Abstract:
A method for providing a user with the ability to access and collect legal records associated with the user includes assigning a phone number to the user for fax and voice user for the user to use to access a secure web site, providing the user with a document to provide to the legal services provider exercising rights of the user for access to the legal records, the document requesting the legal services provider to send the legal records to the phone number, receiving a private fax communication comprising a legal record associated with the consumer for which the consumer has requested and given permission to the legal services provider to send, converting the private fax communications into an image file format, storing the legal services record encoded in the image file format, and providing the user with secure access to the web site using the access information and providing on the web site an interface to the legal records of the user for the user to access the legal record.

Description:
PRIORITY STATEMENT 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/204,498, filed Sep. 4, 2008, which is a continuation-in-part of, and claims priority to, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/225,518, filed Sep. 12, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,121,855, issued on Feb. 21, 2012, hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to the provision of online records, including financial and legal documents and managing of financial and legal services. More particularly, the present invention relates to providing a means for consumers to request their legal documents from legal service providers, store their legal documents, and provide for private communications between the consumers and their legal service providers. 
         [0003]    Legal documents can be particularly sensitive communications. Laws and attorney regulations place confidentiality limitations on legal records. In addition, certain legal documents such as legal opinions communicated from attorneys to clients may be privileged communications. The privilege may be lost if the information is communicated to others. 
         [0004]    In addition to legal records, certain records may be closely associated with legal records. These include certain health records such as health care power of attorneys. In addition certain financial records may be associated with legal records, such as those financial records necessary for preparing tax returns or other financial disclosures. 
         [0005]    One problem with legal documents is the number of such documents which an individual, family, or small business, will develop over time. If all records are maintained, organization of the documents may be difficult and time-consuming. Without proper organization, finding particular records can be time-consuming or otherwise problematic. 
         [0006]    To some extent, service providers may be relied upon to maintain certain records. For example, lawyers or accountants may maintain copies of certain records for a limited time. However, they may charge a fee for providing copies of records. In addition, they may have document retention policies which require destruction of records after a given time period. Thus, individuals or other entities maintain their own copies of legal records, financial records, and other types of records. 
         [0007]    Of course, whenever records are routinely maintained by an individual or service providers such as lawyers or accountants, there is still the possibility of records being destroyed such as in fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, and the like. Thus there are various problems with maintaining legal, financial records, and related records. 
         [0008]    Another problem relates to conveying legal records. It should be appreciated than individual or entity may be represented by multiple attorneys or law firms for different matters. As such, a great deal of correspondence and documentation may be generated and communicated back and forth between a customer and each attorney. Such information may be difficult to organize as previously discussed. In addition, documents relating to a matter associated with one attorney may be relevant to another matter being handled by another attorney. Thus, it may difficult, time-consuming, costly, or otherwise problematic to selectively disseminate information between attorneys, accountants, or other service providers. 
         [0009]    Another problem relates to the offering of unbundled legal services. Recently, there has been increased interest in lawyers providing unbundled legal services to their clients. In such instances, a client takes on more responsibility and the lawyer takes on less responsibility with limited representation. Unbundled legal services provides the potential advantage to the client of being able to reduce legal costs. Yet, lawyers may be resistant to providing unbundled legal services because significant time and effort may be required to limit their representation and determine whether unbundled legal services are appropriate in a particular instance. In addition, collection of information from clients or potential clients can be problematic, and multiple requests for information or other documentation from clients or potential clients may be required. Moreover, because of the reduced reliance on lawyers to provide legal services, it is increasingly important that an individual or entity maintain their own complete legal records. 
         [0010]    Another problem relates to the use of prepaid legal services. Prepaid legal services typically involve an individual or group employee benefit plan in which members pay a periodic charge (such as a monthly fee or premium) in exchange for access to certain legal services. In such instances, it becomes increasingly important for individual members to be able to be able to provide documentation to the lawyer or lawyers who provide services under the plans and for the lawyer or lawyers to be able to communicate with the individual members in a cost effective manner. There may be significant lawyer time or administrative overhead in communicating necessary legal documents and other information back and forth between an attorney and a client. 
