No More Wasted Hours: How Fords Daly Legal is growing with Clio

Fords Daly Legal is an 13-person law firm based in Kirkcaldy, Scotland. The firm specialises in property law and estate agency, conveyancing, commercial leasing, wills and probate, powers of attorney, and family law. 

Before implementing Clio, the firm wasted countless hours following manual processes to complete admin. 

Adopting Clio’s legal case management software has saved the firm over 10 hours per week on admin tasks and allowed them to take on more clients. For the Directors of Fords Daly Legal, Scott Ford, and Lauren Daly, Clio has been truly transformational. 

Automate and unite firm operations with Clio

Fords Daly Legal used to rely on a manual, “cobbled together,” case management system consisting of Microsoft Office and a shared drive. 

This approach ate up a lot of time and was difficult for staff to follow. Fords Daly Legal needed an automation-based solution to unite the firm’s entire operations under a single system. 

So, the firm turned to Clio. 

“We needed a tool which streamlined how we managed files and cases and allowed our staff to work more efficiently,” Scott says. “Following a successful trial, we knew Clio was the perfect solution.”

1. A centralised software for case management 

Fords Daly Legal was tired of switching back and forth between different systems. In the past, there’d be separate tools for billing, emails, documents, and so on. They would then have to sync this information manually to the shared drive—but the process was time-consuming. 

Now, all case information is automatically stored in Clio. It provides a centralised platform for every aspect of Fords Daly Legal’s operations. 

2. Less time spent on non-billable admin and the freedom of paperless workflows

Clio has eliminated many of Fords Daly Legal’s manual, non-billable admin processes. They can now create letters of engagement, run ID checks, and complete conveyancing tasks in a fraction of the time they used to spend. 

For example, previously, they asked clients to sign physical letters of engagement, scan them, and send them back to the firm. The scanned files had to then be manually saved, one by one. 

Now, with Clio Launcher, the firm can open, edit, create, copy, and save documents directly within Clio in just a few clicks. They can even create different versions, which is perfect for tracking progress on a client’s matter.

3. Everything a legal cashier needs

Fords Daly Legal used to upload all client entries into an Excel document, which fee-earners would then manually update when necessary. 

Now, the legal cashier has integrated Clio with Quickbooks Online. This provides a birds-eye-view of everything, and the firm can easily record time and expense entries in Clio with the click of a button. All bills drafted in Clio, sync across to Quickbooks online creating an effortless experience for the firm’s legal cashier to manage transactions and payments.

Lauren says, “When we showed our legal cashier, Clio, she thought it was brilliant. It’s like a cash system for her—she can help with client banking, ledgers, moving money, and so on. She can take on more work because she’s spending less time doing admin.”

4. Stress-free client onboarding 

Client onboarding used to be a complex endeavour for Fords Daly Legal. Staff had to download engagement letters, manually populate them with relevant information, format the amount clients would have to pay, add the signing tab, and then save it as a PDF or Word document. 

Clio means the firm can now create engagement letters with just a click of a button and engage clients electronically using digital signatures. This eliminates the need for clients to physically sign documents, scan them, and send them back. 

5. Customising Clio to the firm’s exact needs

Out of the box, Fords Daly Legal appreciated how simple Clio was to use. “Clio was very easy to set up,” Scott says.

In addition to its core functions, Fords Daly Legal has also fully embraced Clio’s customisability, tailoring the platform to suit their unique needs. For example, they have created custom templates to streamline the document generation process and ensure consistency across their work.

6. Outlook and Beyond—integrating Clio with the firm’s favourite tools

Clio’s integrations have transformed Fords Daly Legal’s workflows. The firm integrates with Outlook which helps automate the process of filing emails to their relevant cases. 

Fords Daly Legal also uses Clio’s integration with Amiqus, to conduct ID checks for all clients. Clio’s integration means Fords Daly Legal can effortlessly sync secure information with its case management system. Fee-earners simply link Amiqus ID checks directly to Clio Contacts, streamlining the process and reducing the risk of errors.

7. User-friendly training and support

Fords Daly Legal found Clio’s training and onboarding process user-friendly and thorough. The firm appreciated the informal and ongoing nature of the support, which instantly put them at ease. 

For example, when Lauren returned from maternity leave, she quickly got up to speed with Clio thanks to the comprehensive training resources available.

The perfect case management system for law firms

Clio has allowed Fords Daly Legal to become more productive, and profitable, and provide a superior client experience. It’s saved fee-earners and admin staff alike from non-billable tasks, as well as the headache of dealing with clunky manual processes and disparate systems. 

The firm has seen such impressive results with Clio Manage, they’ve also adopted Clio Grow to help increase their pipeline of new clients—and create onboarding experiences that are effortless. 

Working seamlessly together, Clio Manage and Clio Grow play a vital role in every single aspect of the firm’s operations. 

“I would not hesitate in recommending Clio to other law firms,” Scott says. “It has allowed our business to make huge progress. If you are looking to move to a case management system then look no further than Clio.”