CARET Legal reviews

Best overall in case management software, but has minor UI annoyances

Opmerkingen: After using Clio, MyCase, and PracticePanther at various points in my career (and testing CosmoLex and RocketMatters most recently when opening a new firm), none of the CMS programs on the market have come close to ZolaSuite's comprehensive functionality. Having the ability to do not just case management and billing, but complete firm accounting/reconciliation is a godsend. The integrated CRM in the Enterprise Plus tier is fantastic - no need to have an outside CRM that may or may not fully integrate with your CMS. The email feature is the clencher - having an actual, FULL email inbox that syncs with Gsuite email makes keeping case-related correspondence a snap.

Pluspunten:

Robust program that covers everything from case management to client lead intake to comprehensive firm accounting. Easy to use and navigate for the most part. Integrated CRM and FULL accounting of all operating and trust accounts with triple reconciliation keeps the entire process streamlined and accessible without having to utilize a dozen different programs and hoping nothing falls through the cracks.

Minpunten:

Has minor UI issues that can be annoying, particularly the inability to active a full subscription without going through a multi-step process involving both the sales department and support team at Zola. This should be a "click here, pick your plan, enter your payment method" process with no need to have it "activated" by the company before being able to use it. That being said, there are some additional features that I would love to see Zola add/integrate/improve ASAP (which I am sending to Zola as suggestions for future improvements). If these features were incorporated, ZolaSuite would certainly be a category killer and rapidly take over the entire market, but they are not "dealbreaker" items as far as I'm concerned for overall ratings.

Significant upgrade from our last billing software

Opmerkingen: Zola Suite is significantly improving the efficiency of our timekeeping and billing processes. We are spending less time to get bills out, and they are going out faster. I am very happy we made the switch.

Pluspunten:

First and foremost, being able to access the software via a web-based login is extremely useful, especially when so many of us are working from home. Time entry is straightforward and easy. I do feel like it is helping us capture a higher percentage of our billable work than we did in the past. Most of the reporting functionality is really great. Customer support has been extremely responsive and helpful. Integration with Quickbooks Online is really nice.

Minpunten:

The transition from our old software to the new (e.g., data migration) was tough. To be fair, we expected it to be tough: we used the old software for almost 15 years so it had a lot of data and we were heavily reliant on it and very used to the way it worked. The Zola customer service folks worked with us tirelessly to make it happen and that was great, but even though we expected the transition to be difficult, it was slightly more difficult than we expected. Access to historical data (data imported from our old software) is more limited than I was hoping for. The default user types are a little too limited (there's no middle ground between "has all access and all rights" and "doesn't have sufficient access to do essential tasks") but the customer support team very quickly found a custom solution for us, which was great.

Agrxis Review on CARET Legal

Opmerkingen: I've been using CARET Legal for a while, and I must say that overall, I've had an excellent experience. It was clear to me as soon as I began using the program that CARET Legal was developed with the requirements of legal practitioners in mind. It is quite simple to navigate and use all of the functionalities it offers because to the user-friendly features and straightforward interface. The wide variety of features, including case management, document organization, time tracking, and billing, have significantly increased my practice's effectiveness and organization. There is no longer a need for various software programs, and the likelihood of mistakes and inconsistencies has decreased thanks to the smooth integration of these elements into a single platform. Additionally, whenever I've needed advice or had issues, the quick and helpful customer care staff has been a great help. Overall, CARET Legal has surpassed my expectations by giving me a complete and dependable solution to efficiently run my law firm. Any legal professional looking to improve efficiency and optimize their process should definitely consider using it.

Pluspunten:

I'm over the moon with CARET Legal! The way I run my law firm has been completely revolutionized by this all-encompassing software. The software's straightforward and user-friendly layout, which has made navigating and using it a breeze, is one of its major characteristics in my opinion. My efficiency and production have greatly increased as a result of the wide variety of tools and features it provides. CARET Legal can handle everything, from case management and document organization to time tracking and billing. I'm not forced to manage several platforms or struggle with manual tasks anymore. My process has been streamlined, and I have gained valuable time thanks to the smooth integration of all these functions into a single, coherent system.