         [0011]    Thus, there is a general lack of recognition of the need to provide secure and private communications between a legal or financial services provider and their client and to do so in a manner that is convenient for both the provider and the client. There is also a general lack of recognition of the problems for an individual to be able to store and maintain those records in one secured, password protected account that allows for files to be organized. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    Therefore it is a primary object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to improve upon the state of the art. 
         [0013]    It is a further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to facilitate privacy of legal records. 
         [0014]    A still further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to provide an individual with meaningful access to their legal records. 
         [0015]    Yet another object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to provide for placing an individual in control of their legal records and allowing them to selectively provide access to others. 
         [0016]    A still further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to provide a method to store, organize, and annotate legal records and also to customize the storage by giving the user the ability to name the folders in which those records are stored. 
         [0017]    Another object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to give users the ability to upload images. 
         [0018]    Yet another object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to give users the ability to forward records via fax to a healthcare provider. 
         [0019]    A further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to provide a means for individuals to store and access not only legal documents, but other types of related information, including health care records. 
         [0020]    One or more of these and/or other objects, features, or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and claims that follow. 
         [0021]    According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for providing a user with the ability to access and collect legal records associated with the user is provided. The method includes assigning a phone number to the user for fax and voice communications from a legal services provider and associating access information with the user for the user to use to access a secure web site. The method further includes providing the user with a document to provide to the legal services provider exercising rights of the user for access to the legal records, the document requesting the legal services provider to send the legal records to the phone number. The method further includes receiving a private fax communication comprising a legal record associated with the consumer for which the consumer has requested and given permission to the legal services provider to send, converting the private fax communications into an image file format, and storing the legal services record encoded in the image file format. The method further includes providing the user with secure access to the web site using the access information and providing on the web site an interface to the legal records of the user for the user to access the legal record. 
         [0022]    According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for providing a user with the ability to access and collect legal records associated with the user through use of a user account is provided. The method includes assigning a destination address individually associated with the user account for receiving communications from at least one legal service providers and associating access information with the user account for the user to use to access a secure web site. The method further includes receiving a communication from one of the at least one legal services providers, the communication directed to the destination address, the communication comprising a legal record associated with the user for which the user has requested and given permission to the legal services provider to send. The method further includes storing a representation of the legal record and providing the user with secure access to the web site using the access information and providing on the web site an interface to the legal records of the user for the user to use. 
         [0023]    According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for providing a user with the ability to access, collect, and share legal records associated with the user through use of a user account is provided. The method includes assigning a destination address individually associated with the user account for receiving communications from at least one legal service providers, associating access information with the user account for the user to use to access a secure web site, and receiving a communication from one of the at least one legal services providers, the communication directed to the destination address, the communication including a legal record associated with the user for which the user has requested and given permission to the legal services provider to send. The method further includes storing a representation of the legal record, providing the user with secure access to the web site using the access information; and providing on the web site an interface to the legal records of the user for the user to use to view, organize the legal records and send the legal records to one or more additional legal services providers. 
         [0024]    According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for providing a user with the ability to access, collect, and share legal records associated with the user through use of a user account is provided. The method includes assigning an identifier associated with the user account for receiving communications from a plurality of legal service providers, associating access information with the user account for the user to use to access a secure web site, and receiving legal communications from the plurality of legal service providers. The legal communications are directed to the user account using the identifier and each of the legal communications include information associated with the user for which the user has requested and given permission to the legal services providers to send. The method further includes staling a representation of the legal communications, providing the user with secure access to the web site using the access information, and providing on the web site an interface to the legal communications of the user for the user to use to view, organize the legal communications and send copies of the legal communications to one or more of the plurality of legal services providers. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0025]      FIG. 1  is diagram illustrating one embodiment of a system of the present invention. 
           [0026]      FIG. 2  is a pictorial representation of a sticker authorizing transmissions of records to the user account according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 3  illustrate a card with legal record access information according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0028]      FIG. 4  is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a system of the present invention. 
           [0029]      FIG. 5A  and  FIG. 5B  are flow diagrams illustrating an enrollment process according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0030]      FIG. 6  is a flow diagram for accessing records according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0031]      FIG. 7  is a screen display of a web site according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0032]      FIG. 8  is another screen display of a web site according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0033]      FIG. 9  is a screen display according to one embodiment. 
           [0034]      FIG. 10  is a screen display for folder administration according to another embodiment. 
