The Texas Estates & Trust Law VLO will provide unbundled online legal services related to estate and trust planning.  Johnston’s practice was recently mentioned in the January 2009 issue of the Texas Bar Journal in an article by attorney D. Todd Smith titled, Internet-Based Practice Management Solutions.

Johnston’s virtual law practice will also provide clients with limited legal counseling and assistance in civil matters,including the preparation of basic legal documents, such as partnership and operating agreements for small businesses, residential and commercial lease agreements, estate planning materials, estate administration forms, and other contracts and agreements prepared in accordance with Texas Law.

Johnston was admitted to the bar in 2008 and is licensed to practice law in the State of Texas. Johnston graduated from Texas Wesleyan School of Law in December, 2007. Prior to graduating from law school, he obtained his Bachelor’s Degree from Texas A&M University and served in the US Army as a Signal Officer. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Texas, and the Dallas Area Young Lawyers Association.

An attorney operating a virtual law office (VLO) and offering unbundled legal services online provides a much-needed option in the delivery of legal services to the public.  He or she may provide unbundled legal services online through a VLO either as the sole form of legal services offered or in addition to a full-service law firm.  

What does the trend mean for the justice system?

The downturn of the economy has made the cost of traditional full-service law firms unavailable for many Americans.  In order to resolve their legal matters, many middle income individuals are turning to self representation.   The increase in numbers of pro se litigants has begun to burden court administrations on different levels.  While court clerks and other assistants are not permitted to provide legal advice to pro se litigants who come to the courthouse seeking free legal guidance, these administrators are obligated to provide pro se litigants with the necessary legal forms and procedures that they will need to proceed with their case.  When the instructions on these legal forms are not followed, court administrators must then go through additional work contacting the pro se litigants to rework the legal forms or assist them with scheduling court dates.

Once inside the courtroom, judges are burdened by the increased number of unassisted pro se litigants when they are obliged to provide basic directions to the pro se litigants regarding standard courtroom procedures.  Attorneys who find themselves standing opposite a pro se litigant when presenting a matter to the court must exercise patience.  They may find themselves rewording their statements so that the pro se litigant will understand the issues.  Overall, the case may take more time and become more expensive than it would have been if handled by legal professionals.

Unbundling Legal Services Provides A Practical Solution

There is a high demand for affordable and accessible legal services to fill in the gap between full, traditional legal representation and unassisted, pro se representation.  Unbundled legal services may provide individuals with an affordable option.  By retaining an attorney for assistance in filling out legal forms and for basic guidance on the legal process, the individual who would otherwise be a pro se litigant is assisted to the level where he or she is not as much of a burden on the court administration and other legal professionals he or she encounters in the legal system.

Many Americans who are searching for an affordable solution to legal services are turning to online companies like LegalZoom for form-generated legal documents. However, these legal documents and kits for sale are not actually reviewed by an attorney nor is the individual legal situation of the online consumer evaluated by a legal professional before he or she purchases the legal product.  A worse trend is that many members of the public are finding samples of legal documents online and attempting to revise these documents on their own without any legal guidance.

Web-Based VLOs Provide a Higher Quality of Unbundled Legal Services

Web-based virtual law practices can provide the public with unbundled legal services that include more personalized attention to individual legal matters.  Attorneys operating a VLO communicate directly with their clients securely online.  Because of the low overhead associated with running a VLO, the attorney may pass on his or her savings to provide unbundled legal services at a more affordable price than traditional legal services.  Clients may acquire the quality legal assistance they can afford so that they may perform the footwork at the courthouse themselves.

As with any prospective client that walks through a physical law office, it is the responsibility of the attorney running the VLO to evaluate each online client on a case by case basis.  If the prospective client’s unique situation requires full-service representation, then the attorney must either meet with the client in person for additional legal assistance or refer the client to another attorney.

As more state bars continue to revise their rules of professional conduct and ethics decisions to address the use of technology in the practice of law, innovative legal professionals who understand the importance of using technology to deliver legal services online will need to step forward to educate and defend the critical need for this as an option to provide affordable and convenient legal services to lower and middle income Americans.   A VLO providing unbundled legal services is a practical solution that serves both the public and the legal profession.

Attorneys feeling the economic crunch should read this motivational blog post from national coach, consultant and author of Build a Solo Practice, LLC, Susan Cartier Liebel, “Is Now The Perfect Time to Start Your Solo Practice?”

Opening a virtual law office (VLO) is an excellent way to turn the economic situation to your advantage, either by opening a completely web-based law practice or by adding a VLO to your existing law office. As Cartier Liebel explains in her post, innovative attorneys should find the opportunities hidden inside the economic downturn. Circumstances are causing an upheaval in our clients’ lives, in what they believe, who they trust and how much they are willing to pay for legal services.

Clients are looking for affordable and convenient legal assistance. As large and even mid-size firms are scaling back to stay afloat, small firms and solo practitioners have the unique opportunity to step up and provide clients with more affordable and efficient legal services. As the legal profession continues to grow more competitive and the economy more uncertain, the most effective law practices will be those that can expand beyond the traditional brick and mortar law offices and those that can more efficiently manage their clients through technology.

Low Overhead – A Cost-Effective Solution

Virtual law practices are cost-effective methods of providing legal services to the public. A VLO may greatly reduce the amount of waste that a law practice generates by being a paperless office, and the cost to operate a VLO remains minimal and reduces overall office overhead. Attorneys operating a VLO are able to acquire clients online and conduct business through the website without the use of paper and other office supplies and resources. Attorney and client data may be stored online during the course of the transaction and then transferred as a digital file to the attorney’s internal digital filing and backup system. Any documents that are not stored online in digital format through the client interface of the VLO may be scanned to PDF by the attorney and stored in digital format on the VLO libraries. The use of electronic invoicing and online payments for legal services to the VLO may be handled online without the use of paper invoices.

Efficient Services – Streamline Your Practice With Web-Based Technology

Attorneys operating web-based virtual law practices are able to more efficiently provide services to clients by streamlining their practices. The technology creates online case management, law and file libraries for the attorney that allow him or her to quickly respond to online clients without having to duplicate work or reinvent the wheel.

Pass on the Savings to Your Clients – Create Client Loyalty

With the reduced law practice overhead and greater efficiency in providing services, attorneys can pass the savings on to the clients. In turn, clients will be pleased with the convenience of acquiring legal services online at a price that is affordable.