When you own a law firm, there is a lot of overhead to worry about.  With rent, employee salary, insurance, office supplies and other expenses, it can be overwhelming for some law firms to manage.

Word processing software is now becoming more expensive on top of it.   This is particularly true the more employees you have.  Buying licenses for each additional employee is not cheap for most law firms.  It can even be a disincentive for some law firms to hire when they have to purchase a computer and all the necessary software.

For some firms, it simply isn’t feasible to spend hundreds of dollars per license for the necessary office software (or to sign-up for a monthly plan for each employee) on top of the cost of the computer itself.  What is a law firm to do when money is an issue?

One program that can get the job done for free is Apache Open Office.  With Apache Open Office, you get a free office suite program that allow word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics and databases.  The program is also compatible with most other major programs.

While not glamorous, Apache Open Office can get the job done for free.  If you are looking for an office suite program program that can allow you to grow your practice without adding to the overhead, Apache Open Office is certainly worth consideration.

If you have any other thoughts, feel free to share them below.