Thomson Reuters today announced a new legal workflow solution that it claims will enable firms to better plan, manage and execute legal matters with enhanced data and data analytics. A cloud-based system, Thomson Reuters PanoramicTM is built on TR’s Practical Law’s legal guidance platform and its 3E financial management system to better connect the front office of a law firm—where the legal work is handled—to the back office—where law firm financials are monitored and analyzed.
TR says Panoramic is specifically directed toward large and mid sized firms although it’s primary beneficiaries in my opinion may turn out to be the more innovative mid size firms (the AmLaw firms in the 100-200 range) who lack the resources and systems of some of the very large firms. As I have previously noted, it is, in fact, these mid size firms that will be most under threat in today’s changing legal marketplace. But because of their generally reduced cost structures and overhead, some of these firms, those that choose to distinguish themselves in the market, also have a big upside potential. And tools like Panoramic, if vigorously adopted (which is an if, as discussed below), could enable this capitalization.
What Does Panoramic Do?
So what does Panoramic do? It’s a comprehensive platform which provides step by step process mapping for various types of legal matters, legal guidance for completing those various steps and processes that need to be undertaken, financial tools to measure costs, realization rates and profitability by matter and task, and tools for future budget creation based on data and analysis— all at one spot and on one dashboard.
The heart of Panoramic is its dynamic Matter Maps, created and kept up to date by TR Practical Law attorney editors. According to the TR Press Release, “These Maps include the specific phases