The legal sector, much like similar service-centric industries, has slowly but surely imbibed the value of outsourcing. But unlike others, it hasn’t take-off. One cannot leverage the benefits of outsourcing in the global economic crash in the mid-2000s.
Legal firms faced the meltdown with the rise in litigation cases while keeping costs down to manageable levels. The hiring of legal professionals was not a solution to handle mundane tasks. As a result, legal support services became a practical approach to handle the increasing administrative workload while maintaining cost-effectiveness.
Thus the real path of business expansion, growth, and profitability lay in outsourcing legal support services.
Before deciding to opt for outsourcing, you have to be very sure of what you want out of it. The most crucial aspects include cost reduction, quick turnaround time, and advanced infrastructure to run them.
The second is being very clear about what you want to outsource, saving time and energy. The core of all legal activities can be categorized as follows:
- Documentation preparation,
- Legal research
- Legal brief writing
To reach your objective of exponential growth in business, you should opt to outsource comprehensive legal support services. What are the services you can outsource and yet ensure that your law firm runs efficiently?
Research and writing: This is a standardized work that requires no special discretion or interpretation of the law by a top-notch lawyer. As research is on laws, the scope of any discrepancies in research findings is almost eliminated. You can outsource the following tasks:
- Research for the preparation of motions
- Appellate briefs
- Legal memoranda
- Letters
- Notices
- Structuring motions and pleadings
- Complaints
- Background information for trial preparation
Outsourcing legal research activities will save you a lot of time and costs as these services are available offshore at very affordable costs.
Contract Management: Any law firm has to deal with hundreds of contact, and if you have to go through all of them with a fine tooth comb, you’ll not have time for anything else. Moreover, managing the database of contracts, negotiating and maintaining the contracts, and ensuring that all clauses are client welfare centric is an onerous responsibility.
Professional legal support service has the expertise to carry out these functions effectively not only in the initial stages but during the life cycle of the contract too. Choose an outsourcing company with experience in handling contracts related to various sections of laws – Family Law, Property Law, Employment Law, and those related to trusts and estates or securities.
You can even look for specialization in outsourcing agencies that match your primary area of activities in law.
Review of Documents: This is another key area that you’ll do well to outsource. It’s highly manpower-intensive work but very important nevertheless. Agencies that have long years of experience in legal outsourcing have expert document review teams who can carry out related activities with great professional skills.
This includes coding documents, preparing deposition summaries, reviewing the document database with definitive point-specific issues, and finally, facilitating the putting forth of an evidential database.
Read Also: What to Take Care of When Outsourcing Legal Support Services?
One thread runs common through the different factors given above, and that is, each point contributes to cost savings as you don’t have to put in place any infrastructure to take care of them. This will increase your profitability and have a positive impact on client servicing and business growth.