Minpunten:

So far I have no complains about CARET Legal

Unreliable and slow but easy to navigate and has many features.

Opmerkingen: Zola was acquired by another company a few months ago. It was rebranded into CaRET and turned into complete garbage - it simply doesn't work. Salespeople send messages trying to upsell their credit card processing services and new subscription plans. Email on desktop software or mobile app has not been working for over a week! Customer service is useless and sends generic messages asking to perform various steps - none of which work. They ruined a good practice management program. I will not renew and do not recommend anyone else who cares about their practice and profitability.

Pluspunten:

Easy to navigate and intuitive. Have lots of features and functions, such as bi-directional email integration, trust accounting, CRM, billing, time tracking, etc.

Minpunten:

Overall, the program is very slow and takes time to perform most tasks. Limits the number of credit cards you can sync with your bank; limits the billing/bulk options under certain plans; accounting module is very basic and light ages behind QuickBooks; CRM lacks depth and functionality of other CRMs.

Cloud-based practice management

Pluspunten:

Built-in accounting was important and Zola's accounting features are excellent, though we'd occasionally like to be able to customize reports. Even so, we can get the info we need. Time entry is easy and set up to facilitate completeness. The automatic time entry windows help us not to lose time. Matters management is simple and flexible. Document upload and management is good, with features to avoid duplication, track versions, view documents easily, automatic OCR, integration with Word. Email handling and the ability to associate emails with matters is good. but the change from server-based management comes with

Minpunten:

Some of the issues are simply the result of being a web-based program, so navigating and using requires people to change habits, and some features of local server-based management are not available. OCR is not always consistent - some documents that OCR in a local pdf editing app do not seem to OCR on Zola. Wish list: a plug-in to permit creation of a spreadsheet in Excel and direct upload to Zola like the Word plug-in; Outlook shared calendar integration so the entire firm calendar would synch with the shared Microsoft Exchange Outlook calendar; an invite mechanism like Outlook; the ability to save all email attachments at once to a matter folder; the ability to move documents from a matter to another matter subfolder; the ability to change the document menu from white lettering on grey to black lettering on white; the ability to import V-cards; icon notification of email receipt; document searching by date created/modified

Zola Helps Greatly with Productivity

Opmerkingen: Zola has definitely made billing and invoicing much more efficient. Not just for us, but also for the client. Being able to easily pay their invoices has been very helpful. Also, Zola has a variety of reports you can run to see all aspects of your firm's financial and billing records. There are so many reports which you can create to determine how your company is being run.

Pluspunten:

The customer service is excellent. Sometimes a software can be good, but if the customer service is not as good or better, it can make working with it more difficult. I have always had great customer support whenever calling Zola, and I called a lot at the beginning of the software implementation. I don't call as often now, but I know when I do call, I will get the same customer support as I did when I called more often. The Customer Support team is very good!

Minpunten:

In the Documents section, there is no way to easily blackline documents and keep newer versions. Zola's software does not recognize the newer versions of documents. I'm hoping they will change this in the future.

Great Product!

Opmerkingen: Time management has been greatly improved. I was very nervous to change software as I have been using the same software for just short of 20 years (we used the same software in our prior firm). The Zola Suite team was amazing at holding my hand through the process and making sure that we were satisfied with everything.

Pluspunten:

Zola Suite saves us time that we didn't realize we were wasting before. We're able to efficiently maintain and manage clients, files and leads all in one place. It also makes working from home as efficient as working in the office. Further customer support is amazing. They promptly answer every single question and concern.

Minpunten:

There is very little that we dislike about Zola Suite. Anything that we have concerns about, they try to address and show us a proper way to manage. There are definitely some areas that are different than our prior software but that's to be expected. There are so many benefits to Zola Suite that we are not actually able to take full advantage of them yet as we are still working on transitioning to the system and learning the ins and outs.