           [0035]      FIG. 11  is a screen display for an uploaded file feature according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0036]    The present invention provides for a convenient method for individuals to collect and store their private information, including legal, financial, insurance, medical, and related information and to provide private communications between the individual and their service providers who generate the information or documents or need to access the information or documents. One of the ways that the present invention collects and stores private medical information and facilitates private communications is through use of secure fax and voice communications. One method for providing secure fax and voice communications is to provide a dedicated toll-free number for fax and voice communications. This dedicated toll-free number provides direct and private communications between a service provider and their customer so that a service provider can be assured that they are maintaining customer communications in secret and to avoid violating applicable privacy laws or customer expectations regarding privacy. 
         [0037]      FIG. 1  is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a system  100  of the present invention. In  FIG. 1 , a consumer  102  is shown. A legal service provider  104  is also shown as well as a fax/voice server  106 . A web server  108  is operatively connected to the fax/voice server  106 . The legal service provider  104  uses the phone  110  to communicate private voicemail messages through a toll-free dedicated phone number to the fax/voice server  106 . In addition, the legal service provider faxes legal records  112  to the fax/voice server  106  using the toll-free dedicated phone number. As used herein, the term “legal records” refers to legal documents or documentation or other legal communications. The legal records  112  or a folder for containing the legal records preferably has a sticker  114  present. The sticker  114  indicates or instructs the service provider  104  or their staff to fax the information to the toll-free dedicated phone number. In addition, the sticker  114  provides an indication of clear consent from the consumer  102  to the legal services provider  104  to the toll-free dedicated phone number. Thus, it becomes a simple process for a consumer  102  to provide their legal services provider  104  with instructions to fax legal records, a simple process for the legal services provider  104  to obtain permission to fulfill a request for legal services, and a simple process for the legal services provider  104  to do so in a secure and convenient manner as the fax is going directly to a toll-free dedicated phone number associated with the customer  102 . 
         [0038]    The web server  108  is operatively connected to the fax/voice server  106  such as over a network or otherwise. A customer  102  or their proxy can communicate directly with the web server  108  through a computing device  109  or the fax/voice server  106  using a phone  117 . The patient  102  can use a card  116  that contains access information to log on to the web server  108  associated with a web site of the present invention, or as a reminder of their toll free dedicated phone number which they can call to access voicemail messages, listen to text-to-speech conversion of emails, or otherwise access information. 
         [0039]    The present invention also allows a user  102  to upload files using a computing device  109  to the web server  108 . In addition, the user  102  can use the computing device  109  to interact with the web server  108  to specify that a legal record or records needed to prepare a legal document is faxed via the fax/voice server  106  to a legal services provider  104 . 
         [0040]      FIG. 2  illustrates one embodiment of a sticker  114  for a user to give to their legal service provider to request or instruct their legal service provider to fax communications to the toll free dedicated phone number associated with the consumer. Although it is preferred that a sticker  114  be used because of the added convenience provided by being able to permanently or semi-permanently attach to a file at the legal service provider&#39;s office, the present invention contemplates that other types of documents could be used. The sticker  114  includes the phone number  120  which is preferably a toll free dedicated phone number associated with the patient. Note that there is no pin number required which greatly simplifies the process of faxing documents. In addition, the name  122  of the consumer is shown. There is also a written request  124  on the sticker  114  that instructs the legal services provider to fax the records and explicitly gives permission to fax the communications. The language of the written request  124  may vary as necessary to comply with any applicable laws or regulations. It should be appreciated that the sticker  114  provides great convenience to both an individual who wants to instruct their legal services provider to give them access to their legal records as well as to the legal services provider who can now easily provide the individual with access to their legal service records. 
         [0041]      FIG. 3  illustrates one embodiment of a wallet card  116 . The wallet card has a front side  130  and an opposite back side  132 . The card  116  includes the name of the individual  122 , a URL for a web site  136  which stores legal records for the individual. In addition there is access information  134  such a username and password. The card  116  also includes the toll free dedicated phone number  120  associated with the individual. Additional information may be placed on the back side  132  of the card  116 . 
         [0042]    The present invention contemplates including the sticker  114  (or other permission/request document) and the card  116  in a welcome kit when an individual or family subscribes or signs-up for the service. In addition, from the web site associated with the service, preferably addition stickers and/or additional cards can be printed and information can be updated as necessary. 
