PCLaw is offered as an all-in-one billing, legal accounting, and matter management solution, from PCLaw | Time Matters, a joint venture spun out of LexisNexis in collaboration with LEAP in 2019.
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TyMetrix 360°
Score 1.0 out of 10
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TyMetrix® 360° is a SaaS-based e-Billing and Legal Matter Management software
solution that allows users to manage all of their matters and legal invoices in one
place. It is designed to be intuitive and simple to learn to help legal staff manage matters with
ease, streamline daily activities, strengthen internal and external collaboration, and improve the management of outside counsel
billing costs. Easy to use reporting gives teams visibility into their department’s performance, while…
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 The user interface is a bit outdated but still very easy to navigate.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
This product has no redeeming features that I have found in comparison to the many other eBilling "solutions" I have used. They have no incentive to improve it because they offer law firms a very expensive monthly subscription service to assist them in using the system. So, they are being paid by the insurance companies to force law firms to use TyMetrix and then TyMetrix turns around and collects a second fee from the law firms to do what should be easy to do in the first place.
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).
Let's start with a basic one: When you click on the "My Matters" tab, you should get to see your matters. Instead, you have to click on "all matters" and then search for your matters. The "My Matters" tab is useless.
The help section is abysmal. It has improved slightly over the past three years, but they don't seem to understand the areas where users need help.
It should be easy to submit invoices in an eBilling program. The program already has all of the matter data (client ID, Matter ID, tax ID, billing rates for each attorney etc.) associated with the matter. That should not need to be included in the LEDES file submission. You should be able to submit an invoice that has only the time duration, attorney initials, Phase and Task Codes, expense or time identification, and description of work for each line item with the program then assigning the rest of the info: billing rate (based upon attorney initials) , timeslip total (duration times billing rate), total for invoice, attorney tax id , client ID, matter ID, etc.
The program only works with Internet Explorer or Chrome. Both are major security risks for a law firm and should not be used for submission of confidential information. The program needs to be updated to work with other browsers.
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.
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.
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
In addition to ASCENT and TyMetrix, I've used LegalExchange, BottomLine, Advocator, CounselLink and Allegient. TyMetrix is, by far, the worst of the bunch. Although none of them are great, the others are far more user friendly than TyMetrix.
The impact of this program on my law firm is entirely negative. I spend inordinate amounts of otherwise valuable billable time submitting my invoices. (I refuse to pay the exorbitant monthly subscription that will theoretically eliminate the user-unfriendly-ness of the product.
If you ae with an insurance company that is thinking of using this product, remember that we lawyers are your partners in defending your insureds. We don't object to you reviewing our bills and making sure that you are getting charged appropriately; but there are other eBilling solutions out there that won't be major headaches for the law firms on your panels. Get some lawyers to evaluate the eBilling programs you are considering and choose one that meets your needs without frustrating your law firms.