Former (long time) Clio User Converting to Zola Suite

Opmerkingen: I have been a Clio user for approximately 8 years. I have gone to all but two of the cloud conferences. I think it is a good product. However, Zola Suite does three things better (for me- a sole practitioner) and that is: 1. Better email management; 2. Better dashboard for seeing my practice at a glance, and 3- Managing and utilizing Intake forms and Custom matter fields for quick input and access to matter details and using those details to create merge documents. Clio is good, but for me, Zola Suite is better.

Pluspunten:

First and foremost is the email system. All emails (both incoming and sent) are easily attached to the file with a click of the mouse. it is also very easy to attach a file document (a Z-doc) to an outgoing email or to download an email attachment directly to the file. Using the Intake forms (both shared and internal) are handy ways to have the quick information (critical dates, expenses, etc) at your fingertips. Finally, the dashboard is what I need to run my practice. It has the incoming emails, the tasks and the calendar. Clio's dashboard is 70% billing statistics. I concede that is useful information, but my home screen should be my day at hand and that is what I get with Zola Suite. Using the Matter-Specific Custom fields allow me to quickly (almost effortlessly) insert key data into a matter. Those fields are then easily incorporated into merge forms. The process in Clio (where you have to open to the fields and then search for them is time-consuming. (I use a lot of fields and create a lot of merge forms so having the ability to insert the field data quickly and easily is a big plus).

Minpunten:

The inability to connect with services like Zapier. I have a love-hate relationship with Clio and Zapier. I enjoyed linking Google forms and Smartsheet and Clio. I miss having that ability. I am also having challenges utilizing virtual assistants with the system. However, I am getting used to, and preferring using just one system.

Unmatched Practice Management Software with Crucial Features not Offered by Competitors

Opmerkingen: After extensive research and use of other practice management software at other firms, when I hung my own shingle I decided that ZolaSuite was the software my firm needed. I've never regretted my choice and have been a happy customer now for over two years.

Pluspunten:

The best features of ZolaSuite for my firm is it's integration with Google Business for email, the fact that it has full-accounting including three-way reconciliation, its time keeping and billing features, and integration with law firm specific merchant services. I've tried Clio, which may be the closest competitor, and ZolaSuite beats their software, hands down.

Minpunten:

The color scheme for read/unread emails in the Gmail integration could use different colors to more easily tell what emails are read or not read.

Best Practice Management System with Integrated Features

Opmerkingen: We've been with them for 4 years and Zola management is always working with us on solutions to make the system work better for our needs.

Pluspunten:

Everything you need for a matter is integrated into one fantastic page, which allows you to stay on top of everything.

Minpunten:

I wish you could customize a home page for each matter to provide a smattering of information from other tabs.

Intuitive and useful software for managing a law practice

Opmerkingen: We are solving matters falling through the cracks. We are able to save all emails to the file and organize documents in a centralized spot. Documents can be organized into specific categories. The accounting feature allows employees and supervisors to track progress and productivity. Invoices are sent directly from the platform to the email address on file for the client. The client portal allows clients to upload files directly. Payments made by clients are reconciled immediately. Matters are managed and tracked from a single place. The time keeping functions are helpful, i.e. tracking phone call and email lengths, with the option to auto-create a tyime entry. This is great product for solo and small firms.

Pluspunten:

The support staff is incredibly knowledgeable and quick to respond to any inquiries. If a feature is missing, they are quick to fix or add it. Billing is quick and easy, as is jumping to various matters. The calendar syncs to other calendar apps, making scheduling accurate. The reporting feature shows many different metrics of productivity. You can email directly from a matter and create a time entry, making accurate billing easy. Client demographics are saved and can be imported into new matters. The software detects email from case related contacts. Form documents can be added as templates that are auto-filled. The interface is nice looking and intuitive. Their customer service is unmatched. Client and admin functions are outstanding. It also integrates with Law Pay. You get exactly what they tell you you're doing to get. There are so many features, I'm sure we are actually underutilizing the platform. The mobile app is very easy to use and has all of the relevant features.

