How to Use TrialWorks in the Cloud

This guide on running TrialWorks in the cloud is for anyone who uses TrialWorks (or plans to) and wants to explore doing so in the cloud. This includes:

In this, our ultimate guide to TrialWorks cloud hosting, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know to assess and implement TrialWorks in the cloud.

If your firm already uses and knows TrialWorks, feel free to skip ahead. If you’re new to TrialWorks, or considering it for your firm, we’ll provide a brief overview.

TrialWorks is law practice management software that provides additional focus and emphasis on litigation—managing the details, tasks, deadlines, and other elements of cases that are likely to go to trial.

TrialWorks is server/desktop-based software, which means it can run on-premise (on your firm’s in-house servers) or hosted in Private Cloud (which we’ll cover shortly).

At a high level, the TrialWorks software suite provides:

At the risk of being repetitive, TrialWorks is often a good fit for law firms that need more from their case management software than simple management of contacts, time/billing, and a calendar.

TrialWorks provides a great tabbed interface for each case, giving you almost a litigation-binder-like way of viewing and managing every element of your case.

Watch the demo, provided by TrialWorks.

The cloud delivers major benefits for small and midsize law firms—reliability, security, mobility, and more.

The good news: you don’t have to choose. With a TrialWorks hosting solution, you can keep the powerful software you rely on while enjoying all the benefits of the cloud.

For many law firms, TrialWorks is great, and it’s even better in the cloud.

You can run TrialWorks in the cloud, and before we explain exactly how TrialWorks cloud hosting works, I’ll take a moment to explain why you should.

There are, however, a few major caveats to this statement, which we’ll cover later in this article.

Now that we’ve covered why TrialWorks works better in the cloud, let’s look at how it actually runs there—starting with the difference between cloud-based (web) software and desktop/server-based software.

Before cloud computing went mainstream, most software—including TrialWorks—was installed on an on-premise server and accessed from each employee’s computer. The software’s “engine” and database lived on that server, making server ownership (and ongoing maintenance) a non-negotiable requirement for running the software.

That’s just how it was.

Today, a Private Cloud changes the equation. A Private Cloud is a hosted, managed IT platform that replaces the physical server in your office. It runs your legal applications, stores your documents and email, and offers greater mobility, reliability, and security—all without the headaches of managing in-house hardware.

Server-based software like TrialWorks still needs a server. The difference is, with a Private Cloud, the server is in the cloud.

To be more specific, a typical law firm private cloud for TrialWorks will often include:

Private Clouds are so-called because every law firm (called a “tenant” in cloud computing parlance) has their own segregated, dedicated working environment.

In most cases, that means:

If you’re not familiar with these technologies: What it amounts to is that your law firm has its own private space for its software, documents and data, separate from other law firms, which gives your firm an added level of data security and privacy.

Related:

That’s the “back-end” of running TrialWorks in the cloud. You and your team will interact with the Private Cloud via what’s known as a Virtual Desktop.

We’ve covered why TrialWorks runs better in the cloud, and how a Private Cloud makes it possible. But what does that look like for each person in your firm?

The answer: a Virtual Desktop.

A Virtual Desktop is just like the Windows or Mac desktop you use every day—except it’s hosted in the cloud and accessible anytime, anywhere. It’s loaded with the tools you rely on, from Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook to your practice management, accounting, and document management software.

With a Virtual Desktop, your firm’s software—normally tied to your office computer or servers—is available from any device, anywhere in the world.

Sometimes called “Desktop-as-a-Service” (DaaS), it’s the desktop experience delivered over the cloud.

In a traditional setup, your key applications are installed directly on your office workstation or laptop. Everything runs locally, and you’re tied to that device.

In a Virtual Desktop environment, almost nothing is installed on your local computer. Often, the only thing you’ll see is a shortcut to log into your cloud-hosted desktop—your secure gateway to all your firm’s software and files.

When you (or anyone on your team) logs into your Virtual Desktop, you’ll have access to all of your law firm’s software, documents, and data, including:

This gives your entire firm access to TrialWorks (and all of your applications, documents and data) from anywhere, on any device.

