AbacusLaw Reviews

Pros

This software allows us to keep our client's files organized. We can tailor this program to what we need in our client's files based on what out firm does, and/or what type of case it is. We can keep up with our calendars and everyone can log in from wherever they are and see the daily organizer for all or individuals. It allows us to keep notes in files, monitors for conflicts, and is very useful for setting ticklers to use as reminders. I find it very useful that it keeps up with all the players and their info under "linked names". Also keeps up w/ events, docs, & emails in one place.

Cons

If things are moved on the main drive, it breaks the links in abacus and they are no longer able to be found or traced if whomever moves the doc or breaks the link doesn't make a new one at that time.

Pros

As a small law firm you would think that software and a private cloud are luxuries reserved only for "big" firms but you are wrong. To be efficient, organized, avoid malpractice, and spend more time billing and less time on admin, a small firm needs legal software like AbacusLaw. When I wanted to add staff, the Abacus Private Cloud let all of my team utilize the AbacusLaw software with ease, from home and from other states where I am also licensed. And when COVID-19 hit, it was the AbacusLaw software and the Abacus Private Cloud that let us continue work uninterrupted, serving clients and not having to lay off a single person.

Cons

I wish there was a way to keep two separate books of business in AbacusLaw's accounting software since many small law firms are not "traditional" firms but several separate solo practitioners working together but with different accounting. The only "bad" part about having such a versatile and essential piece of software is on the occasion where it isn't working life seems to end. It has become indispensable. If that is a "con" that would be the biggest one!

Alternatives Considered

MyCase, Clio and ProLaw

Reasons for Choosing AbacusLaw

Credenza reached end of life and was bought by AbacusLaw's parent company. I had to switch and I was worried but the switch was worth it and all my data migrated over.

Reasons for Switching to AbacusLaw

I have worked with all four of those before when working with other attorneys. None were as versatile as AbacusLaw. Some had serious bugs in trust accounting. Others had horrible customer service and some had interfaces that were not user friendly. Then there was the price on some of the better ones. Finally none of them had the other software, security, and support I needed to grow my business.

Pros

I loved that we can customize templates and that we could set up the files as we liked.

Cons

I didn’t like that we had a difficult time getting into our system if their system was down. It was also difficult to get in touch with support.

Pros

Abacus worked fairly well initially as a server based small number of user platform. At the time, few system integrated accounting with the LPM main product. New features were overpromised and half-baked.

Cons

Tech support and customer support evaporated over time. Systems crashed routinely and Abacus had no reliable answers for tech updates from Microsoft.

Pros

For me, the software runs without a hitch. There are many functions, some of which I haven't yet fully utilized.The scheduling tool is fantastic and very flexible to my needs. Most functionalities are simple to learn how to use. You can carry your job everywhere you go thanks to it.Additionally, the application has a fantastic client database with notes .

Cons

This software usage is effective. apart from The only drawback I can mention is that updating can occasionally be a horrific experience.

Pros

Part of what attracted us to this software was that it advertised that it allowed us to integrate WordPerfect forms that we already had into the document preparation feature. We also like the group calendar that allows us to color-code each attorney making it easy to determine who is where. They also did a fairly decent job of integrating old data from a previous practice management software to allow more thorough conflict checking. The interface for most things is reasonably intuitive. It has features that can make it a good all-around practice management program if you use all of them.

Cons

Technical support is sad. So many of the people we get have no idea what the problems are or why the program is doing something it should not be. Correcting an error often becomes a lengthy boondoggle that takes ridiculous amounts of time. Features that they promise are part of the software are often not fully or properly functional, or the support staff seems to have no idea how they actually work. When trying to work with WordPerfect integration, for example, they did not seem to have any tech support personnel who actually knew how to use the program or how it was supposed to integrate and could not answer questions about it, so we were on our own. It does integrate, for the most part, but some things we try to ask about they just don't know an answer for . They promised us integration with LawPay and then backed out instead pushing a program they had developed to take payments. After seeing how they have been with other features, I don't want them to experiment on me and my clients with some "new" software they have halfway developed. We sometimes found that we knew more about the program than some of the tech support folks we were on calls with, and quite frequently we never receive explanations for why something was not working right, even though we WANT to know so we can avoid the issue in the future. I suspect sometimes it's a bug on their end that they do not want to confess to. It also does not double-check deletions and changes-leading to lost data.

Alternatives Considered

ProLaw

Reasons for Choosing AbacusLaw

Moving to a new firm that already had Abacus and wanted to integrate

Switched From

ProLaw

Reasons for Switching to AbacusLaw

Basically, the group calendar and WordPerfect integration - ProLaw was moving away from WordPerfect support and we already had a substantial number of documents and preferred this software.

Pros

I needed a solution so I could link emails to certain case files. Also, the fact that all attorneys could access any other person's notes on a case was attractive.

Cons

The software looks and feels like it is straight out of 2002, if not right after Microsoft went WYSIWYG. It's about as clunky as software was in the early 00's as well although it probably isn't as efficient as software was back then.

