INTRODUCTION

Welcome!!! This wiki was created by Christine Niemann, Philip Devin , and Kim Ross-Winston. 

The intent of this wiki is to provide you, the end user, with valuable information that may aid you in understanding a paperless office. Specifically, we touched on basic concepts such as the meaning, historical background, philosophy, pros and cons, technology, costs, tips, how-to-links and the like. Because we are not experts in this field and our knowledge of this topic is minuscule, we have conducted extensive research and evaluated online information sources to provide you with the most authoriative, objective, reliable, timely, and extensive coverage on the topic of the paperless office.    

WHAT IS A PAPERLESS OFFICE?

It is a romantizied office in which paper is no longer present because all information is collected and transmitted by electronic means. With the expansion of application of computers into the business arena, diverse as accounting, desktop publishing, billing, mail, and scheduling, it seemed in the early 1980s that the reality of a paperless office would come to fruition. Conversely, the opposite has transpired. With the ease of computers it has enable individuals to print all sorts of documents and has created a flood of new paper. Indeed, perhaps the most widespread computer application is the fax machine, which uses paper by the ream.

Some analysts believe that the paperless office is still an achievable and laudable goal, but that certain key technologies such as optical character recognition (OCR) must be improved. Others, however, argue that the tangibleness of paper documents yields certain benefits that will never disappear.

WHERE DID IT COME FROM?

PHILOSOPHY

The paperless office is now considered to be a philosophy to work with minimal paper and convert all forms of documentation to a digital form. The ideal is driven by a number of motivators including productivity gains, costs savings, space saving, the need to share information and reduced environmental impact. One key aspect of the paperless office philosophy is the conversion of paper documents, photos, engineering plans, microfiche and all the other paper based systems to digital documents. The technologies that may be used include:

• Scanners
• High Speed Scanners-used for scanning very large volumes of paper.
• Book copiers-take photos of large books and manuscripts.
• Wide format scanners- for scanning engineering drawings
• Photo Scanners
• Negative Scanners
• Microfiche scanner-Used to convert microfiche to digital documents
• Fax to PDF conversion-made possible by companies   

Each of the technologies uses software that converts the raster formats into other forms depending on need. Generally, they involve some form of compression technology that produces smaller raster images or the use of Optical Character Recognition, or OCR, to convert the document to text. A combination of OCR and raster is used to enable search ability while maintaining the original form of the document.

An issue faced by those wishing to take the paperless philosophy to the limit has been copyright laws. These laws restrict the transfer of documents protected by copyright from one medium to another, such as converting books to electronic format. See http://www.copyright.gov/

An important step in the paper-to-digital conversion is the need to label and catalog the scanned documents. Such labeling allows the scanned documents to be searched. Some technologies have been developed to do this, but generally involves either human cataloging or automated indexing on the OCR document.

However, scanners and software continue to improve, with small, portable scanners that are able to scan doubled-sided A4 documents at around 30-35ppm to a raster format (typically tiff fax 4 or pdf).

Comparison of Paperless Office vs.Traditional Office Philosophy

A traditional office consisted a paper-based filing systems, which may have included filing cabinets, folders, shelves, compactus's microfiche systems, drawing cabinets, all of which take up considerable space, requiring maintenance and equipment.

A paperless office could simply consist of a desk, chair, computer, with a modest amount of local or network storage, scanner, printers, and the user could store all the information in digital form.

ADVANTAGES

• Increasing productivity
• Eliminating storage space
• Reducing expenses
• Working remotely
• Enhanced customer service

Increasing productivity is the largest benefits of the whole paperless process. Managing documents in a traditional paper environment can be a time consuming process. It pulls the individual away from projects they are working on and occupies their time with less important tasks like searching through files, looking for lost documents, faxing, and mailing. In a paperless office all documents are only a few clicks of the mouse away, greatly increasing productivity.

