Welcome to the public lobby of Ben Cowgill's secure extranet

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An extranet ("extra-net") is a secure private network that operates over the Internet. On-line banking sites are examples of extranets.

Why should a lawyer for lawyers have an extranet for his clients?  Because lawyer-clients are entitled to expect total access to their files, immediate information about their cases and a seamless partnership with the attorney who serves as their counselor and advocate.

For those reasons, Mr. Cowgill gives every client the option of being able to access a secure, case-specific extranet site at no additional charge.

A law office that is always open —
and can be visited free of charge

Mr. Cowgill's extranet makes it possible for his clients to review and comment on the status of their cases at any time of the day or night from any computer connected to the Internet.

There is no need to call during regular business hours, no need to play "telephone tag" throughout the day, and no need to wait for Mr. Cowgill to be available.

There is also no need to worry that fees will be incurred in the process of finding out where things stand. Each client has free, unlimited access to the extranet site for his or her case.

A meeting space located anywhere and everywhere

The extranet also permits a client and Mr. Cowgill to review an entire case file together while speaking with each other on the phone, simply by logging in to the client's case-specific site from their respective computers.

They can read, discuss and mark up the same documents. They can update a "to do" list and see the new list immediately. And they can discuss their previous messages to each other and their thoughts about the case, just as if they were sitting at the same conference table.

A case file the client can review and comment upon anytime

Each client has a separate, case-specific site that can be accessed only by that client and Mr. Cowgill. After logging in to that site, the client can:

► check on the progress of the case,

► review the status of filing deadlines and "to do list" tasks,

► view or download pleadings and correspondence,

► comment upon and mark up drafts of documents, and

► post questions and comments for Mr. Cowgill's review and response.

Automatic e-mail messages that alert the client to every new entry

The client can choose to receive e-mail alerts of everything posted by Mr. Cowgill, in order to receive immediate notice of every new addition to the client's file. Each e-mail message contains a link to the new material on the site. Likewise, anything the client posts on the site triggers an e-mail alert to Mr. Cowgill's practice management software. 

People find that this approach is far superior to the conventional use of e-mail, because the extranet site serves as a repository of all developments and communications in the case, long after e-mail messages have become buried in an in-box.

Independently hosted and highly secure

A secure extranet site is far more secure than e-mail because it eliminates any need to send confidential information back and forth in e-mail messages. The information stays on a secure server that uses passwords and data encryption to prevent unauthorized access.  The client's connection to the site is a secure Internet transmission, like on-line banking activities and unlike ordinary Internet e-mail.

Mr. Cowgill's extranet is not part of this web site. It is hosted and managed by one of the nation's leading providers of secure project collaboration sites. The award-winning company uses a state-of-the-art computer network with high-level "SSL" encryption, daily backups of all data and continuous security upgrades.

In short, the case information on Mr. Cowgill's extranet is actually more secure than the case information on the internal systems of most law firms that have Internet connections. That's because the extranet host is able to implement security measures that are beyond the means or expertise of the law firms.

No additional expense

Mr. Cowgill does not charge his clients anything for the cost of providing extranet sites on their cases. It is treated as a cost of doing business, in consideration of the benefits it delivers to both sides of the attorney-client relationship.

Extranet sites for non-profit projects

Mr. Cowgill also maintains extranet sites for his civic and professional projects. Those sites are used as on-line collaboration tools by lawyers and other people involved in those projects. If you are interested in having a site for a non-profit project that Mr. Cowgill supports, please do not hesitate to inquire.