Andrea Keifer's firm, California Modern Divorce, offers affordable services to low- and moderate-income couples who seek an uncontested divorce. Utilizing her paralegal skills, Andrea guides couples through the divorce process and prepares the documents that reflect their agreements. Couples consult with an attorney on an hourly basis, if needed, without having to retain an attorney. This business model allows couples to receive quality legal services at a fraction of the cost. Andrea powers her innovative practice with Smokeball to ensure she’s efficient, organized, and profitable.

An innovative model requires cutting edge software

Before starting California Modern Divorce, Andrea worked as a paralegal in several firms and used many case management software solutions. She was generally unimpressed with their functionality and found the most popular option had particularly cumbersome billing features.  

When establishing her own firm, Andrea knew she needed legal software to successfully manage her cases and run her business. She discovered Smokeball from a colleague and loved its user-friendly interface. She chose the all-in-one platform for its ability to keep her organized and efficient through its:  

• Intuitive design and comprehensive training, which meant Andrea onboarded to the new software quickly.  

• Access to 20,000+ current federal and local court forms that save time and errors.

• Deep integrations with software like Microsoft Office and InfoTrack, allowing for a seamless user experience.

• Robust billing to easily invoice clients and get paid faster.

• Award-winning client support that’s there from training to troubleshooting.  

“Smokeball’s onboarding was fabulous. They helped me set everything up and customize it specifically for my firm. I really loved that,” says Andrea.

An all-in-one, streamlined software

With Smokeball, Andrea hit the ground running. She completed onboarding and took advantage of one-on-one training sessions with Smokeball experts to customize the software to her needs. She got a sense of the committed Smokeball community when her account manager connected her to another paralegal using Smokeball. “We discussed how she used the software, and I got a better sense of how to set up processes for my firm. That was extremely helpful. I don't think other software companies connect clients like this,” Andrea says.

With Smokeball, California Modern Divorce is streamlined and efficient. Andrea uses a bespoke client intake form to gather exactly the information she needs from prospects. The court form library is always up to date, which saves Andrea having to track down the relevant form from the court’s website.

The InfoTrack integration eliminates the need to log into a separate system and constantly check filing status. It’s automatically updated in Smokeball, and associated expenses are pulled into Smokeball Billing so multiple tasks are reduced to a few clicks.  

These time-saving features keep Andrea focused and accurate. “When you’re having to jump between systems, it’s easy to forget to record something. You tell yourself you’ll do it at the end of the day but that easily becomes the end of the month. You can’t accurately recreate your fees or work. Solo practitioners and small firms end up losing a lot of money that way,” shares Andrea.  

Smokeball boosts revenue by 25%

As a longtime paralegal, Andrea’s time management skills are excellent. But through Smokeball, she was surprised to discover just how much time certain tasks required. "When I really started looking at the Time & Expense tab in Smokeball, it revealed exactly how much time I spent on different phases in a divorce. It gave me a very clear, accurate view of what I should be charging my clients and ultimately led to my current pricing,” she shares. Thanks to Smokeball, Andrea discovered she was undercharging for her hard work by about 25%. Her adjusted rate is now fair to her and still affordable for her clients.

All-encompassing software for business owners

With Smokeball, California Modern Divorce is organized, efficient, and profitable. Andrea is confidently charging 25% more knowing that’s fair and accurate based on her work. And she has more time, which she can invest back into her business or spend outside of family law. “Efficiency means time, and that’s something we all value. Whether you choose to work more with that extra time or cultivate work-life balance—Smokeball gives you that choice,” she says.

Andrea knew she was buying essential software that would help her practice thrive. But Smokeball is also a community to support her as a business owner. She has the tools and time to work on her business rather than in her business.