Eliminating storage space is another great benefit of the paperless office. Replacing file cabinets or the entire file rooms. An example would be attorneys being able to shred voluminous boxes of documents and eliminating the need to rent a storage unit.

Reducing expenses associated with paper generating processes can also be a benefit of going paperless. Many attorneys save money on office supplies, administrative costs, and storage costs. 

Working remotely - a paperless office can enhance the experience when working remotely and this is a primary reason for going paperless. The ultimate benefit is to no longer having to carry files around when wanting to work from other geographical locations, home, and courthouse. 

Customer service enhances the ability of individuals to provide better customer service to clients. Documents can be e-mailed or faxed to a client. Clients can also feel that a paperless office is more sophisticated office.

DISADVANTAGES

Requires a larger investment in system hardware and/or software. The efficiency brought about by paperless operation requires having an adequte number of strategically located workstations.

Increased workload and stress for staff during conversion process. For existing practices with a large client base, converting to paperless operation can take a significant amount of time and effort.  All the existing files, exhibits and other images, etc. must be scanned into the computer system and these extra activities often create additional stress.

Ongoing Highest Cost. In order to have the best performance of computer system, a large amount of money for maintenance is needed as well as employing network managers to supervise the establishment of computer network.

GOING PAPERLESS IN LAW FIRM

The successful paperless office demands a plan which examines the process of moving from print to electronic documents and involves a combination of hardware and software that allows this to happen. Many attorneys are overwhelmed at the idea of going paperless. Planning can help break the process down into manageable chunks, and reduce anxiety. In fact, planning the methods and procedures to achieving a paperless office is essential to its success. 

For the ongoing process of creating a paperless office for current and new matters, law offices will need to invest in some hardware and software to convert paper into electronic format and manage it. While the law office can control the amount of paper created in the office by generating only electronic document, paper will still come into the office and thus must be scanned and stored. The original paper files can be returned to sender for their records. 

 In Search of the Holy Grail: The Paperless Office by Ross L. Kodner esq. and Dale W. Cottam Esq.

1. Old Technology: OCR Scanning.

For years, lawyers have been on a holy quest for the mythical and fabled "paperless office." Thisendlessly elusive concept is likely the “Greatest Lie of the Technology Age.” We’re never going to become“paperless,” at least in the foreseeable future. We just need to accept the fact that even if we reduce the amountof paper we generate, others will continue to send us paper. Early technology scanning was the next greatanswer, but since the dawn of document scanning, the term "scanning" has been synonymous with "OCR"(Optical Character Recognition). In other words, most people equated scanning with trying to use software toidentify the characters on a page and turn it into an editable word processing document. It was a good ideaconceptually, but in practice, even with the best OCR technology available, the process is still far from perfect.For example, with 97% OCR accuracy, three incorrect characters out of every 100 could mean as many as 66 errors per page on average. And what if one of those errors is a nearly-impossible-to-detect-but-a-bet-the-case-on-it number?? Not good. Not at all. The bottom line is that modern scanning should not be equated withOCR. Such a comparison is a fallacy that no longer needs to be the case.

2. New Technology: Image Scanning.

With a concept co-author Ross Kodner calls the "Paper LESS Office, "scanning is viewed from a common sense perspective: as a way to turn physical paper into digital paper.   When scanning as images, the process can be 20 times faster than the processing-intensive and doomed-from-the-start OCR approach. Further, imaged documents on screen, scanned as searchable PDFs, look PRECISELY like the originals: handwriting, pre-printed lines / boxes: all scan perfectly. Here’s how Hirst Applegate  uses the Paper LESS OfficeTM process in a nutshell: Hirst Applegate staff receive paper documents in the mail and then scan each one using a low cost, but efficient Fujitsu ScanSnap scanner – essentially “PDF Machines.” Every staff person and attorney at Hirst Applegate has a ScanSnap on their desk in order to make converting paper document to electronic documents second nature. 

