I’ve found a number of things lately that show some of the coming directions of Internet delivery of legal services. I want to begin highlighting them on a regular basis. I spent a few moments at a meeting of the e-Lawyering Task Force at the recent ABA Law Practice Management meeting in New Orleans and heard the term “client-facing” approaches. I like this term a lot.
Here’s a superb example of a “client-facing” approach to legal services.
I’ve spoken several times lately with Vince Guinta and Bruce Grogg, who offer services through MyCompanyRecords.com and QuickRecordsPro.com. It’s both a solution to a real problem and opportunity for lawyers to make money by adding a truly valuable service for clients.
The common problem for anyone who has a corporation is that the task of basic corporate recordkeeping (minutes, resolutions, etc.) never quite gets done. Poor recordkeeping is an invitation for a court to look past the corporate entity and find peronal liability – the result of a doctrine known as “piercing the cororate veil.” The owner of a corporation is usually ill-equipped to handle the recordkeeping, accountants do not usually handle this, and, if you are lucky, a paralegal at your lawyer’s office will handle these matters, although often without your knowledge and participation. The problem is clear and well-defined.
With QuickRecordsPro, a lawyer who creates corporate entities can take care of and manage all of the aspects of keeping excellent corporate records and, at the same time, opening an important channel of regular communications. This service also allows a lawyer to create a value stream for a problem-solving service which many clients will be more than happy to pay (and a service many clients would expect that the lawyer would be providing). You can see the economic benefits of this service for a lawyer in, oh, about two seconds.
Some people don’t like the term “win-win,” but, to me, the term fits this approach like a glove.
I don’t do routine corporate work, but, if I did, QuickrecordsPro would be at the top of the list of items for my 2004 business plan. My reaction to hearing about the service from Bruce and Vince was to say, “do you have an affiliate marketing program?” I’m not ordinarily an easy sale, but this service just makes so much sense to me.
If you are a lawyer or a client who wants to get a solid example of what “e-lawyering” might look like, QuickRecordsPro.com is a great place to start. If you do corporate formation and maintenance as part of your practice, you must take a look at what they are doing at QuickRecordsPro. If you are a frustrated client who wonders if and how your attorney is handling your corporate maintenance and recordkeeping, tell your attorney about QuickRecordsPro, or “eliminate the middleman” and take a look at MyCorporateRecords.com.
And tell Bruce or Vince that I sent you.