Partner Brian McGinnis and Associate Lyric Menges Featured in Law360 Article on Timekeeping in the Age of AI

In a Law360 Pulse feature on how artificial intelligence-based tools are helping lawyers to log billable hours more efficiently, partner Brian McGinnis and associate Lyric Menges shared their experiences, insights and best practices for timekeeping.

In the March 25 article, McGinnis, who is a founding member and co-chair of the firm’s AI and Data Security and Privacy Law practices, said he has embraced AI technology to make sure his entries meet best practices and any client billing guidelines.

"From a billing standpoint, there is still a manual process of taking a bill and trying to put it into one of our closed firm systems to understand more about what's in the bill, who billed what, and what they billed for," he said. "I'm looking forward to the day when I don't have to spend time typing out entries and reviewing time and all those other things that none of us as lawyers like."

McGinnis said each individual lawyer handles timekeeping in their own way, but he believes AI tools increase efficiency overall. "I know lawyers who block off a day of their calendar every single month simply to go back and try and figure out what they did that month to add in their time to the system," he said. "I'm talking about massive loss of billable hours just to enter these things and then close it out at the end of the month."

Menges, who is based in Los Angeles, focuses her practice on data privacy, cybersecurity, and intellectual property matters, developing and executing global strategies for data. The article reported that Menges, in her spare time, has a side business called Peepalegal Stationery & Sticker Co., which offers stationery designed to help professionals get more organized in a creative and fun way. Menges noted that a lot of the stress that comes with blocking hours, making a list or responding to emails is a result of those being tasks that are not inherently fun.

"No one likes to sit down with the calculator and calculate what [six-minute] interval of time was spent drafting this email," she said. "But if you can find a way to shift that mindset to be something you enjoy, I think it's a win-win situation for everyone — for the client, for accurate timekeeping, for the firm, for business development and for you — to incorporate good habits."

Menges said that when she was studying for the bar, the only way she could get herself to sit down and focus on the really hard days was by making a list of tasks she needed to do, separated on paper in 45-minute time blocks using different colored pens for each item.

"Timekeeping does not have to be something that spans anyone scrolling through their sent emails category in their inbox to try to figure out what they did on Tuesday for 1.7 hours," she said. "It's important that we have technology that is helpful for us and makes us more efficient, and at the same time that we aren't so reliant on that technology that we lose sight of what creates healthy, sustainable habits as professionals in this industry."