To date, 2025 has been a yr of fixed ups and downs, marked by growing unpredictability. Monetary markets have responded accordingly, fluctuating wildly and dramatically impacting investments and 401(ok) accounts. Including to the tumult, rising prices and the specter of new tariffs are stretching family budgets thinner than ever.
On the identical time, the much-hyped promise of synthetic intelligence, paired with sustained instability, has triggered layoffs throughout industries. Moreover, this continued monetary uncertainty has resulted in a 16% enhance in particular person Chapter 7 chapter filings, in accordance with a Might 6 story from the MortgagePoint.
This surge signifies that chapter attorneys are busier than ever and want all the assistance that they will get to streamline their burgeoning caseloads and enhance effectivity. Enter chapter software program, which addresses lots of the challenges related to this follow space.
The sheer quantity and complexity of paperwork, mixed with the necessity for exact timing and compliance, make these proceedings particularly susceptible to human error and administrative bottlenecks. Chapter issues are document-intensive and procedurally inflexible, requiring meticulous administration of petitions, schedules, proofs of declare and court docket filings. Rigid statutory deadlines should be rigorously tracked, and clear and efficient inside and shopper communication is crucial.
That’s the place chapter software program is available in. It will possibly automate routine duties and workflows, generate paperwork, help e-filing and handle billing and processes. If the best software program instruments are in place, friction is diminished from shopper consumption to fee assortment, and firmwide productiveness is maximized.
Earlier than you select
Beneath, we’ll study a number of chapter software program instruments and their present performance. Whereas this isn’t a complete checklist of each product in the marketplace, it offers an outline of the primary options and differentiators, enabling you to make considerate, knowledgeable decisions concerning the instruments finest suited in your legislation agency’s wants.
A noteworthy improvement throughout many authorized know-how platforms is the transfer towards incorporating generative AI. For all of the instruments mentioned, it’s price inquiring about carried out and deliberate updates, as AI developments are prone to change how chapter filings and associated documentation are assembled.
Earlier than reviewing particular choices, it’s necessary to notice that the chapter instruments mentioned beneath are cloud-based. Which means that your information will reside on third-party servers. The obligation of know-how competence requires that know-how suppliers be rigorously evaluated. This contains understanding the place the info might be saved, who may have entry to it, how ceaselessly it’s backed up, and the way the supplier will safeguard that information.
If a platform contains AI-driven options, further due diligence is important. You’ll wish to discover accuracy metrics, perceive how shopper and agency information is protected, and confirm whether or not any data entered into the system might be used to coach AI fashions sooner or later.
With these concerns in thoughts, let’s check out a couple of of the cloud-based chapter software program instruments at the moment accessible to companies. Pricing might be listed whether it is accessible on the corporate’s web site.
Chapter instruments for legislation companies
First, let’s concentrate on legislation follow administration software program for chapter companies. Jubilee Professional is one instance. It presents complete cloud-based chapter software program that features e-filing and options like doc administration, credit score report imports, shopper texting and LawPay-powered on-line funds. Pricing is accessible on the web site and relies in your agency’s particular wants.
Another choice is NextChapter, a cloud-based platform for managing Chapter 7, Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 chapter instances. Options differ throughout totally different pricing tiers and may embody a shopper portal, CM/ECF e-filing, means testing, doc automation and fee instruments. AI options help good type validation, workflow triggers and process automation. Pricing begins at $159 per yr for as much as 4 instances and as much as six concurrent customers.
Greatest Case by Stretto presents a totally web-based chapter platform known as the Greatest Case cloud. The annual subscription contains kinds for Chapter 7, Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 native and federal filings and 10 gigabytes of knowledge and doc storage. Different options embody e-filing, process administration, a shopper portal and doc administration. It additionally contains automated updates, a safe shopper portal and instruments to make sure compliance. Pricing begins at $99 per person per 30 days.
One other instrument for chapter companies is BK Questionnaire, a cloud-based consumption instrument that automates the method of accumulating debtor data. Utilizing interview-style questions, it streamlines information entry for petitions and doc requests, decreasing administrative burdens. It integrates with NextChapter and Jubilee, and pricing begins at $39.99 for the usual plan. It’s unclear whether or not this value is for a single lifetime charge or a month-to-month subscription charge, neither is it obvious whether or not it’s for a single person or your entire agency.
Getting on the identical web page
Whether or not you’re keen on a know-how improve or are looking for to implement chapter software program for the primary time, you have got lots of viable choices to select from. Irrespective of your agency’s wants, one in every of these cloud-based instruments is certain to be a very good match and can streamline your agency’s operations and cut back inefficiencies, guaranteeing that everybody in your agency is on the identical web page.
Successfully managing chapter instances generally is a difficult endeavor, however it doesn’t must be that method. Do your analysis, select the best instrument, and also you’ll be effectively in your solution to a extra productive, worthwhile chapter follow.
Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York-based lawyer, creator and journalist, and he or she is the principal authorized perception strategist at Affinipay. She is the nationally acknowledged creator of Cloud Computing for Legal professionals and is a co-author of Social Media for Legal professionals: The Subsequent Frontier, each revealed by the American Bar Affiliation. She writes common columns for ABAJournal.com and Above the Regulation, has authored tons of of articles for different publications, and he or she usually speaks at conferences relating to the intersection of legislation and rising applied sciences. Observe her on X (previously Twitter) @nikiblack, or she could be reached at [email protected].
