Legal Department Software for West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
Legal service providers in the public sector need the right case management software
Professionals in public sector and government legal departments perform many of the same duties and tasks as other types of law firms and offices. They offer legal advice and representation to their clients. However, public sector departments are also tasked with benefitting the citizens their agency serves.
In order to do their jobs effectively, public sector legal departments need the right matter management software. When the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) was looking for new legal department software to replace its outdated system, Legal Files Software stood out.
DEP needed to update its legal department software to meet the demands of the office
DEP promotes a healthy environment by protecting air, land, and water, as well as regulating the oil and gas industry. Its Office of Legal Services (OLS) represents the agency in permit and enforcement actions before administrative boards, circuit courts, and appellate courts. It also provides counsel to DEP on regulatory and legislative matters. OLS works with all divisions and offices to assist with implementing regulatory programs.
To keep up with all of this work, OLS needed new legal department software. “We were using an outdated system and it was costly to update,” explained Lynn Dunlap from OLS. Additionally, the old system did not allow for centralized management of documents, email, and time entries.
The office needed to find the right legal team software to meet its needs. “Our office is a little different because we needed a system that could handle all kinds of cases and projects. We also have attorneys who need to bill time to each of our divisions, sections, or sub-sections, and each of those has different reporting requirements,” Dunlap said.
Dunlap started with a Google search that led her to Legal Files Software. “One day, I saw a video demo of Legal Files Software,” she said, “and it had everything we needed.” After viewing multiple online demonstrations, Dunlap consulted with the agency’s IT Department and OLS selected Legal Files Software.
Legal Files Software provides the features OLS needs to be more efficient and organized
After OLS picked Legal Files Software, the office wasn’t sure what to do next. However, Legal Files Software worked with OLS to help them determine their needs and goals. “Our Legal Files Software project manager was great. She was knowledgeable and fun, and we worked together to customize the system to our needs. She was also very helpful in building reports with us,” Dunlap said.
“We thought it would be tough and scary to learn a new system” Dunlap continued. “People don’t like change. And it was scary at first; but Legal Files Software is so user-friendly, it’s such a breeze to use and, before you know it, you come to love it.”
One of the reasons OLS loves Legal Files Software is because it allows employees to quickly generate monthly reports for each division of the agency. “Legal Files gives us the ability to easily see the types of cases DEP is handling as well as determine the related costs,” Dunlap said.
The Office uses Legal Files Software for more than reporting though. The legal department software also provides effective matter management. “Everyone has access to the information they need,” Dunlap said. OLS uses Legal Files Software best matter management to manage its daily workload, including administrative appeals, court cases, penalty collection, enforcement cases, and research.
When asked what she would tell others about Legal Files Software, Dunlap said, “This is the product for you. You can customize it. It has everything you need. We really love it.”