The Gazette 1992

GAZETTE

DECEMBER 1992

H N 0 L

N

T ime Recording, At Last!

While it was possible to d o so, we d i s c o u n t ed using the c omp u t er to fill o ut the f o r m. So also we did not use h a n d held c omp u t e r s; t oo difficult to use a n d train; n o allowance f or h u m a n error, c o o k i ng the b o o ks or (mo st i mp o r t a n t l y) d own r i g ht f r a u d! Ca r e f ul e x ami n a t i on of the f o r ms supplied showed t h em to be as complex as tax returns a n d, k n ow i ng the a b s o l u te incompatibility between laywers a n d f o rms, we s c r a pp ed the lot a nd designed o ur own. We wo r k ed o ut wh at the p a c k a ge wo u ld need a nd designed a f o rm which was absolutely basic. T h e p u r p o se of the f o rm was to ascertain wh at clients we were dealing with a n d h ow long we were dealing with t h em. Ou r f o rm details the client by reference number, the type of work by code n umb er (e.g. interview, telephone call, d o c ume nt drafting) a nd the time spent, in units of six minutes. Nothing else, no addition, subtraction, extensive notes or analysis of "idle t ime" (who wants to know what you do when you are staring at the ceiling?). The purpose is to record time a nd have it analysed. Wh at you do with it is a further step but, if you d o n 't record it clearly a nd sensibly in the first place, there is no point in the operation. So, each fee e a r n er got a sheet a n d a pencil. . . a n d (of course) the minder, leaning over his shoulder. Each fee e a r n er h as an h o u r ly rate. Th is is not picked o ut of the sky. Using the b o o k l et " T h e Ex p e n se of T i m e " as p r e p a r ed by the Law Society in E n g l a n d, we assessed the h o u r ly rates. Rough ly s p e a k i ng, you look u p your a c c o u n t s, f i nd o ut h ow mu ch it costs to r un the office, a dd an i n c r eme nt I (Continued on page 402) The Hourly Charge

by Frank Lanigan

Time recording, like Guinness, js good for you. But how many of us would enjoy the black brew if we had to have the hangover first? Preparation for time recording is a hangover of sorts and a pain that most lawyers readily put off from year to year. After many years of resolve and broken promises, we finally bit the bullet and introduced time recording to our office this year. Starting in April, 1992, we set a timetable for the j ob to go live on September 1, and we met our target. H ow ma ny b o r i ng articles have we seen over the years a b o ut time recording? H ow ma ny s emi n a r s? Wh y is there no easy gu i de to time recording with a step by step tutorial? Because time recording seems to have been designed by a c c o u n t a n ts for a c c o u n t a n ts ( bo r i ng o n es at that). S amp le time sheets a n d learned articles have f r i g h t e n ed o ff mo st solicitors. T i me sheets a s s ume skills to which the legal profession does not easily aspire, viz the ability to keep track of your wo r k, to n o te wh at you are d o i ng a n d to a d d it all u p at the e nd of the day. Definitely t oo difficult. 1 Every k n own article a nd seminar, every " h o w to m a n a g e " t e x t book a n d every k n own " e x p e r t" was c o n s u l t e d. T h e only u n i f o rm f a c t or was the lack of u n i f o rmi t y. Text b o o k s a s s ume t h at you have n o t h i ng better to d o t h an to watch your every move a n d n o te it. N o n e of t h em related to a c o u n t ry practice which mi g ht be lucky to be able to record o ne h o u r in five, let a l o ne charge for it. T h e d o c ume n t a t i on Time recording, The nonsense The Homework

Frank Lanigan

was c omp l e x, the h ome wo rk lengthy a n d the me t h od of analysis o f t en pointless.

Into Action

So wh at did we do? We wo r k ed it o u r for ourselves. First, we f o r med a c omm i t t ee of five, three scapegoats, o n e m i n d er a nd an " o r g a n i s e r" (to m i nd the " m i n d e r " ). T h e s c a p e g o a ts were p r imed to start time recording on J u ne 1, the m i n d er to start harassing t h em on J u ne 2, a n d the organiser to ma i n t a in a p a i n ed a nd worried expression for the next three mo n t h s! T h e second t e am of s c a p e g o a ts were i n t r o d u c ed on 1 July a n d the entire o f f i ce (on trial) on 1 Au g u s t, the system go i ng live on 1 September. T h e n we set o ut to design a f o r m. We have an excellent c omp u t er system with a time recording p a c k a ge integrated with the a c c o u n ts system. Until we started this p r o j e c t, we h ad never used the time recording system. So we read the m a n u al a n d tinkered a r o u nd with the c omp u t er package, including the b e a u t i f ul f o r ms s upp l i e d. The Form

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