Virtual Desktops also mean that you no longer have to install, update, and maintain each of your applications on every computer within your firm. Instead, your Cloud Service Provider simply keeps all software updated for you.

Virtual Desktops bring many advantages to law firms. Specifically, Virtual Desktops are likely the best technology route in any of the following scenarios:

We’ll cover selecting the right Virtual Desktop provider, and doing your due diligence, shortly.

For an example of working in a Virtual Desktop, watch our demonstration of Uptime Practice.

Now that we understand how TrialWorks in the Cloud works, the benefits and the functions, we’ll walk through how to move TrialWorks to the Cloud.

This process is typically administered by your chosen Cloud Service Provider but could be done via a combination of IT consultants, software consultants, and cloud hosting providers.

Your TrialWorks cloud migration should begin the same as any well-managed project—with a single point of contact.

Your project manager (at Uptime Legal, we call this person the Onboarding Manager) should begin by clearly setting expectations and communicating the next steps, removing any uncertainty of the path that lies ahead. Your Onboarding Manager should define specific timelines, expectations, and what is needed from you.

While a good cloud service provider will have a well-defined and documented process for onboarding, the process is never cookie-cutter, and no two law firms are alike. A good TrialWorks cloud migration process should begin with deep discovery and assessment of the firm’s current environment, including:

Next, your TrialWorks hosting provider will begin building your private cloud environment. A good provider will have a well-developed process and can build your private cloud quickly.

The Onboarding Manager and engineering team will install your software, provision your email accounts, and generally build the “shell” of your complete IT platform. This process includes:

Next, your TrialWorks cloud provider will begin the process of collecting your data from current locations. Each element of your firm’s technology will be moved over, component-by-component. This cutover process includes:

The physical transfer should be seamless and all data transferred securely to the new cloud platform. The Onboarding Manager and his team should thoroughly test every application (once data has been imported), and test computers and peripherals.

The TrialWorks hosting provider should be very flexible in scheduling the cutover, including executing it over an evening or weekend, so the entire cutover process takes no more than a day, and results in little or no user downtime.

A good TrialWorks hosting provider knows first impressions matter.

Employee adoption starts with a system that’s reliable and easy to use from day one.

The steps above are essential for a seamless transition of TrialWorks—and your firm—to the cloud.

Beyond the functionality, reliability, security and mobility benefits of TrialWorks cloud hosting, there’s also the financial case for moving TrialWorks to the cloud.

Running TrialWorks in-house, with on-premise servers, is a deceptively expensive proposition. You have to buy servers. You have to buy ancillary IT infrastructure, like backup systems, battery backups, and more. You have to hire a capable IT consultant to not only set up the server, but proactively manage and maintain it.

And these costs are always higher in a given year than you think they will be.

To understand the economics of moving TrialWorks to the cloud, we need to compare a Private Cloud solution to the costs of in-house, on-premise servers and IT.

Watch the Video:

First, analyze all costs incurred each new server cycle (typically 3 to 5 years). That is: buying and implementing server infrastructure, and usually includes:

I recommend that, for each of these items above, you get pricing and record it in a spreadsheet. Add up the total costs (and make sure you’re not missing anything), and you’ll have a sense of the total up-front cost of another cycle of on-premise IT.

It’s important to note that much of these costs are ultimately driven by the software your law firm uses. How many, and how powerful of servers do you need? Do you need multiple, dedicated servers? Will you need VMWare virtualization? This is ultimately determined by the software you use (namely: Practice Management and Document Management software), and the server requirements of those applications.

TrialWorks, for instance, requires a lot of computing power, and setup/hosting for TrialWorks requires an expert.

Use our Cloud Cost Calculator to tally up all relevant up-front costs for your firm.

Next, analyze costs incurred on an ongoing basis. Identify monthly recurring costs, as well as annual costs (renewals, maintenance), and determine your average monthly or annual recurring costs. For most law firms, these often include:

Add up what you do, or will spend, on an ongoing basis. This should include fixed monthly costs (such as a Managed IT Provider contract) as well as sporadic, less predictable costs (such as hourly IT support). For the latter, if you’re unsure of a reasonable budget for this amount, I recommend finding the average over the past two three years.

