Ondersoek na die doeltreffendheid van die administratiewe funksie in 'n regspraktyk

Abstract

During the academic training of aspirant lawyers very little attention is paid to the administrative function of a legal practice. Various articles in De Rebus refer to this shortcoming. There also appears to be an over-supply of qualified attorneys which means that the establishment of a legal practice might become a reality before the necessary experience as professional assistants or partners in an established practice has been obtained. The aim of this research was to investigate the factors which have the greatest impact on effective office administration in a legal office, and the influence of technology on administrative efficiency. During this process a model was also developed for the effective completion of tasks in a legal practice. The target population for the study comprised 429 legal practices rendering service in the Cape Metropole at the commencement of the study. Information was obtained through conducting an extensive literature study of local as well. as overseas magazines and books, and visits were paid to 30 local legal practices. Personal observation of the administrative functions in a legal practice was also undertaken by the author. A structured questionnaire was developed and sent to legal practices selected on a random basis. Data obtained from lawyers, secretaries and office managers was processed statistically. In the first place the data was frequentially analysed. Consequently, by using the restricted linear regression method, the author endeavoured to identify the factors which make the largest contribution to the effectiveness of the administrative function in a legal practice.