In today's world of fast growing technology, computers, voice recorders, software , smart phones and other gadgets seem to become obsolete so fast they hardly seem worth the price we are quoted today. Our ever steady declining economy does not prompt many of us to invest in toys & gadgets.
However, a growing trend I have notice, not just in the legal arena, but in just about every vocation, occupation or career is the owner or individual doing much of the leg work that used to be farmed out to other agencies. In the legal area, I have noticed a big swing in the way solo practitioners and small law firms are doing business. Besides the revolution of virtual assistants-completely virtual offices, drastically reducing overhead by eliminating the cost of full time employees that normally come all wrapped up in a pretty {pretty expensive, that is} package with a big fat dollar sign bow on top. The package I am referring to is the "benefits" package. Law firms , flying solo are doing it now without a real co-pilot, and completely without a crew, heck we are downsizing so much that some of us do not even have airports for our flying solo adventure.
Think about how much a lawyer saves by using a virtual office, a virtual assistant, a virtual receptionist. We cut out the cost of office rent, expensive salaries, telephone lines, benefit packages, you know, retirement, 401K, employment tax, state labor and unemployment fees, health insurance , all other insurance, paying for employees vacation, sick day, personal days & big fat Christmas Bonuses..
A virtual law office, simply a space you rent when you need to see a client, shared space can run as low as $75-100 bucks a month in mid size cities (cost of course higher in areas like Boston, Chicago,New york), but compare that do what a typical small office in a not so great location cost in a mid size city, anywhere from $1500- 2000 and that is a major cut. Virtual assistants run about $300-500 a month and you do not have to pay for them to be sick or take vacation or offer any benefits. A virtual receptionist@ say Ruby Receptionist runs about $75 a month. Step it up a notch and go with Smart services virtual receptionist, where they not only answer your phone and take messages, but they schedule appointments and many other things. For all that we are still looking at only $200-600 a month.
Who would not want to cut expenses by more than 75%. It is a debate worthy of an entire post. Do you want to really give up a real office? Don't clients expect a personal office with diplomas and law degrees and awards on the wall as opposed to a waiting area looking area in an airport? That's another story for another day.
So we cut out our assistants, paralegals and receptionist. How else can we cut cost? One of the biggest cost for any good criminal defense firm or personal injury or any firm that litigates for that matter is the cost of a private investigator. Having a P.I. on payroll can really add up quickly. So guess what? Yep, you got it. More and more lawyers are shelling out a few bucks (o.k more than a few) on the front end to avoid the big invoices on the tail end. We are purchasing top of the line video and audio surveillance equipment, cameras and all kinds of Spy gadgets. When you start looking at them and what they can do, it is remarkable. It is addictive. It is like playing James Bond pretend.
The items that so expensive, we could only afford the cheap replicas, the top of the line top notch, spy gear are now readily & easily available to all consumers.
While viewing some of the ultra spy website, to gain information on recording devices and the like; I came across a couple of items I thought may be of interest to everyone-anyone. I mean if we can do our own investigative work to cut prices, who is to say our clients won't start doing their own investigative work and delivering it to their lawyer, thus cutting the fee normally paid to the lawyer. The world it -is-a-changing and we are all taking on task we normally would be delegating to others. Hey, we all have to look out for number one right? Right now anyway.
Below are some really cool gadgets, starting with a pen voice recorder. Believe me they are nothing like the static engrossed pens of yesteryear. Check out these sites and techno gadgets.
Please keep in mind that every state has a different law on when it is permissible to record the conversation of another without their consent. Some states, require that all parties to the conversation consent.
Louisiana, however is one of the states that only requires one party to the conversation to consent. Simply put, if you are talking on the telephone to another person, in Louisiana, and you give yourself your consent to record the conversation then you are withing your lawful right to do so. Be careful however if you are recording calls that you are making or receiving and recording are from or to another state, it gets tricky.
Also, it is unlawful to record the conversation of two other individuals, to which you are not a party. You may not do this even , contrary to popular and WRONG belief, even if you both own and pay the bill on the phone you are recording. Remember in the least restrictive states , like Louisiana, at least one party to the recorded conversation must give consent & that consent can be given by you.
Following the favorite gadgets; I am posting a list of the states that require both parties to consent and the states that require only one. Please keep in mind, AS ALWAYS, this is not intended to be a substitute for actual, real legal advise from your attorney.
Telephone Tape Recorders, Long Play Recorders, Micro Recorders, Desktop Recorders, Recorder Detection,
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For a complete list of Private investigater tools and gadgets, visit http://pimall.com
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