         [0043]      FIG. 4  illustrates one embodiment of a system of the present invention. Preferably such a system is implemented using equipment from Prairie Systems, Inc. of Omaha, Nebr., although the present invention contemplates that other vendors may be used. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the system  200  includes a fax/voice server  202 . The fax/voice server  202  is accessible by a fax machine  204  or a phone  208  through using a dedicated phone number  206 . Preferably, the phone number  206  is toll-free as this increases the accessibility and convenience of the system which is very important. However, the phone number  206  could also be a direct dial phone number. When the fax/voice server  202  receives a call, a determination is made in step  210  as to whether the call is a voice call or a fax call. Where the call is a voice call, an interactive voice response (IVR) system is used to determine who the caller is, the purpose of the call, or other information, and then stores any voicemail message in voice storage  212 . The system is adapted to notify the individual that there is a voicemail message through an email notification in step  214  and/or other types of notification in step  216 . Other types of notification can include, but are not limited to text messages to a cell phone or pager. Thus, a legal services provider can call the number  206  and leave a voicemail message for the individual and know that the communication is a private communication. Thus, the legal services provider can leave private and confidential information, such as the results of a court decision or administrative action, or the need to schedule a new appointment, or other information. The individual is alerted to the presence of the voicemail message and can then call-in to the fax/voice server  202  to check messages. 
         [0044]    Where documents are faxed, fax images are collected and converted to portable document format (PDF) documents  218 . Although, the PDF format is preferred, the present invention contemplates that other types of document conversions can be done as may be appropriate in a particular implementation of the present invention. Based on the dedicated phone number  206  used to send the documents, the faxed documents are assigned to a user account and stored in step  220 . The individual is alerted via email that the documents have been sent in step  224 . Alternatively, the individual is alerted via text messaging in step  222  that a fax has been sent. 
         [0045]    The web site of the present invention provides a convenient location to collect and store healthcare records and provide secure access to the records. It also provides a convenient way to enroll in a service for providing online access to records including legal records.  FIGS. 5A and 5B  provides one embodiment of an enrollment process. In  FIG. 5A , a user  250  accesses a home page  252  for a legal records web site. In step  254 , a determination is made as to whether the user  250  is an existing member. If the member is, then in step  256  the user is provided access to their user interface as shown in  FIG. 6 . If not, then in step  258  a determination is made as to whether the user  250  agrees to terms and conditions of service. If not, then in step  260  the user is thanked for their interest but not allowed to continue. The user is also given the option or encouraged to output the terms and conditions to a printer in step  262  so that they can review them closely and maintain a copy for their records if they wish. If in step  258 , the user agrees to the terms and conditions of service then in step  264  the system collects user data. User data  266  can include last name, first name, address information, city, state, zip code, phone number, email/pager/mobile device information, emergency contact name, emergency contact phone number, primary care physician phone number, insurance information, allergies and medications, and/or other information. If all fields are received in step  268 , then in step  272  the system assigns a user name and password. It is to be understood that the user may also request a particular username and/or set their own password. Where a user selects their own password, then in step  270 , a determination is made as to whether the password meets security requirements. For example, there may be a minimum number of characters required, or there must be at least one numeric character, or other requirements. Where the user is allowed to select their own name, in step  274 , a username database is searched and in step  276  a determination is made as to whether or not the name is available. If it is, then in  278  the user is permitted to create a personal identification number (PIN). In step  280 , a rule such as one requiring a particular number of digits or particular minimum digits is applied. In step  282  the PIN is validated and the enrollment process proceeds to billing options in step  284 . In  FIG. 5B , the user is allowed to choose a plan in step  286 . The individual could, for example, choose an individual or family plan from the plan options  288 . In step  290 , the user enters credit card information  292  which may include a credit card number, billing address, and CW number. This information is then submitted to a payment processor  294 . In step  298 , a determination is made as to whether the credit card information can be authorized for payment. If not, then the number of retries is determined in step  296  and the user is allowed to re-enter their credit card information in step  290 . If there have already been two tries to validate credit card information, then in step  300  the individual is told that they cannot enroll at this time and should try again later. If payment is authorized in step  298  then in step  302  a dedicated toll free phone number is assigned and an IP address associated with the user is registered. In step  304  a user account is created. In step  306  an email notification confirming registration is sent to the user. In step  308  the user can begin to setup their personal web site such as their database of legal service providers, family members, calendar, and otherwise configure their web site. 
