6 Best Legal Calendar Software Options

Want to run a successful law office? While education, location, and even marketing all play roles, the most important thing is being able to manage your time effectively. It’s all about balancing billable and non-billable hours. What it comes down to is productivity — are you and your team spending enough time on billable tasks versus administrative, overhead tasks? 

Mastering time management can seem challenging, but the right tools can make a big difference. In this case, we’re talking about legal calendar software. The right app can do wonders for your law office, allowing you to coordinate your team’s efforts, track how they’re spending time, and then make important adjustments to maximize billable time while ensuring important non-billable tasks still get handled.

The state of productivity and time management today

Before we start discussing the various legal calendar software options out there, let’s talk about productivity and time management.  

• According to Wrike, almost half of all employees report feeling productive less than 75% of the time on the job. 
• 60% of an employee’s time is usually spent on work that’s discussing or preparing for other work, rather than actually executing work. 
• On average, employees spend 57% of their time communicating rather than working. 

Those are rather startling numbers. How can something as simple as a calendar app help you change the situation in your law office? It’s all about making things visible. Too often, lost time and productivity are hidden. When those issues are invisible, they can’t be addressed. With legal calendar software, you can:

• Collaborate more effectively
• Ensure accountability for tasks
• Coordinate team efforts
• Track time accurately

In short, legal calendar software unlocks the ability to track, manage, and hold accountable your team and yourself, transforming your time management and productivity in the process.

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The best legal calendar software

As you can see, legal calendar software can be transformative for your law firm. But what app is best suited for your needs, team configuration, and budget? Here are the six contenders we’ve selected.

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1. Clio

Used by over 150,000 law firms, Clio is probably the most popular legal calendar software on the market. It’s also part of a larger suite of products, including a top-ranked CRM. Built for lawyers, Clio gives you more than just the ability to set appointments and track time spent. You can track case progress, update case milestones, stay ahead of legal deadlines, set and manage appointments, create multiple reminders, and dive into productivity stats. It also integrates with other tools you’re probably already using, like QuickBooks.

2. MyCase

‍MyCase is also built specifically for law firms. While it doesn’t have the same user base as Clio, it’s rapidly growing in popularity thanks to its broad range of features and capabilities. You can manage your cases, track staff time, and handle client events with ease. MyCase allows you to monitor deadlines, set important dates, sync events with other calendars (Google and Outlook, for instance), and more. And, like Clio, MyCase Calendar is just one part of a larger app ecosystem.

3. Google Calendar

‍Google Calendar is one of the best legal calendar software options out there, particularly for teams and practices on a budget. It’s free to get started with any Google account, and it’s affordably priced through Google’s Business Starter account. It delivers most of the capabilities you’ll find with other calendars out there, and it seamlessly integrates with other calendar apps for easier operability. 

4. Fantastical

If you and/or your team primarily use Apple devices, Fantastical is a great choice (note that it’s only available for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS). It’s beautifully designed and offers very powerful features, including agenda views, identical event notifications, and more. It also plays nice with the rest of your tech stack and integrates with other calendar apps. 

5. Calendly

‍Calendly promises to be “your scheduling automation platform for eliminating the back-and-forth emails to find the perfect time - and so much more.” It lives up to that promise, too, especially for teams. You’ll benefit from flexibility in the types of events that can be booked and who can be included. It also uses workflows and integrations to connect to the other components of your tech stack, including your CRM and billing tools. Unlike many scheduling apps, Calendly also delivers meeting analytics so you can drill down into your data and make more informed decisions.

6. Practice Panther

‍Practice Panther is not just a legal calendar software option. It’s a full practice management suite. However, it does come with a robust calendar app that ties into the rest of the company’s tools and provides seamless time tracking, expense tracking, appointment management, and tons of other capabilities. Unlike a few other options on our list, it’s not free, but there is a free trial that lets you put it through its paces. 

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Tie it all together with the human touch

Legal calendar software can be the proverbial game-changer your office needs to transform time management and productivity. At Smith.ai, our virtual receptionists can work with almost any calendar you choose, allowing us to book appointments, send reminders and follow-ups, and help your team get a handle on time management. 

We’re also happy to offer other important services that can streamline office operations, like lead screening and intake, 24/7 call answering, and sales/spam blocking to name just a few. Let us help you transform your time management. Discover just how simple it can be to add the human touch to your office while giving your team the time they need to focus on billable tasks.

To learn more, schedule a consultation or reach out to hello@smith.ai.