Alternatives Considered

Abacus Private Cloud

Reasons for Switching to AbacusLaw

AbacusLaw is closely related to Abacus Private Cloud. I could have just used AbacusLaw on the individual nodes at work but the sales rep oversold me on Abacus Private Cloud instead which is a lot more costly. When I called him out on it, he tried to get me to sign up to buy even more products! When I refused to pay my monthly fee because the system kept breaking down, then they held not only all of my exchange data hostage, but also my Microsoft exchange account! Again, stay away from anything having to do with Abacus if you value your business.

Pros

The program strives to assist with case management, billing and accounting - all within one program, but falls VERY short of achieving its intended goals.

Cons

It is the worst time-consuming inefficient and ineffective program I have had to work with. I've dealt with them for over 12 years and it is getting worst rather than better. It has cost me more money in lost time than I have paid for the program itself. Customer service is also horrible, with no responses being received as to emails, calls, scheduled appointments being missed, etc. The program glitches are a daily issue that slows down work productivity. Unfortunately having all of our records in the program makes the jump to another program complicated so best advice: do not use ABACUS!

Pros

Searchability of contacts and communications

Cons

Clunky web functionality and user experience.

Pros

It asks all the right questions and requested a wealth of information on behalf of the client.

Cons

The layout is not user friendly and the fact that the system is not accessible online.

Pros

The Abacus software, now on Abacus Private Cloud, almost always is functioning properly, and is accessible from anywhere, anytime. After our experience, we would now not use anything that is not cloud-based, particularly being in a city highly prone to power-outages, floods, and hurricanes.
We have found the software to steadily improve in features and speed. The customer service is the best I have experienced very particularly in the software industry. The techs are all very knowledgeable and carefully resolve every inquiry. They are also available very quickly, an absolute anomaly in the software business.
The calendering component, as others have observed, is a key strong-point. The linking in of all events, documents, e-mails, and notes into one accessible electronic folder provides the convenient efficiency that you will frequently use.
It is possible to scan documents directly to the cloud case file from your local computer - an important step-saver.
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, when installed, functions on the APC desktop.
You will need reasonably strong, consistent Internet connections. Airport terminals are mostly unusable work locations even with a "jet-pack" or cell-phone "hot-spot."

Cons

This is a powerful software tool. As such, except for the calendar, it is not a "plug & play" system, except for the most computer-fluent users. To fully utilize its comprehensive features will take a commitment to initial as well as ongoing learning while taking the daily, time-consuming steps to precisely link all activities back to the case file. However, the added work will and must obviate the paper file.
The queries, forms, and reports functions are all very valuable but are far too complex to user-initiate, and each requires ongoing custom installation by the provider.
Cost-effective file collaboration with outsiders is not possible, therefore an added cloud account and the expense is required along with the time of copying and moving sizeable files.
Changing accounting from existing into the integrated system is a major transition to be carefully evaluated in advance. Maintaining the current accounting system, at least temporarily, will be required.
This software must be your primary organizational tool as it will grow into a weighted expense that is justifiable only if it is the key resource.
The software does crash daily when trying to interact with Outlook for file linking of e-mails. It can usually be resolved with a quick re-start.
Initiating printing is quite slow and getting slower but understandable with a remote server.
Microsoft Office, Adobe Pro, and Reallegal depo transcription all work very well here. Some other applications do not at all.

Pros

Any pros of this software are so far outweighed by the cons that they are not worthy of even mention.

Cons

This software is absolutely horrible. I had high hopes for this software after having been given rave reviews about Amicus Attorney and calling to get more information. The salesperson convinced me that after describing my firm's needs, we were better suited for Abacus, which was owned by the same company. After purchasing the software, it took more than 8 months for them to figure out how to migrate our data from our existing billing software, a process that they represented they were very familiar with during the sales calls. When we finally made the transition to this software we quickly learned that it is not at all user-friendly, they provide no guidance on how to use the software or how to set it up, large portions of data mysteriously changes by itself (today the originating attorneys on hundreds of our chases mysteriously changed to reflect the names of our support staff members). The calendaring system is supposed to be able to sync seamlessly with Outlook. This is a joke. Items randomly disappear from attorneys' calendars or appear on the wrong attorneys calendars, when entered. Some items sync from Abacus to Outlook and others don't with no rhyme or reason. Their call center is horrible. You cannot get the same person on the phone twice, and you cannot request to speak with a particular person so there is no consistency of service. Each time you call to describe a problem you are having, you have to start from the beginning because they do not keep any records of your past calls. The people who answer the phone have no idea how the software works and always tell you that they have to research your question and get back to you. Oftentimes you never receive a call back and when you do they still don't know how to assist you. I could go on and on...

Pros

Because I am a power user, I am able to make it do everything I want . There is not any other PM software out there that is as customizable. However, that comes with a cost in usability (more on that below).