 Once scanned, the electronic documents are saved in the universally readable PDF format. With a click of the mouse and a few seconds per page processing time, the text in the electronic document is converted to searchable text. The original paper document is then dropped into a redweld expandable file folder and in most cases, never touched again. In some instances, the original is mailed to the client. The electronic documents are stored in the attorney’s electronic “in-box” using the Worldox document management system6, or they are routed directly to the attorney via email. Eitherway, a copy of the electronic document is saved on the firm’s network server which is backed up nightly. The attorney reads the electronic document on his computer monitor. If she is on the road, shecan access the electronic documents through the firm’s VPN, high-speed remote connection.

The Worldox document management system used by Hirst Applegate organizes paper documents received in the mail; e-mails received with attachments; and documents created within the office, regardless of which software program was used to create them, whether it be Word, Word Perfect, Excel, Adobe Acrobat, etc.

If it is not possible or efficient to locate the desired document by viewing the file name, then it usually can be located by searching for key text within the document itself using a word search similar to a Google, Lexis or Westlaw query. Worldox works at light speed compared to the traditional Windows file search function. Even scanned documents can be located this way, provided the image was converted to searchable text using Adoble Acrobat 7 or an equivalent product at the time it was scanned.

 3. The Payoff of the Paper LESS Office

In today’s fast-paced technologyworld, many clients expect their attorneys to be at their level. With therelatively low cost of available scanning hardware and document management software, firms can now keep upwith their clients. Part of the cost of this technology is offset by the savings in postage, long distance phone callsassociated with faxing, and an increase in productivity. The level of stress involved in searching for lost filesand documents is reduced dramatically. The following chart demonstrates the advantages of electronic vs. paper files:

4. Making it Happen.

If you are considering moving from paper to electronic files, but aren’t sure where to start, here are a few suggestions. First, make the commitment to the process of moving towards the paperless goal. The key is dedication and a well-organized approach. Second, ensure your hardware is up to the demands of the increased amount of scanning, processing, and storage. Dual monitors are very helpful in simultaneously scanning, storing, anddeadlining. Network servers need the ability to store 1 to 5 GB per attorney per year. Having areliable backup system and testing it often is critical. Third, plan and test. Spending months of planning and isolated testing of systems andprocedures avoids having to start over and over. Hirst Applegate spent over a year planning and testing before the Paper LESS Office concept was rolled out firm wide.

 A truly paperless office is never going to happen. No matter how diligently you try to reduce or even eliminate the paper you generate, others will still send you paper for years to come. Even so, you can become Paper LESS and much more efficient in your practice. Employing a creative and common sense approach to scanning, and leveraging anti-paper PDF tools, you can transform your desktop landscape. Once you go paperLESS, you will find that piles recede and billable time increases. You will touch the paper less, chase around the office for the paper less, and you’ll find more profits, more enjoyment, and better client responsiveness inyour practice.

WHAT IS NEEDED?

Scanners, OCR, and Document Management Software

Scanners, optical character recognition (OCR) software, and document management software can be time saving organizational/storage & retrieval methods in the legal setting. In order to make informed decisions about purchases, a review should be made to establish who, what, when, where and how the product(s) will be used. Scanners come with many functions. Dependent on work load and type of document it is possible to auto-feed documents, scan over-sized documents, or lay them on a flatbed scanner. Compatibility with graphics and color is another choice to be made when comparing scanners. Questions such as "will we be scanning documents as text files or as image files?" will determine whether OCR software is necessary.  If documents are saved as text files (thus enabling text searching, editing, etc. in the future) the OCR software should be compatible with the scanner and the word processing program. Many scanners and OCR are integrated (bundled) to begin with, thus making it easy to buy a package that will suit the needs of the practice. OCR software also often includes a rudimentary document management component. If the need is for keeping track of the scanned-in text only, then be sure to look for this function in the description.

