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Last updated 21 October 2026.
The short answer
A dictation service gives you a typed document without editing it yourself, at a per-minute or per-line cost and with a turnaround delay, and client information goes to a third party. Dictation software gives you the text immediately at a fixed cost, but someone at the firm reviews it. VoicePrivate Legal Edition recognizes speech on the lawyer's own Mac or Windows PC with 12,000+ legal terms for $24.99 a month or $247 a year.
How each workflow actually runs
Service workflow. The lawyer dictates into a recorder or app, the audio file is uploaded or emailed to the typist or service, a document comes back hours or days later, the lawyer corrects it, and it goes out.
Software workflow. The lawyer opens the document or email, presses a hotkey, dictates, presses the hotkey again, and the text appears at the cursor. The lawyer or assistant reviews and formats it straight away. Recorded files from a recorder can also be transcribed by the software on the lawyer's computer.
Side by side
| Dictation or transcription service | On-device dictation software | |
|---|---|---|
| Turnaround | Hours to days | Immediate |
| Cost model | Per audio minute or per line, grows with volume | Fixed subscription |
| Who does the first draft | A typist | The software |
| Who reviews | The lawyer | The lawyer or assistant |
| Where client audio goes | To the service and its staff | Stays on the lawyer's computer |
| Vendor review needed | Yes, of the service's security and staff | Of the software, but no audio is processed by a vendor |
When a service still makes sense
- Verbatim transcripts of long recorded interviews, hearings or depositions where formatting standards matter and no one at the firm has time to review.
- Very occasional dictation, where a subscription would sit unused.
- Poor recordings with several speakers, where a human typist handles the cross-talk better.
For letters, memos, emails, file notes and first drafts, which is most of what lawyers dictate, software is faster and cheaper over a year.
Confidentiality: what changes with on-device software
Sending dictation to a service means client information is handled outside the firm, so the firm needs to be comfortable with the service's staff, storage and retention. With VoicePrivate, recognition happens on the lawyer's own computer: dictated audio is not uploaded to VoicePrivate or any transcription service. The firm's own obligations do not change, and the text still lives wherever it is pasted, but there is no third party processing the audio. VoicePrivate also offers audit logging for firms that want a record of activity on the machine.
What that looks like day to day depends on the practice: a personal injury firm reads medical records aloud, and an immigration lawyer dictates asylum declarations. More on the practice areas page.
Moving from a service to software without losing your recorder
- Keep dictating into your recorder if you like it, and transcribe the files in VoicePrivate. Supported formats are MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC, OGG and AAC; convert DSS or DS2 files first.
- For new work at your desk, dictate straight into the document with a USB dictation microphone or headset.
- Add client names, matter names and local court names to your vocabulary, on top of the 12,000+ legal terms in the Legal Edition.
- Move your assistant's time from typing to proofreading and formatting.
Hardware choices are covered in digital dictation equipment for lawyers, and the difference between live dictation and transcribing recordings is in dictation vs transcription.
Worked example: a lawyer who dictates 60 minutes a week
- 60 minutes a week for 52 weeks is 3,120 minutes of audio a year.
- A service that charges by the audio minute costs 3,120 times its per-minute rate, before rush fees. Ask your service for its rate and multiply.
- VoicePrivate Legal Edition is $247 a year however many minutes you dictate.
- At around 150 words a minute, 60 minutes of dictation is about 9,000 words a week of first drafts that appear as you finish each dictation, with no wait for a returned document.
Attorney dictation: frequently asked questions
What is an attorney dictation service?
A service where a lawyer records dictation, usually on a digital recorder, phone app or phone line, and a human typist or transcription company turns it into a document and sends it back. Some services combine speech recognition with human editing.
Is dictation software cheaper than a transcription service?
Usually, for regular dictation. Services typically charge by the audio minute or by the line, so cost grows with volume. Dictation software is a fixed subscription: VoicePrivate Legal Edition is $24.99 a month or $247 a year however much you dictate. The trade-off is that you, or your assistant, review the text instead of a typist.
Is it confidential to send dictation to a transcription service?
It means client information leaves the firm and is handled by a third party, so firms usually review the service's security, confidentiality agreements and data retention. With on-device dictation software, the audio is recognized on the lawyer's own computer and is not sent to a service.
Can I keep using my digital recorder with dictation software?
Yes, if the recorder can save MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC, OGG or AAC files. VoicePrivate transcribes those files on your computer. DSS and DS2 files from some dictation recorders must be converted to one of those formats first.
Does my assistant still have a role with dictation software?
Yes. Many firms move the assistant from typing to proofreading and formatting, which is faster than typing from audio.
Bottom line
If you dictate every week, software usually beats a service on cost and turnaround, and on-device software keeps client audio on your computer. VoicePrivate Legal Edition is $24.99 a month or $247 a year, with a 30-day money-back guarantee on individual plans.