and other document management systems:

When a Form or document is saved, the user is presented with a data entry screen that gathers useful retrieval information about the Form/document.
Forms/Documents are "shadowed," if so desired, to the local Drive C: as well as saved on the network, for fault tolerance.
Forms/Documents are automatically saved on the right directory or folder, according to client and matter or any other grouping, for example, practice area. (If the document management system is down, you can still get to the documents.)
Documents can be retrieved by searching specific fields on the profile or by a powerful full-text search.

Unlike DOCS Open, I-Manage and other document management systems:

There is no SQL database to manage.
The SmartSave^TM feature automatically fills in most of the fields in the profile based on data in a database, giving you more retrieval information with very little data input required.
Data is entered into custom properties in Word.
Microsoft is providing most of the basic software, and we are just integrating it. Microsoft's Internet search engine, Index Server^TM, is used in conjunction with Microsoft's Web server software, Internet Information Server^TM, to index and retrieve the documents, using the latest Microsoft client-server technology. Index Server is the same software Microsoft uses on its Web site, and is quite scaleable. It does full-text indexing and can index on any property in any Microsoft Office document.
You can maintain the documents on public directories for public searching or on private directories with limited access on your Intranet/Extranet.
Macros and our document assembly system, WinDraft, can easily automatically fill in the profile information.

The LawOffice Document Toolbar

The LawOffice toolbar in Word looks like this:

The buttons are used to open documents, put the name at the end, and to aid in entering into document properties.

Here are a few screen shots that show how it works:

1. Saving

From within Microsoft Word, when the user selects File|Save or Save As, instead of the standard Word dialog, the user sees this instead:

The data may be filled in:

By the user
By an automatic document drafting program, such as WinDraft, or
By a macro

After the data entry screen has been completed, click the Save Document button, and the document will be saved twice, once on the network in the case or Forms directory, and once on Drive C: your local drive. The network version is the one that is indexed and shared, so that is the primary document to use.

(Except for laptop users, the local copy is on there for fault tolerance, so that you can get to a document in case the file server should become unavailable for any reason (hardware failure, etc.). Do not edit the local copy unless you have a good reason. See Appendix for information about synchronizing the documents if you have been editing off-line, and about using the Briefcase for automatic synchronization. )

Directory Structure by Team/Practice Area/Form Type

Folder hierarchy is based on the client/matter number (or other client designated format, e.g. by practice area) in the usual format, with a period between the matter and client codes.

The matter folder will be inside the "team" folder. The word "team" could just as well be read as "Practice Area" or "Form Type." This makes it easier to manage and to speed up by limiting searches to one team's (Practice Area or Form Type) documents.

Note that in this implementation, the team is derived by the program from the client/matter database. Should a matter be reassigned to a different team, the directory will have to be manually moved. Contact the help desk should this be an issue.

"SmartSave" Database Integration and Filling in the Fields

The firm maintains a Client-Matter database on the network. At many firms, this is maintained as part of the Firm's accounting, time and billing system or case management database.

It cannot be updated by most users, and is used in a "read-only" mode. The data regarding clients, matters, and attorneys is maintained by the firm's billing staff and is the same data that is in the billing system. If there are any errors, or if you need to open a file in a hurry on the system, contact the firm's billing and accounting staff.

Using the Icons in the upper right hand corner, the user can access a database to look up the Client and Matter ID. That will automatically fill in lots of information from the database about the matter, including the team/department, case type, case description and other searchable information. The user types the document name and comments in, unless a macro or document assembly system, such as WinDraft, fills them in for you.

See Appendix for complete list of fields and how they are used.

Be smart and complete when you fill out the profiles.

When you save a Form or document, most of us are in a hurry, and we are reluctant to invest the few seconds it takes to put some useful comments and search terms in the profile. Think of others who may be looking for these Forms or documents at a later date, and make it easy for others to locate your Forms or documents. Err on the side of robust descriptions. Remember, though, that the properties travel with the Forms or documents unless you remove them, so don't put anything in the properties of a Form or document that will be emailed or transferred that you don't want others to see.

Speed Keys to Assist in filling the Properties in.

These buttons are accessed through the "Copy to Properties" button on the toolbar. They are used to let an attorney or staff member select words in the document to be automatically typed into the Title, Keyword, and Subject fields in the data entry screen.

To use them, simply highlight the text (with the mouse or by pushing F-8 and navigation keys), and then click on the Title, Keyword or Subject button. The selected text will automatically go into the data entry screen.

Title and Subject will replace the previous entry if there is already one there. Keyword will add to the end of the keyword list with a semicolon between each.

Saving your documents Outside The Firm Documents Directory

F12 -- Bypass Key -- This key is used to go right to the Microsoft Save As dialog, bypassing the LO Save function.

All law practice documents are to be saved in the document management system, so don't use the F-12 Bypass key unless you have a good reason. Only use it when:

You have a good reason to save it outside the firm's document directory. (You want the document in the Forms folder only. You are saving a personal document that doesn't belong in the firm's document directory, you have another special reason for saving on a different disk drive or directory, or for some other reason it does belong with the firm documents.) Your IS Manager or Department can specify other "bypass" options or no "bypass" function at all. It depends upon the policy adopted by the Firm.