A popular format for storing documents is to convert them into a PDF (portable document format). A PDF can either be an image file (a picture of the original document) or a text file (made possible by further manipulation of the file with optical character recognition). Adobe introduced the PDF format and the software needed to read PDF files (Adobe Reader) is available for free from the Adobe site. Because the Adobe Reader is free, and many scanners come with the software to create PDFs, PDF has become a standard for archiving information since it can then later be retrieved. The format also allows all of the original notes and markings on the document to remain intact.

Scanners

Scanners range in price from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars. Understanding your options will help you determine what is reasonable to spend. Types of Scanners

Flatbed

Flatbed scanners look similar to a small copier. They allow you to lay pictures, odd sized papers, books, and other objects on the glass platen over a scanning element.

Sheetfed

Sheetfed scanners work like a fax machine to scan original documents. Look for sheetfed scanners with automatic document feeders (ADF). ADF capacity refers to the number of sheets that can be loaded at a time. Consider what your needs will be and purchase appropriately. A combination of a sheetfed scanner with ADF with a flatbed is probably the best fit for most firms. You may buy one of each, but the pairing is readily available.

Multifunction

Multifunction scanners typically incorporate a copier, printer, fax, sheetfed, and flatbed scanner in one machine. For small offices you may be able to do away with a number of devices in favor of this all-in-one device. Keep in mind that this machine will be a workhorse and purchase a higher end device.

Portable

Portable scanners are great tools for road warriors to quickly scan paper documents while out of the office. They are quite small and typically take one piece of paper fed in at a time.

Scan pen

Another mobile scanner, the scan pen, allows the user to sweep a pen device over a piece of paper and capture the text. These are useful for scanning text from books and other discrete text on the fly.

Card Scan

Card scanners come in several flavors. Some have software that allows you to scan business cards directly into Outlook or other contact management software. Other multipurpose devices allow you to scan business cards, receipts, and other small pieces of paper for management purposes.

Optical Character Recognition, OCR, software allows the user to scan documents as text, rather than an image. This provides a searchable, editable document that can be manipulated.

Scan to...

Some scanners support scanning to PDF, MS Word, CD, and other options. Keep in mind your needs when selecting a scanner. Scanners that will be used to send directly to common office applications will often need specific drivers, such as TWAIN or ISIS.

Networked

Consider whether you will want the scanner to be available to multiple users on a network or simply scan to a single workstation. Keep in mind compatibility with your operating system in either case.

Scanner Options

Duplex, if you will be scanning two-sided materials consider a scanner with built-in duplexing

Color/grayscale

If you intent to scan high-resolution color images pick a scanner that will support this function. The cost will increase, but if you plan to scan materials for evidence presentation the increase will be worth the investment.

Monthly output

Called "duty cycle", this refers to the number of scans per month per unit. Try to anticipate scanning volume in advance, as mechanical failure may result in an output that exceeds the scanners abilities.

Maintenance and support of your scanner will also be a consideration in price. While these contracts will add to the initial cost of the product, consider the cost of downtime, repair, and replacement.

When searching and purchasing new peripherals and software never hesitate to call the company and ask questions. Also, before purchasing anything, contact a consultant or expert for advice, finalization, and potentially implementation. This is intended as a guide only. Below are some of the major vendors for these products and some reviews.

This review of scanners is cursory. Below are resources for buying scanners and optical character recognition software. Also consider resources such as Technolawyer, ABA Lawtech, and ABA Solosez for word-of-mouth suggestions and advice.

Digital Copiers

Digital copiers can do the traditional work of a copier, with added network capabilities such as printing directly from a digital document or storing a scanned-in document to a network. It will be important to keep in mind for scanning purposes, what capacity feeder is required and whether OCR is used. If the scanned documents are stored as graphic files then the ability to do full text searching will not be available. However, if the documents only need to be accessible by keywords or title than the digital copier, with its myriad functions, could be a good choice. Also remember to be aware of maximum paper size and capacity of auto-document feeder.

XEROX copier/scanners

Software

In order to maintain both the scanned in documents and new documents you may either create your own file management system or purchase software that will streamline the proves.

