Amicus Attorney by CARET vs. PCLaw

Amicus Attorney can probably be deployed very well in a law office that has a manager specifically dedicated to making it run smoothly, and who can keep track of the contacts, etc. In our firm, no one can spend the time to do this, so the information stored by Amicus gets a little disorganized, which has the effect of slowing us down

Incentivized

PCLaw is well suited for small to medium sized law firms with minimal accounting and bookkeeping needs. The software provides basic case management functions, and I've encountered issues with viewing or organizing new documents. The software crashes and freezes often, especially when multiple users are trying to access it at the same time. The user interface is a bit outdated but still very easy to navigate. You have to pay more for the cloud-based version of the software and it does not allow software integrations or workflow automations. I would recommend using this software only for billing/accounting purposes and subsidizing case management with more modernized products

• Very efficient calendaring with sync to Outlook calendar (option of Exchange or Outlook level synchronization).
• Case management including contacts, emails, documents, etc. to keep everything in one consolidated place.
• Document automation including Word merging or HotDocs (third party). Take case data including custom pages and fields and instantly create documents based on templates with ease.

Incentivized

• Quick - reports generate faster than Clio or Cosmolex
• Efficient data entry
• When set up properly, it speeds up a lot of different tasks

• Partner channel doesn't really exist anymore
• Support of the product is extremely poor
• License agreement states you can only run it in their data center (not Azure or AWS, really Amicus?)

Incentivized

• Like I said in my pros, it can hold a lot of matters. But, if your firm is very large, PCLaw may not be the best option. My old firm grew to the point where they had to switch because they had too many matters for the system to hold.
• The software is definitely dated, and I have some issues with crashing and other weird/buggy behavior. I have to set the default printer every time I log on in order to avoid multiple pop-ups when trying to print a document/report (which definitely doesn't take much time, but it can get annoying).

Incentivized

The software may not be pretty, but it works. It could use a facelift but the functionality is still there. Personally, I would like to see an investment to make it prettier, but again, function over fashion. It is not a client-facing application, so internal use does not need to be razzle-dazzle.

Incentivized

Tech support for LexisNexis PCLaw has been seamless as far as I know. Those issues have been dealt with by others at my organization and I do not have personal experience.

Incentivized

In the time that I have been with my firm, we have not used any other comparable software. As a result I can't compare it to anything else that is out there

Incentivized

PCLaw is still the only product that provides both front office (practice management/calendaring) and back office (accounting) solutions for a law firm in one product

Incentivized

• Large software investment, if not properly configured and utilized this can be a time and money vacuum.
• If law firm does not have a consistent personality among employees, buy-in may be difficult as it's a significant workflow change for users.
• Can greatly benefit law firm if used properly and across board for all employees. Uniform data organization for cases and custom pages add to personalizing software for firm.

Incentivized

• It helped the firm save money on case management software
• It negatively impacted productivity when dealing with glitches/crashes
• It was effective in keeping track of the firm's expenses