CaseMap 5
Free 30-day trial
$495 cost includes 90 days of technical support
It’s not hard to see why CaseMap is the leading litigation software for lawyers – the product is just fabulous. No matter what type of law you practice, whether your cases are complex or simple, this program is for you. I’ve tried it out for the last couple of months and recommend it highly.
What is it exactly, you ask? Technically, I suppose, it’s a litigation database that lists information about your case. But that description is woefully inadequate. In a nutshell, what CaseMap does is put a friendly face on the facts and issues of your case by allowing you to link them – together with the source of your facts, issues, people, documents, and the law that pertains to your case. This makes CaseMap more than just a database – it’s an invaluable case analysis tool. Not only do you benefit by being able to find out anything you want about your case in seconds, CaseMap allows you to thoroughly understand every aspect of your case.
So how does it work? You begin using 3 separate spreadsheets dealing with: (1) facts, (2) objects, and (3) issues. The fact spreadsheet organizes the chronology of facts that are important to your case. Here you list when the accident occurred, the divorce was filed, the items were stolen or the home was purchased – whatever facts are important to your case. Under the objects spreadsheet, you list the people or organizations involved in your case, as well as all the documents generated during the case.
The
software allows you to put in not only each person’s name, but also a
description of the role that person, organization or document plays in
your case. Finally, the issues spreadsheet is where you explore all the
claims and arguments in your case. Here you list both legal arguments
and factual disputes critical to your case.
In
addition to these three spreadsheets, there are two others on the
sidebar that deal with (1) legal research, and (2) questions. The legal
research field allows you to insert legal authorities and excerpts from
research directly into the program. This spreadsheet contains basis
information about your research, namely type, jurisdiction, citation
and description – but the software allows you to enter custom fields to
identify the author, dissenting opinion, legislative history or
whatever other information you believe is important. The questions
field encourages you to ask questions about any element of your case
and list answers when you receive them. You can assign certain
questions to others involved in your case and evaluate the importance
of each question.
This
program never limits you to just filling in a small box with
abbreviated information – instead, you’re able to create as detailed a
description in these spreadsheets as you like. You also have the full
power of a word processor and can use bold, color, italics and
underscoring. This formatting shows up in your printed reports using
Word, WordPerfect, HTML and PDF. The number and length of the
description fields is infinitely customizable. You are in complete
control every step of the way.
The
helpful thing about this software is that once all this information is
captured, you link information to assist you in your analysis. For
example, you can link facts on the fact spreadsheet and to issues on
the issues spreadsheet: This is a wonderful tool to use during witness
interviews, when creating or responding to discovery, or when filing
preliminary motions – such as a Motion for Summary Judgment.
Worried
that all this sounds a little too complex? As the old Bobby McFerrin
song goes "Don’t Worry – Be Happy." CaseMap does all the hard work for
you. Whenever you begin a new case, the software automatically
generates default fields for each spreadsheet – you just add the
information. In addition, CaseMap has an extremely helpful tutorial
built into the program, together with a sample case completely filled
in for you. There are also links in the program to various articles
describing helpful ideas on how to use the software. You can read the
articles online or download them in PDF form to review at your leisure.
In
addition, the CaseMap website provides a link to no-charge phone
training sessions. These are typically one-on-one events that are
conducted with CaseMap trainers who answer questions and walk you
through the various features of the software as you use it on your
computer. And that’s not all – CaseMap also offers both live and
recorded no-charge webinars (instruction sessions provided to you
online).
E-mail
questions are answered promptly and telephone support is not only
offered – it’s encouraged. In fact, if you don’t call with support
questions, they’ll probably call you to see if there is anything they
can do to help you learn the software. The folks at CaseMap pride
themselves on providing excellent technical support – and they
succeed. I received the best support for any software product I’ve ever
purchased. Period.
One
thing that I have to mention is a new feature the software offers that
allows you to print out a report of the case after you’ve put in the
information. This case analysis report can be customized any way you
wish and comes packaged with a cover page, table of contents and report
specific title pages. It’s an impressive document that takes only
seconds to generate.
One of the articles written by Greg Krehel, the CEO of DecisionQuest’s CaseSoft division, suggested that after performing an initial round of case analysis with the software, you should generate a report and review it with your client. I decided to take his advice and generated a report about a case before the client even hired me. The result? My prospective client was so impressed with the report that he hired me on the spot. The end result was within days I was given one the largest retainers I’ve ever received in my nearly 25 years of practicing law! And this was from the very first case, and first report, I ever generated. Needless to say, I’m sold on the software. Try it for free for 30 days – you will be too!
thanks! talked me into a download.
Posted by: charley hardman | March 16, 2020 at 04:32 PM
Great review. I am currently testing CaseMap out with a current case I am working on. I only hope I can convince my firm to pony-up the purchase price at the end of my 30 days.
Posted by: Joe | April 28, 2020 at 02:23 PM