You want to save in a different format, such as WordPerfect or another supported Word version, such as 6.0/95, RTF, and Mac, or plain text (ASCII), Excel, or another format.

You need to use other buttons on the Save As dialog, such as the () Options Button, or use the () Version Control offered by Microsoft Word. This is what the generic "Save As" dialog looks like.

You need to "password protect" a highly confidential or private document.

Version Control and Saving Options are not discussed at this point. They are beyond the scope of this document. For further information, click on those buttons, and then click help, to learn about the functionality on-line. There is lots of information also at www.microsoft.com/word. Also, be sure to check the firm's policies on when and how to use these special options.

2. Retrieving. -- Two methods

When the user wants to open a document, he or she can either (a) use the quick "Matter Directory" button to automatically open up the folder for that matter, displaying all documents in the folder, or (b) can perform a full text or profile search.

	The "Matter Directory" button	-- When you are in a hurry and know the matter number
	The "LO Doc Search" button	-- When you want to do a full search

a. In a hurry? Simply open the Matter Folder!

	If you want to go right to the folder for the documents relating to a case, simply click on the "Matter Dir" button (). LO will prompt you for the ClientMatter code, defaulting to the last one you used, like this:
	It will then the normal Microsoft Word "File Open" dialog for that case, like this:

You can use any of the built-in search functionality of Microsoft Word from this dialog. For example, if you are a laptop user and you want to search your hard disk at a time you are off the network, you can search the document properties and full text using the ( ) "Advanced" button on the File Open dialog.

b. Searching for Documents: Text Search Based on Properties or Full Text Search

If you click "LO Document Search", (), the system will automatically load Internet Explorer (3 or higher) (or Netscape Navigator) with the search form, like this:

You can use your mouse and keyboard to enter your general query terms, further limiting filter by document property, and to have the "hit list" displayed in sorted order by property.

"Forms Bank and/or Brief Bank"

You can use this when you are trying to find a "needle in a haystack," or to use as a "brief bank" or "forms bank" to find in-house legal research on a point.

Manually Building a Query

The page described above gathers your query information from you using a user-friendly on-screen questionnaire. In some cases, the "user-friendly" way may be too limited for your needs. If you want to use the advanced query functionality of Microsoft Index Server, click on the "Tips for Searching" link for Microsoft's query documentation. You can use that to build queries that have proximity terms, full Boolean logic (and, or, not, etc.), and non-standard sorting.

After entering the search terms, and executing the query, (automatic or manually), Index Server will return a "hit list" that can be customized to meet your needs. Note: this type of "hit list" is in the familiar format of the internet, so training time is reduced.

Your Search results in a "Hit List"

The user simply clicks on the Form or document he or she wants, and the system will automatically that into Word, with all of the document management profile information.

Note: If you see the Internet Explorer icon in the upper left corner of the Window instead of the Microsoft Word icon, please call the Help Desk. They will help you change your Windows setup so that the documents are loaded into Word instead of running Word within the web browser.

Indexing and Timing:

A PC Server maintains an index, for fast searching, of the location of a document and the words used in:

Every property

The full text of the document

Timing -- In normal operation, it will take the server a few minutes to index a document, so the search capability will not be available after just a brief delay, something that is usually no problem at all for Forms or other document retrieval.

(If you click "File|Open," (), you have all of the normal Word file open functionality. Some firms prefer to remove this button. )

See Appendix for discussion of utilities to manage importing, archiving, and etc. the documents.

See Appendix for issues of use on the LAN, home, and laptop use.

Automatic Profiling with WinDraft's Document Assembly

The Firm already uses WinDraft, a powerful Document Assembly Engine. When you merge a document with WinDraft, the documents are generally set up in such a way that the document management profiles will be filled in automatically, so that you don't have to. WinDraft will automatically:

Create each Form/document
Save it into the right folder with the fields already filled in
Leave the document open on the screen so that you can edit it, and use Save As to edit the document properties to add specific information.

If you want to bypass this process, you can "uncheck" the "Save in LawOffice?" checkbox on the "blast-off" dialog box.

Also, please note that automatic profiling will only work properly if the correct data is in the data file. The Client/Matter codes must match those in the database.

Document Name "Trailer"

The "LO Doc Name at End" button

Document Name at End button. This button will cause the file name to be inserted at the end of the document in small type, with the full network path included. In other words, the Form identity or source can always be on the final "re-worked/edited" document, IF you so desire. Certainly, it could be maintained on the penultimate draft for "audit trail" purposes in the client file.

If you change the name or path, you must manually press this button to change the text of the file name "trailer" at the end.

It inserts it as plain text, rather than a field, as this is the type of information that requires text format in order to avoid risk of error with auto-update field document name field. Each time you click the button, it will overwrite the previous document name with the current one.

Please note: you could make this a policy of the firm to always use this with all documents unless there is a court rule or other special reason that prohibits this.