Minpunten:

The task feature is helpful for remembering deadlines and setting reminders, but does not send alerts when a task becomes due or overdue. Sometimes there is a delay between an email being received in my inbox and showing in Zola. Email glitches happen with some regularity. There is no ability to pop emails out in a separate window. When we have had an issue in the past, Zola has been fast to respond and resolve the issue. They have added functions and features based on our requests. There are bugs, but they work hard to correct them.

Zola Suite is Perfect for Small and Solo Law Firms

Opmerkingen: Zola Suite has saved me quite a bit of overhead, as I have cut out all third party providers with the exception of payroll.

Pluspunten:

Zola Suite allows me to manage both the clients side and the business side of my practice with ease. When I moved to solo practice I knew I would need a solid and easy to use practice management system and Zola has been a perfect fit for my needs. I also love the support Zola provides with real humans who are knowledgable about the product. Their follow up is outstanding.

Minpunten:

I wish Zola had a better means for client to push a tab on my invoices and pay by credit card. Zola does integrate with Law Pay which has that feature, but the process gets clunky. That said, it is entirely possible that Zola has implemented a better process for credit cards and I am just unaware of it.

Zola Suite is Great for Law Practice but could use Improvement

Opmerkingen: Overall, Zola Suite makes it easy to track time, billing, deadlines, maintain notes on interviews and phone calls. If Zola ironed out some kinks, including the ease by which emails are saved from Outlook into the software, it would be a top product.

Pluspunten:

Billing and keeping track of time is very easy with this software. Additionally, the "Tasks" feature is very helpful for remembering deadlines and the like.

Minpunten:

Zola Suite does have a few bugs that could use some ironing out. Some days, some of the features are unavailable. At times, saving emails to the email page from Outlook is not as easy as it should be. If Zola Suite addressed this, it would be near perfect.

Best practice management!!

Pluspunten:

I love many features from Zola suite. Matter section is perfect. Calendar is good, too. Client intake forms a must.

Minpunten:

Nothing! It is a perfect practice management.

I have used almost every legal software available. Zola is by far the most user friendly!

Opmerkingen: Time keeping is the biggest!

Pluspunten:

Zola customer service is prompt and very helpful. The software is user friendly and easy to navigate through. Time keeping and invoicing is very simple. We used to miss a lot of billable time not logging all emails, but with Zola once you open your email and select a matter the timer begins and is added to your matter time sheet when you click send! Zola seems to be updating their software often and offers new helpful features.

Minpunten:

Caseway can use some work. Our clients find it difficult to set up their Caseway accounts. But it is constantly being improved with updates. The other, (although a minor issue) it would be nice to open attachments to view before downloading or saving to Zola docs.

The best on the market

Opmerkingen: Excellent company with great customer service. They are growing quickly and are on the leading edge of legal technology.

Pluspunten:

I love the ability to manage tasks within Zola Suite. Zola Suite also has a very intuitive document automation system.

Minpunten:

Although I understand the HotDocs integration is not yet released and still in testing, it needs additional features. Specifically, the "Overlay" feature that is native to HotDocs needs to be activated within ZolaSuite. It also needs the ability to email the HotDocs interview to clients through Zola Suite.

A great change!

Opmerkingen: We had been using antiquated practice management software that no longer had any support available, so it was time to make a change. We really appreciated ZolaSuite's attentive nature in helping our firm transition over to the new system, and really love how quickly the support staff gets back to us. We have had the pleasure of watching Zola grow and develop over the past year, and we would never go back to the old system. Being able to have access to our case management system from anywhere, without using a VPN, is so helpful and efficient. There are sooo many great features on Zola that we never had before and it has really helped our firm grow as well!

Pluspunten:

All the neat features that really help with my workflow

Minpunten:

Some bugs here and there, but we understand that Zola is constantly being developed. Miss a few features from TimeMatters, like being able to cross-relate files and contacts.

All in one practice management software

Opmerkingen: Very responsive. Love the software.

