Contents

    Proudly featured in

    ForbesAdvisor - The Best Legal Billing Software Of 2022

    Case Study: How Jason Hauser Powers his Five Person Law Firm with Rocket Matter

    Contents


      Jason T. Hauser, Esq., is one of the founding partners of Pargulski, Hauser & Clarke, P.L.C., a five attorney firm headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. With well over 30 years of combined experience, the firm specializes primarily in litigation (criminal and civil), family law, and juvenile law.
      Before co-founding the firm, Jason spent several years working in the public interest. His experience included several years as both a prosecutor and as a public defender, where an ever-growing, complex caseload put a major amount of practical litigation experience under his belt.
      When he decided to move into private practice, he knew that he had the legal expertise to succeed. Running a practice, however, was uncharted territory. “I’d never been in private practice before. I never had to keep track of my time.”
      Starting out, he shared office space with a few attorneys as a way to both manage expenses and to get some insight on learning the ropes of private practice. What he saw was surprising.
      Saving Time: Bill As You Work
      Jason watched one of his office mates keep handwritten slips to log time, which the lawyer would then enter into an MSExcel spreadsheet. The process was not only time-consuming, but fraught with potential failure points – from losing actual slips to simple data entry mistakes.
      “To me that just seemed like a very inefficient process.” Jason searched for a better solution, and found Rocket Matter mentioned on The Mac Lawyer.

      I checked [Rocket Matter] out, and instantaneously fell in love with it. It’s so much more efficient.

      A short time thereafter, the other lawyers in the office signed up. “They agreed they were crazy to be doing things the way they were.” Rocket Matter’s Bill As You Work functionality can automatically track and invoice time while activities (calendar events, tasks, meetings, or document management) take placer. With Rocket Matter, “working” and “timekeeping” don’t need to be separate tasks:

      Having things set to bill without additional steps being necessary is just huge.

      Getting Paid Faster
      One of Jason’s first experiences using Rocket Matter was one of his most profitable. He had just been appointed defense counsel in a major first degree murder case. The highly complex case required huge amounts of effort. “Over 150 witnesses … so much time … countless reams of paperwork. We even hired a new associate just to help.”
      With Rocket Matter available, working the new associate into the case was greatly facilitated. In addition, given the sheer size of the effort required, the Court permitted interim billing and Jason was able to take advantage of that.

      Rocket Matter was a Godsend. We were capturing all of our time instantly. Without it, there’s just no way we could’ve kept up. It would’ve taken us a month to get that bill done.

      Then, when the case was finally over, “within a week we could send a final bill, and ensure there was no duplicate billing.
      Jason’s client was acquitted, and his firm was able to be timely paid for the immense amount of effort required for that successful outcome.
      Improving Communication and Coordination
      The firm also uses Rocket Matter’s calendar to help keep five busy, mobile attorneys working as a team.

      All of our calendars are coordinated through Rocket Matter. We all have mobile devices, and are able to check each other’s calendars – it’s a lifesaver when you’re out on the road and you need someone to cover something for you.

      Sharing information on Rocket Matter ensures that everyone’s in touch, up-tospeed, and aware of meetings, hearings, depositions, and other important events.
      Getting a Head Start
      Jason also takes advantage of the web-based nature of the application, using it to “check in” when he’s home, or anywhere else where he has Web access. “I’m a big sports fan, and I often sit and watch some hockey with my MacBook in my lap, checking my messages, looking what we’ve got on the calendar coming up, doing some billing.”
      A loyal user, Rocket Matter launches right when he boots up his computer. He also uses it with his iPhone and iPad.

      Rocket Matter is our lifeline for everything. I use it everywhere.

      In sum, Jason and the lawyers at his firm are great examples of how Rocket Matter can help lawyers save time, get paid faster, coordinate and communicate better – allowing them to focus more on providing great service to their clients.

      Share post:

      Subscribe to our Newsletter & Stay up to date with the latest articles, educational resources, and news.