Electronic Indexing/Managing Paper Files

For firms with paper files and a paper based indexing or management system, there are several ways to create an electronic file management system. Creating this type of index will allow greater access to paper files and pave the way to add and maintain electronic documents and retrospectively converted documents. Often document management software will come bundled with a business appropriate scanner, although there are options for purchasing software separately. There are various options for larger organizations which are quite expensive.  We have identified a couple of records management and document management software companies. 

Hummingbird Legal Key

Interwoven Records Management

1 Person Office: A complete setup costs no more than $2,000-and since the software is largely self-installing, there's no need to pay for that service. If you're satisfied with the clarity of the scans and can use a simple indexing system, you can keep costs down by not purchasing OCR or capture-preparation software. Most likely you will be satisfied with a .pdf format offered by Adobe.

2-10 people: Features and costs vary widely. You can keep costs to $300 per user or spend up to $6,000 for products with more advanced features. But don't skimp on the scanner functions and features. If your office copier is a multifunction device, it might serve as one scanner, but have at least another one with capture-preparation software. You're probably not big enough to need workflow software, but if it comes as part of the package, try it; you may find it useful. Your toughest problem will be finding a qualified installer to take on a job this small. Therefore, you may experience higher implementation costs than shown here.

11-50 people: You need more sophisticated features, including OCR, workflow and security software. Many of these features either will be included or will be available as add-ons; they'll be effective even if your business doubles in size. You'll especially need higher-end scanners with duplexing and automatic document feeding. Implementation will not be a do-it-yourself project.

50+ people: At this size you likely will benefit from workflow software and consultant assistance. Try to maintain the indexing in a single database. Your biggest challenge will be getting the various locations to handle the paperwork in a consistent fashion.

SIX TIPS FOR A PAPERLESS OFFICE

1.  Without paper, make sure you are backing up files

In the traditional backup system, you would make a photocopy of a document and put it in a properly labeled folder that can later be retrieved from a filing cabinet.  Many people and businesses develop electronic filing systems that mimic the old paper systems, using Microsoft Word or customized programs for storing documents by type of document, client, project, or other priority.  But those files can't just be created - they have to be backed up as well.  Backup solutions can include backing up to second hard drives, to removable drives or to the Internet and off-site locations to minimize the risk of loss of data from a computer failure.  The message here is to have a system in place for regular and consistent backing up of your information.

2.  Realize that a paperless office doesn't happen overnight

Your business won't go from all-paper one day to paperless the next.  It is a progression.  You might start out by scanning all incoming bills into your system, and then expand to include all general business correspondence.  Initially, you might even find you're creating more work instead of less.

3.  You'll need to rearrange your office - a good thing

There usually aren't tremendous savings of office space when you first start focusing on using less paper.  After all, you still have all those paper documents housed in your big, clunky file cabinets.  At some point during your transition to a paperless office, however, the difference in your physical storage space will become apparent. 

4.  "Paperless" often really means "less paper"

Yes, it is possible to scan all received documents into your computer, and to store all in-house documents in your system as well.  You can virtually eliminate paper faxes by generating faxes on your computer and having in-bound faxes delivered to your computer system.  You can even electronically sign or signature-stamp outgoing documents.  But you're still likely to have some paper floating through your office.  Not all of your clients or customers will want to be billed electronically.  Some vendors will still want to communicate by snail mail.  And tax and regulatory requirements could force you to either do some current business on paper or to keep hard copies of your past business records.

5.  Everyone has to buy in

Merely saying as owner of a business that you want those around you to embrace your paperless office doesn't make it so.  Your staff have to buy into the transition as a permanently - new way of doing business.  Change can be difficult.  People who have been making photocopies, sending paper faxes, putting documents into legal sized folders, or saving mounds of mail are going to have to change their perceptions.  They will have to learn new routines that they already feel skilled at.  There's a learning curve which can be a significant learning curve - people have to understand how to use new software, some of which they haven't seen before, and learn to deal with a new environment. 

