“I Just Wish We Had Started With Clio”—How Yang Law Made the Switch

The difference between a solution and the right solution

After implementing an earlier law practice management solution at her firm, Yang Law Offices, Founder and Owner Elizabeth Yang faced a difficult truth: Not all law practice management solutions are created equal, and what works for one type of firm may not work for others.

Elizabeth had started using another practice management solution based on the recommendation of a friend who owns a law firm. Unfortunately, while that solution worked for her friend’s firm, it quickly became clear to Elizabeth that it wasn’t the best fit for Yang Law Offices.

“The main issue we were facing was the invoicing part of it,” Elizabeth says. The other practice management solution worked for a firm that was billing on contingency, but Yang Law needed something more full-featured. “Their invoicing billing software was actually still in the Beta stage when we first joined,” Elizabeth added.

Why Clio was worth the switch

While it was apparent early on that the software her firm was using at the time wasn’t the right fit, the prospect of changing systems and migrating the firm’s data was daunting. Additionally, the firm was locked into a multi-year contract.

However, after learning about Clio, Elizabeth saw the value in opting for a solution that could better support her family law firm, despite what might’ve seemed like a sunk cost.

“I would have signed up with Clio if I had heard about Clio before I signed that three-year contract. But once I heard about Clio, it was too late. We had already entered into a three-year contract, so we were stuck.”

While Elizabeth initially planned on sticking it out until the end of her contract, she ended up moving to Clio before the third year was up. “We just couldn’t wait any longer,” she said. “If I had to go back, I would have definitely signed up for Clio.”

1. Clio is reliable and dependable

As with any law firm, it’s important that Yang Law can count on their software. When it comes to reliability and ease of use, Clio is the clear choice for Elizabeth.

“Between our previous practice management software and Clio, I definitely think Clio is a lot more reliable and easy to use.”

This dependability is clear when it comes to how Clio assists Yang Law with billing.

Quick, responsive customer support is another factor that makes a big difference when it comes to overall ease of use of any software. For Elizabeth’s staff, Clio’s award-winning customer support is a definite improvement. Plus, they are able to call in when they need assistance. “From what I hear from my team, they think Clio’s customer service is a lot quicker and a lot more helpful,” Elizabeth said.

2. The billing process is easier with Clio

Because of the high volume of invoices Yang Law handles, efficient invoicing is important to its success. Yet, it was a central challenge for Elizabeth and her team with their previous software.

With Clio, invoicing and billing is a smoother process on the whole, and it’s easier for Elizabeth and her team to keep “track of the trust balance, so we know whether or not to reach out to the client for payment.

“We need a really easy way to manage the trust balance [and] to be able to apply the payments. Clio really helps with that.”

3. Clio is easy to use, and easy to navigate—especially for family law

Beyond Clio’s invoicing capabilities, Elizabeth also appreciates Clio’s user interface—especially compared to her previous software.

“I like the user interface a lot better. I like how when we go into a case, the first thing that comes up is the trust balance, and there are no significant glitches. And it’s really easy to run reports.”

For Elizabeth, it’s also easy to navigate Clio quickly and efficiently.

For example, Elizabeth appreciates the ability “to do a search and search by attorney name, for example, and see all of the cases under one person’s name. Having the originating attorney box, the managing, responsible attorney box, and then having statuses, too. If it’s an active case, if it’s a closed case, just being able to search and filter by all these different options.”

Having used two different practice management software systems, Elizabeth says she prefers Clio for Yang Law. For Elizabeth, Clio is better able to support the needs of her family law and the type of retainers that they use.

“I think between the previous practice management solution and Clio, Clio can definitely support family law firms better. I think it’s much more suited for our lead retainers, whereas the previous practice management solution is more suited for contingency retainers.”

4. Clio has so many useful integrations

When a law practice management software can connect—easily and smoothly—with other apps, law firms save time and can work more efficiently. For Yang Law, Clio’s array of practical integrations have been another benefit.

“We use quite a few different integrations,” Elizabeth says. “I know we use Zapier, and it’s just a lot easier to integrate than our previous practice management solution
is.”

5. It’s easy to get the whole team on board with Clio

Change management can be a challenge for law firms, but Elizabeth found it easy to get her team on board with the switch to Clio.

“I didn’t have to do much convincing. They were all ready to switch over to Clio because we were just having so many issues with their previous practice management software.”

Now that Yang Law has been using Clio for two years, Elizabeth says that she’s noticed a major drop in complaints from her team compared to when they were using their previous software.

Yang Law will keep growing—alongside Clio
Since adopting Clio, Yang Law has seen wins in multiple areas—from ARs going down to improved billing and invoicing to fewer complaints from the team. Going forward, Elizabeth envisions building on this momentum to further grow the firm.

“The long-term vision is to increase revenue and profitability, and also customer satisfaction, making sure we all have happy clients at the end of the case. Also reducing ARs and collection, so that we have as close to 100% collection as possible.”

Beyond the ways that Clio is currently supporting Elizabeth’s family law firm, she also anticipates new innovations in the future.

“Technology is moving so fast. I see Clio continuing to implement new things, and it’s very cutting edge. As a law firm with an innovative approach, I feel that Clio shares our value for innovation.”