However, I have had excellent technical support. I had an issue that I could not solve on my own. I called CS and, although they were not able to resolve it in that session, I was impressed with the thoroughness of the work and the help offered. They went above and beyond to to try to ID the issue. After tinkering around more, I called back with more info and was connected to another tech who was able to resolve the issue. Both had excellent professionalism and telephone demeanor.

I was very impressed by these two experiences and with the quality of the technicians. This was much better service than I expected and there are only a few companies who have provided this quality of support.

Cons

There is a cost to customizability. That is that it can be quite difficult for a non-computer-guy to set up beyond basic calendaring and contact tracking. The workflow and database relationships are not particularly intuitive. Even simple things like creating a search query take more computer knowledge than most attorney will have. Setting up reports or calendar rules is extremely user-unfriendly. Without my computer background I could never have done it.

Because I'm a power user, I can adapt it to meet all of our needs. But out-of-the-box, it's a little too generic to be really useful for most attorneys, even with the "Special Editions." The attorney who referred me to Abacus uses it as nothing more than a calendar and client contacts and it's too expensive to use it that way.

Pros

We have had the worst customer service. The program has constant problems (not synching, billing is a nightmare, lost entries) and it has cost my firm $100k in lost billing and administrative time on hold trying to reach the support team.

Cons

Billing, mobile app, customer service,. In fact, I can’t think of a single aspect of this program that has worked well without issue or that I would say I liked.

Pros

It captures all of the data we need. The queries work well. Your support team is fairly fast to respond and when they do respond most of the people we have dealt with speak English quite well. As a person with hearing issues, this is extremely important to me.

Cons

The emailing feature needs to be improved. Constant issues with trying to add links, photos, logos or graphics, can't add attachments. We do a mass newsletter monthly and almost always have issues. We want our newsletters to look better more eye catching but with this program we can only send boring basic emails with little chance of catching the readers attention.
If we want to do something with graphics, logos, links, or add attachments we have to do a query and export the email addressing into an excel spreadsheet then do batches of emails in Outlook.
This is our biggest complaint with Abacus.

Pros

Creating a docket is simple. We are able to quickly review the attorney notes and provide updates to the clients without having to get the attorney involved.

Cons

I wasn't involved in any training so I'm sure there are lots of features that our office is not taking advantage of.

Pros

It is nice to be able to access the case management software through the cloud. It allows you to take you work with you where ever you go - which can be a good thing or a bad one.

Cons

Abacus Private Cloud does not play well with anything but MS Office 365. I had to buy a more expensive version of Dragon Naturally Speaking Legal and there is such a lag between dictation and text, that the Dragon software never gets used. We also use Essential Forms for our Judicial Council Forms in CA. APC tech support has left me hanging for over 2 weeks, and countless hours trying to figure out software that they had previously installed on their server for our use. It also seems like every time I call support to change something, there is a horrendous charge.

Pros

The product has a number of useful features which make it good for use in legal work. The ability to store all documents and correspondences within a file and send them by email or move them to different files are excellent, as is the ability to generate template documents and amend as necessary

Cons

The product is often slow and cumbersome to use, with numerous glitches which never seem to get resolved. we are based in the UK and were told that we would have 24 hour support, but this simply hasn't happened. I have had some issues with Outlook, copying and pasting and documents not attaching to emails for three months now and, whilst Customer support has made every attempt to try and sort these out, he is only able to do so during US working hours (which means from around 3pm UK time) and, despite his commitment and many efforts, the problems are still not resolved which, I understand, is because there is a bug for which there is so far no fix.

Pros

Great sales pitch. If the program worked, it is a lawyers dream. It doesn't.

Cons

The program does not connect and shuts down. Then you cannot do anything. It does not operate.

Pros

Simple calendaring software, which is all I need to schedule upcoming hearings and deadlines. I don't really use the bells and whistles beyond that.

Cons

No real cons. My use isn't that in depth, but it works well for the simple calendaring that I use it for.

Pros

Organization is key, so being able to link matters with the calendar and pull up events with so little effort makes my job much easier. I cannot imagine running a law firm without this program. It makes all the difference when you are in the business of billing clients based on time spent on their particular matter. The full scope of events, dates, time and time spent are at the ready, saving a tremendous amount of time.
AbacusLaw is incredibly functional. This software has it all, and I feel that our small firm isn't implementing the software to it's fullest capabilities. This is apparent as there are helpful suggestions each morning when I login and go to my calendar.

Cons

There is little to not like about the software. I suppose if it were free and could read my mind, but...

Pros

What I like most about AbacusLaw is how user-friendly it is and how we were able to use it to keep the project organized on a daily basis. It is a complete package.

Cons

I think I liked everything about AbacusLaw. I cannot think of any problem that I had with the software.

Pros

Generally Abacus Private Cloud is easy to use and is fairly intuitive to move around. Setting up new files, adding and/or linking appropriate parties/individuals, attaching emails are all very simple.

Cons

Fairly frequently the system slows down such that you type ahead of the action on the screen. This can be frustrating and annoying. When updates are made, we are not notified of the changes and must learn how to use or work around those changes. Sometimes it feels as if changes are made without talking with users to see if the change will help or hurt.