6.  Realize that less paper is just the beginning of the payoff

The most visible impact of a move to a paperless office is the reduction in the cost of printing, mailing, shipping and storing paper.  Over time, lots of other benefits should become apparent:  less time spent looking for paper lost in the shuffle.  Fewer hours looking for bills, documents, or copies of client documents.  The ability to access all sorts of information from computer files in a matter of seconds without having to search your office.  If you've got an office that serves as a satellite office of a business, you can have access to all of your business files even if you are not at your business location.  In short, change can be hard, but it can be profitable. 

HOW-TO-LINKS

Arizona Lawyer How-To Guide

Illinois Trial Practice Weblog: The Paperless Law Office

Going to a Paperless Law Office

Greatest American Lawyer

You Want to be Competitive? Go Paper - 'Less'

The Benefits of Building a Paperless Law Firm Office

CURRENT TRENDS AND FUTURE OUTLOOK

Why has paper stayed around ? Because it has key benefits. Although it has been advantageously replaced by digital documents for data-intensive tasks such as search and retrieval of information, data analysis, mass distribution, business process and transactions, paper still keeps an edge because of its affordances. 

Paper will continue to play an important role in office life. Rather than pursue the ideal of the paperless office, we should work toward a future in which paper and electronic document tools work in concert and organizational processes make optimal use of both.

We are a culture that was so used to using paper that many people still used the technology to just produce more paper. However, younger people who grew up in a digital world just don't see the need for paper. Obviously, that would mean we're still a long, long way from really decreasing paper usage, but perhaps the paperless office wasn't quite as laughable as many people assumed a few years ago.

The growth rate of paper sales in the United States is flattening by about half a percent each year. Between 2004 and 2005, plain white office paper saw less than a 4 percent growth rate, despite the strong overall economy. A primary reason for the change, says Dunn, is that for the first time ever, some 47 percent of the workforce entered the job market after computers had already been introduced to offices.  But after decades of hype, American offices may finally be losing their paper obsession.

The demand for paper used to outstrip the growth of the US economy, but the past two or three years have seen a marked slowdown in sales - despite a healthy economic scene, Analysts attribute the decline to advances in digital databases and communication systems, employment trends, and a generation of office workers who are more comfortable with the new technology. Escaping our craving for paper, however, will be anything but a cold-turkey affair. 

Paper continues to predominate in activities that involve knowledge work, reading and collaboration. Paper is becoming a more temporary medium as people print, use and discard documents rather than keeping everything they print. Paper has become a display medium for human collaboration. In The Myth of the Paperless Office, Sellen and Harper claim, “we are not headed towards offices that use less paper but rather towards offices that keep less paper (Sellen, Abigail J. and Richard H. R. Harper, The Myth of the Paperless Office (MIT Press: Cambridge, MA, 2002) p. 209.

RESOURCES

Less Paper vs. Going Paperless: A Pain Free-Implementation Strategy http://www.proseries.com/images/pdf/generic_paperless.pdf

New Office Look http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/~cmc/power-mag/group/new-office.html

PDF Your Practice http://www.abanet.org/tech/ltrc/presentations/pdf.pdf

The PaperLess Office http://www.microlaw.com/paper_less.html

Paperless Office http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/paperless_office.html

Paperless Office http://www.answers.com/topic/paperless-office

Real World Pile-Management http://www.abanet.org/tech/ltrc/presentations/paperlesstechnology.pdf

Reorganizing The Digital Law Office http://www.abanet.org/lpm/lpt/articles/ftr01043.html

Setting Up The Paperless Office http://www.abanet.org/genpractice/magazine/2003/dec/setuppaperless.html

Six Tips For A Paperless Office http://tech.msn.com/howto/article.aspx?cp-documentid=812122

Time to Go Paperless http://www.aicpa.org/pubs/jofa/jun2005/johnston.htm