         [0046]    Where a calendar is used, the present invention contemplates that the calendar can be synchronized with an application such as Microsoft Outlook, a calendar program associated with a PDA, or other personal information manager. 
         [0047]    After registration, the user can access the user interface of the web site.  FIG. 6  illustrates one embodiment of the user interface  256 . The user  250  can access the homepage  252 . In step  400 , a determination is made as to whether the system recognizes the ip address being used by the user as being associated with the user. If the ip address is not recognized then extra security measures are taken beginning in step  414 . In step  414  a username and a double level of password log-in is required. If a valid log-in, then the process proceeds to step  424 . If not, then in step  418 , the number of invalid log-in attempts or tries is monitored and if it is three, then in step  420  the account is frozen. Returning to step  400 , if the ip address is recognized as being associated with the user, then in step  402  a username and a single level of password log-in is required. In step  412  a determination is made as to whether or not the password is valid. If a valid password, then the process proceeds to step  424 . If not, then in step  404  a determination is made as to the number of invalid attempts. After three invalid attempts, in step  406  the account is frozen and in step  408  an email is sent to the individual who may, in step  410 , implement procedures to change the password and re-open the account. 
         [0048]    Returning to step  424 , a determination is made as to whether the account is associated with an individual or a family. If the account is associated with a family, then in step  426 , the user can select the family member and access the family database  428 . If, in step  424  the account is not a family account, then in step  430  the user can view their mailbox showing new PDF files and voice files. Preferably, these new files include date and time stamps so that the user can see when the files were received. 
         [0049]    In step  432 , the user is allowed to annotate the messages to better identify the messages in a manner that is convenient for the user. In step  434 , the user can play the voicemail messages. In step  436 , the user can choose to save the messages to voice storage  438  or to send the message to the trash  440 . In step  442 , the user can select a legal services provider to associate with the voicemail messages. For example, the lawyer from which the voicemail or imaged document was received. Preferably the lawyer is within the database  444 . If not, then in step  460 , the user can update the database  444  to include the lawyer. The user can then organize the voicemail or document according to the user&#39;s preference into one or more file folders. Examples of file folders may include TAXES  446 , HEALTH CARE  448 , REAL ESTATE  450 , TRUSTS  452 , OTHER  454 . Any number of types of documents may be included, including financial records, and vital records which may include wills, living wills, healthcare power of attorneys, and related information. The user can make new file folders such as file folder  456  and identify it appropriately. The user interface offers functions  458  such as movement of files between folders, drag and drop, cut and paste, and/or other functions that will assist the user in organizing their records. 
         [0050]    The present invention provides for each of the file folders to be protected with one or more additional passwords. Such an implementation is particularly useful in a number of contexts. For example, the use of multiple passwords allows information such as insurance information, financial information, or other proprietary information, medical records, and other type of information to be protected with differing levels of access. 
         [0051]    Another example of where this extra layer of security can be useful is where a single account is shared by a family consisting of two parents and multiple children. Each parent may have their own folder separately password protected so that the other parent cannot access their folder, but still allowing both parents to access the folders for the children. 
         [0052]      FIG. 7  illustrates one embodiment of a screen display of the present invention. In  FIG. 7 , the screen display  500  includes a menu bar  502  along the top with different menu items such as “Home”  504 , “My Records”  506 , “My Calendar”  508 , and “My Lawyer”  512 . The screen display  500  also includes a reminder to the individual of their toll free dedicated phone number  514 . A message center  516  includes alerts as to recent faxes, voicemails, appointments, legal-related deadlines, or other related events. The user can view the recent faxes  518 , and for each fax, can file it using fax filing options  520  which allow the user to give a document title to the fax, associate a legal services provider with the fax, file the fax under a particular account where the account is a family account, and identify the fax by type of document. 
         [0053]    It should also be appreciated that a user need not fax themselves documents. Instead, the user can upload scanned documents or other files in any number of formats. 
