Clients are increasingly asking law firms to prove tech competency before signing contracts for work. Why? Because they know that good tech skills translate into more efficient production, which translates into more bang for their buck. Simply put: Clients don’t want to pay high hourly rates if the people producing the work don’t know how to, say, format a Word document.
That is a very fair expectation.
But how do you prove tech competency at your law firm? So much of law work today is in the production process: producing products around legal arguments —briefs, trial documents, contracts, etc. Therefore, if you can prove that your team efficiently uses the document production tools at their disposal, then you can prove that your billable hours are jam-packed with value.
One way to prove tech competency at your law firm is to become LTC4 certified. LTC4, or the Legal Technology Core Competencies Certification Coalition, has established a set of certification standards that prove to clients that they are working efficiently.
How does LTC4 certification prove tech competency?
LTC4 is a non-profit organization that has established legal technology core competencies and certification that all law firms can use to measure ongoing efficiency improvements. Here is the process:
- Identify your firm’s training priorities.
- Purchase licenses for the appropriate LTC4 Learning Plans to match your goals.
- Align your training to LTC4 skills.
- Implement and submit results.
- Market your certifications as a differentiator from your competitors!
LTC4 offers 10 core competency learning plans
- Working with Legal Documents
- Managing Documents and Emails
- Collaborating with Others
- Time Recording
- Hybrid Working
- Data and Reports
- Security Awareness
- Client Relationship Management (CRM)
- Visual Communications
- Video Conferencing
Two target audiences: attorneys and support staff
- The attorney core competencies and certifications have been developed to provide the skills necessary to address their professional responsibility to the firm and clients to create/oversee quality work product, avoid risk, and maintain confidentiality and compliance.
- The staff core competencies and certifications have been developed to provide the skills necessary to support firm attorneys and clients to create efficient quality work product and enable the firm to measure staff proficiency to ensure firms goals are being achieved.
The benefits of LTC4
When a firm decides to follow the LTC4 learning paths, not only are they going to achieve increased efficiencies (which will improve their bottom line), but they can use the certification as a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
Whether you’re in a competitive RFP process or enjoying a lunch with a prospective client, imagine the advantages of saying, “We’re certified efficient by a non-profit international consortium of law firms, law schools and law departments. When you work with us, you can be assured that we are maximizing every dollar you spend.”