Pluspunten:

Everything you need to run your practice on 1 platform. Integrated email allow one less software program and saving communications directly to client file.

Minpunten:

Email can have glitches at times but the Zola team is constantly updating, fixing bugs and adding new features.

Zola suite for single practitoner

Opmerkingen: Had it for a year. Building a great client contact list. Providing tasks to the office on the go is very functional

Pluspunten:

Calendar / task / mobile app really work well access by principal & staff — exchanging between staff works well

Minpunten:

Financial component is weakest part — ended up getting a simple program for trust accounting. Just didn’t integrate the billing component— felt other programs did it better

Excellent Service

Opmerkingen: Zola has made my job as a paralegal simple. I can store everything on the website.

Pluspunten:

It’s ease of use. The software is simple and easy to use.

Minpunten:

It signs you out after a certain period of inactivity.

An all inclusive package at a great value

Pluspunten:

Choosing ZolaSuite was quite the process for me, but in the end I went with ZolaSuite because of the integrated email and the fact that the accounting software is included. The integration with Outlook (email and calendar) has worked out very well. I also found the software to be fairly intuitive. Customer Service has been very responsive when I've needed to contact them (usually less than 12 hrs definitely within 24). I do a number of pro bono cases and like that I can track the time and create invoices showing the time without a charge by simply checking a box.

Minpunten:

The only thing that has been disappointing to me about the software is that due dates cannot be assigned to subtasks in the task templates, only to the completion of the task as a whole.

Zola was the answer I was looking for - big firm software functionality at a reasonable price.

Opmerkingen: Zola provides seamless integration with my existing Google Calendar and Gmail. The calendar and task management functions are robust with reminder options via Email or SMS. Zola provides big firm software functionality at an extremely competitive rate.

Pluspunten:

The seamless integration with Gmail and Google Calendar sets Zola above the competition. For anyone who currently relies on Gmail and Google Calendar Zola is a no-brainer. The calendaring features and task management tools are robust and the reminder options for SMS and Email put Zola over the top.

Minpunten:

The e-mail association function appears to be manual only (no automatic filters/tagging option for incoming email) so the manual sorting of e-mails to associate them with files can be time consuming.

This is QUALITY

Opmerkingen: I have tried virtually every case management software in a search to find one that suits my small law firm's needs. Zola Suite was the last on my list and I won't be trying any others. Zola Suite has everything I need - accounting, tracking for billable hours, compact and sleek storage for the firm's contacts, and an intuitive matter management system. It has a pretty great internal email too that syncs with my gmail and allows me to save emails to cases. Basically, it's beautiful and it saves time. It's great. Of course, it's not perfect - nothing ever is. But the difference with Zola is it's customer service. The software can be improved, of course, and Zola understands this. That's why Zola encourages its users to submit comments and suggestions regarding the software - so that they can actively make it better. And they most certainly do. The customer service is incredible. These guys really care about their users and they definitely strive to make mine and our experience a great one. I strongly recommend Zola to everyone in need of a case management software. Trust me, once you try it, you'll be wondering how you could ever work without it.

Very easy to learn how to use. Customer Service is very helpful.

Opmerkingen: This software has helped ease me into the workings of this company as I am a new employee myself. Furthermore, as it is a works-in-progress, and a learning experience for everyone here, it encourages us to work together to work out any issues that may arise in implementing this software.

Pluspunten:

Timekeeping, remote access, ease of file searches, organization are four of the few many aspects of this software that allows us to continue our day-to-day operations with much efficiency and success.

Minpunten:

The only con is that all documents have not yet been rolled over on to the software, however, this is a new program, and from my understanding, this feature will be available shortly. Once they are accessible, it will speed up productivity tenfold!

User Experience

Opmerkingen: The program overall is very good. Sleek, easy to use, and the cloud aspects are great. But there are some bugs here and there and areas for improvement. There are a lot of little changes which can be made that would be a great improvement.

Pluspunten:

Sleek, easy to use, not too complicated.

Minpunten:

Small bugs, some features/aspects were removed, new product that can use some changes.