         [0054]      FIG. 8  illustrates another example of a screen display according to one embodiment of the present invention. In  FIG. 8 , the screen display  550  also includes a files section  552  wherein different folders are shown for storing and organizing information. This allows a user to store records in a manner appropriate for them. In one embodiment, the folders can include separate folders for taxes, health care, real estate, trusts, and other types of records. 
         [0055]    As shown in  FIG. 8 , there is a promotional space  554 . The present invention allows for promotional material to be placed in the promotional space  554  that is of potential interest to the user. The promotional information can come from a third party source or advertiser. In additions, news information may be placed in a news information portion  556  of the web page. The news information can include breaking news of potential interest or importance to the user. 
         [0056]      FIG. 9  is another example of a screen display  560  according to one embodiment of the present invention. Note that a MY ACCOUNT option  513  is shown near the top of the screen display  560 . Also note that a user is allowed to select a family member using the dropdown list box  515 . There is also an upload record option  602  provided so that a user may upload files of various types directly to their account. 
         [0057]    Shown in the MY FILES portion  552  are a plurality of file folders, including: TAXES folder  562 , HEALTH CARE folder  564 , REAL ESTATE folder  566 , TRUSTS folder  568 . The various file folders shown provide a convenient method for users to organize their files. Of course any number of additional file folders may be added. Note that each folder indicates how many files are stored within the file folder. 
         [0058]    A WHAT&#39;S NEW portion  594  allows users to learn about new features or other information. A FAMILY panel  596  can display information or links to information relevant to families. A SENIORS panel  598  can display information or links to information relevant to seniors. A LAWYERS panel  600  can display information or link to information relevant to lawyers. Of course, the present invention contemplates that panels  596 ,  598  and  600  need not be present, and where present can be used to convey other types of information of potential interest to users. 
         [0059]      FIG. 10  is another example of a screen display according to one embodiment of the present invention. The screen display  610  allows for folder administration. A folder administration portion  612  includes a listing of multiple folders ( 16  shown) with a column  614  indicating the current name for each folder and a column  616  indicating the new name to be assigned to each folder. In operation a user can change the name of the folders to suit their particular needs. Note that at least a portion of the folders have a password associated with them. This allows a user to create a password such as by pressing buttons  618 ,  622 ,  624 ,  626 . This provides an additional layer of security to these files. 
         [0060]      FIG. 11  is a screen display for an uploaded file feature according to another embodiment of the present invention. The screen display  630  allows for uploading a legal record  602 . The upload a record window  632  allows the user to select a file to be uploaded  634  by browsing  636  to the location of the stored file. For example, if the user has an image saved in a picture format such as a jpeg, they would be able to browse  636  to the file and upload the file  634  to add to or to make current their present set of records. The upload a record window  632  also allows the user to record a title  638  for the file uploaded  634 . Additionally, the uploaded a record window  632  allows the user to associate the file uploaded  634  with the appropriate lawyer selected from a drop-down list  640 . If the account is family or joint type account and allows storing legal records for multiple persons, the user may use the drop-down menu  642  to select the family member  642  to whom this newly uploaded file  634  should be associated with. The upload a record window  632  also allows the user to record a date  644  associated with the newly uploaded file  634 . Lastly, the user has the option of selecting the individual folders  646  where he or she would like a copy of the newly uploaded file  634  to be saved. For example, the user may wish to save the same document in multiple folders. The upload a record window  632  allows the user to periodically update their records with important medical information and associate that information with the appropriate folders. The upload a record window  632  also makes it easy for the user to browse to and save legal files in electronic form in a convenient and organized manner. 
         [0061]    In one embodiment, not only is a password required to access the website, but an additional password is required to access such a folder. This feature can be advantageous in a number of different situations. For example, a family may share an account, but each spouse may maintain certain files in confidence from the other. As shown there are buttons  618 ,  622 ,  624 ,  626  for providing a secondary level of password protection. 
         [0062]    The present invention contemplates numerous options, variations, and alternatives. For example, legal service providers may be legal service providers made available through prepaid legal services, including those made available through an employer sponsored plan. In addition, the legal service providers may provide either bundled or unbundled legal services. 
         [0063]    The present invention is not to be limited to the specific disclosure provide herein. The present invention contemplates numerous variations as may be appropriate in a particular context, environment, or situation.