Open Practice vs PerfectLaw DMS

Open Practice is a legal practice management system developed with Australian legal professionals for mid-to-large law firms. It combines matter-centric workflows with trust accounting, financials, mobile support, fixed-fee requirements, and traditional practice management functions. Listed tools include customisable forms and precedents, reports, CRM, tasks, and diary functions, with role-based security. Its data integration supports search, electronic contracts, and document management; integrations include GlobalX information searches, PEXA and other national conveyancing and settlement services, Microsoft Office, and document management systems. The maker describes capacity from 5 to hundreds of concurrent users across multiple branches. It offers implementation, data conversion, project management, online or onsite training, upgrades, and customisation. Pricing is per user, but no amount is published; the maker states there are no long-term contracts. Free helpdesk services are part of an annually renewed Annual Maintenance and Support Agreement. Open Practice is available on Android, iOS, web, and Windows.

PerfectLaw DMS organizes documents within law-firm case matters so eligible users can find, share, distribute, and manage them. It provides versioning, document comparisons and redlining, check-in and check-out, and links from one document to multiple matters. The system records creation and access history, with permissions that can update Microsoft Windows Active Directory. Users can drag Outlook emails onto matters, create or reply to messages from a matter, and add time slips automatically while profiling or saving documents. Integrations include Microsoft Office, Outlook, the All-in-One suite, and Adobe Acrobat. Browser-based webDMS supports document creation, search, retrieval, preview, and offline access for mobile and cloud use. PerfectLaw offers on-premises and cloud options; listed requirements include Windows 10/11 workstations, Windows Server 2016 or later, SQL Server 2017 or later, IIS, and an SSL certificate. The maker is based in Miami and says it was incorporated in 1979.