Add all of these up and determine your average monthly IT spend.

Finally, we need to identify and budget for some level of unplanned IT expenses. Proactive IT does significantly reduce the chances and impact of unforeseen IT problems, but over enough time they’re likely to occur nonetheless.

These unplanned costs may take the form of:

As you can see–some costs are fixed and predicable, others are wildly unpredictable (but should be budgeted or accounted for in some way).

Finally, add up your up-front costs, monthly recurring costs, and your budget for unplanned/unforeseen costs: This is your Total Cost of Ownership for on-premise IT.

Now compare this Total Cost of Ownership to that of a Private Cloud.

We’ve already demonstrated that a Private Cloud is objectively better than in-house IT, in terms of reliability, security and mobility. But simply comparing the costs of in-house vs. cloud-based IT shows that Private Cloud is also more economical than in-house IT.

Private Cloud costs typically include:

Of note is that (with the right Private Cloud provider) these figures are inclusive of all technology that you would otherwise have to buy and maintain. On-premise IT (as we’ve illustrated above) is fraught with hidden and unpredictable costs.

Fully-managed Private Cloud costs are simple, clear and predictable.

Related:

Now that you have a sense of how TrialWorks in the cloud works and how moving TrialWorks to the cloud will benefit your law firm, lets talk about the all-important job of doing your due diligence.

There are a variety of ways your firm could accomplish a transition of TrialWorks to the cloud. Whatever direct your firm goes, it’s important to do your homework.

In recent years, a problem for law firms has become that more and more companies, from small, local IT shops to generalist (non-legal-focused) cloud server providers are throwing their hat into the ring and declaring, “Hey, we do TrialWorks cloud hosting now too!” This is a potential pitfall for law firms. Here’s why.

Running and maintaining TrialWorks in the cloud isn’t for amateurs.

Hosting TrialWorks, in particular, requires special configuration and deep software expertise. How to properly engage in due diligence when selecting a Private Cloud provider for your law firm is a subject unto itself, but here are a few key areas to review when evaluating potential hosting companies.

Most software companies focus on what they do best—developing and improving their product. TrialWorks has done that well.

A few software makers, however, have also tried to become hosting providers, creating their own “cloud hosting” options. TrialWorks is one of them. While the intention may be good—offering existing customers a cloud alternative—cloud hosting isn’t for amateurs.

Building a secure, enterprise-grade hosting platform requires a completely different set of skills, resources, and ongoing investment.

On the surface, it might seem logical for a software developer to host its own product. In reality, writing legal software and running secure cloud infrastructure are two separate disciplines, and being great at one doesn’t translate into expertise in the other.

Unfortunately, TrialWorks Cloud customers discovered this the hard way.

In October of 2019, TrialWorks’ cloud data security system failed, and TrialWorks’ cloud platform was hit with ransomware.

Many, if not all TrialWorks clients reported weeks of outages, where they were unable to access their client and case information. What’s more, many firms reported permanently losing data, even after the outage had been restored.

In the News:

• Ransomware Hits Case Management Provider TrialWorks (LegalTech News)
• Court Cases Affected by TrialWorks Ransomware Incident (Security Boulevard)
• TrialWorks Clients Dealing with System Outage (SmartAdvocate)

To be clear, we think TrialWorks is great software. But just because a company makes software doesn’t mean their necessarily the company best suited to host it, or provide cloud hosting to your law firm.

Once you’ve developed a short list of potential TrialWorks hosting providers, do your homework on each company. We recommend:

To see the Google reviews for a Private Cloud provider (or any business), if the company is reputable you can simply perform a Google search for that company, and the reviews will show up in the search results sidebar. For example:

Learn more about doing your due diligence:

At Uptime Legal, we host TrialWorks and other legal software for hundreds of law firms across North America.

Get in touch with our team to learn more about TrialWorks in the cloud for your law firm.

Learn more about Uptime Practice and TrialWorks in the Cloud.