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About HotDocs
HotDocs is a document assembly solution that allows lawyers to increase their efficiency by automating the creation of routine documents. HotDocs turns your frequently-used documents, such as contracts and intake forms, into reusable templates. Thanks to a plugin, those templates can be created without leaving Microsoft Word.
Who HotDocs is For
HotDocs is a powerful program that integrates with many business process management systems. Because of this, it’s a good fit for firms that are already technology-oriented and are making use of customer relationship management (CRM) software or additional content management solutions.
HotDocs is relatively technically complex, which makes it a good choice for attorneys that feel comfortable with that complexity and would appreciate the program’s ability to scale as a firm grows. In contrast, solo practitioners with fewer document assembly needs may find the program to be more than they need.
HotDocs Features
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Website
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www.hotdocs.com |
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Services Offered
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Starting Price
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$25/user/month |
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Free Trial
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✓ |
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Apps
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Software Integrations
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Open API
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✓ |
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Version Control
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✓ |
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Encryption
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✓ |
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Built-In E-Signing
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✗ |
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Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
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✗ |
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Metadata Scrubbing
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✗ |
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Document Templates
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✓ |
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Court Forms
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✓ |
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Guided Interviews
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✓ |
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Conditional Logic
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✓ |
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Tables
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✓ |
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Calculations
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✓ |
This is a HotDocs promotional webinar, but starting at 5:24 it does a decent job showing what it’s like to actually use HotDocs:
Additional Details about HotDocs
Robust documentation. HotDocs offers a resource library with a wide variety of ebooks and webinars to get new users up to speed on how to use the program.
Financial and mathematic calculations. HotDocs allows users to embed complex calculations in document templates. This includes calculations such as determining payment rates and terms, using exponential functions, and calculating dates.
Summary: GREAT product nearly overshadowed by TERRIBLE service.
THE GOOD: Let me start out by saying I love the program. I bought it 6 weeks ago. I have been working with it for the last couple weeks, and I can tell my practice efficiency is going to see a huge improvement. HOWEVER…
THE BAD: they only get 2 Stars because of their training. I won’t say who I tried to be trained with because I never got the chance to actually get trained, and I don’t want to unfairly belittle his abilities as a trainer.
As I sit here 2 hours earlier than I usually start work, when I was supposed to be trained, I am reminded of the other times I sat here waiting to be trained on HotDocs. They cancel appointments at the last minute like it is a bodily function.
The first time, the trainer emailed me at 2 am the day of the training to say he was out of the office and needed to reschedule. Life happens. It was annoying, but I worked in customer service for 15 years before becoming a lawyer, so I let it slide and rescheduled.
The second time, he called 5 minutes before training to say that Microsoft Teams was having widespread service issues, so the meeting would be delayed. He said he would call back that day. He did not. Also, my office uses Teams all day in the interest of social distancing.
I will admit to rescheduling the third appointment because my paralegal was going to be out of the office. I did that 3 days in advance. The next appointment I could get was 3 full weeks out. To be fair, I could have selected one of the sessions that started before 6AM (1:30AM perhaps?), but I just set it up anyway. BTW if you use their trainers and you’re in the Pacific time zone, the latest appointment you can schedule is 7:30AM. Say hello to overtime for your staff and lost billable hours for your attorney(s). Say hello to it 3 times if you have my experience.
Oh, and the final time (today, in the dark), I tried to click on the link for my appointment. It took me to a big red-orange screen that said my appointment was cancelled. I looked back in my email inboxes. I saw one that said “appointment reminder” in the subject line. As I already had it on my calendar, I just deleted it. Turns out there was a link I had to click to finalize the appointment in that reminder. Where was my 2am email from the trainer on that?
Basically, I am done. I want my $450 training fee back (my office manager is on it).
THE GOOD (again): Ending on a positive note, I reiterate that the program is great. It is super intuitive, and they give you a link to a whole slate of training videos on the various features. Using these, I have updated not only our estate planning documents, but also fee agreements, authorizations, personal injury intake forms, and pleadings. I work in an office with 3 attorneys and 5 full time staff. HotDocs is practically a new staff member (or 2) for a couple hundred bucks a month. Once the templates are perfected, it also greatly reduces the chance of errors making it into the finished product.
I would recommend the product, but be prepared to teach yourself how to use it.