nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation software (DDS) to the UK legal market, today announced the launch of a specially designed licensing option for law firms of all sizes. The new option is designed to assist firms that have identified that they could benefit from a digital dictation solution but do not have the IT budget designated to do a full digital dictation deployment.
Firms can now rent the system over a 3 year period, avoiding an upfront capital expenditure. As well as delivering a method that is more sympathetic to the cash flow of a practice this option also lends itself to more favourable tax treatment than a straight capital purchase. At the end of the period, firms will have the additional option of purchasing nFlow digital dictation outright through one final additional months payment.
nFlow Sales & Marketing Director, Rob Lancashire commented "We've been testing this licensing option for some time now and whilst it has not suited the way everyone would like to buy digital dictation it has provided a very useful option for a number of firms who spotted the competitive opportunity nFlow digital dictation could give them but had not put DD in their budget for this year. It is well established that digital dictation can deliver significant costs savings for a practice so when coupled with the tax advantages and the minimal impact on cash flow a firm that takes up this option could quite easily be a lot better off over the 3 year period. I believe this makes the case for nFlow digital dictation even stronger."
Lancashire added that as well as leading the market in terms of investment in R&D nFlow has also committed itself to finding innovative, flexible and affordable ways in which to make nFlow digital dictation available to as many firms as possible.
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Thursday, August 30
Nflow introduce new licensing model to reach those firms DDS previously missed
by
Charles Christian
on Thu 30 Aug 2007 10:32 BST
Tuesday, August 28
Olswang select Axxia DNA
by
Charles Christian
on Tue 28 Aug 2007 08:48 BST
Top 50 law firm Olswang has selected to upgrade to Axxia's new DNA practice management-meets-businss process management system. The decision launches a 12 month project that will see Olswang roll out Axxia DNA in a series of phases throughout the firm.
Although an existing user of Axxia Arista, Olswang took the decision to launch a formal review process. Vendors were invited to demonstrate the suitability of their product to fulfil current requirements and any future plans the firm may have, functional and technical capabilities and the overall business approach and company compatibility to the firm. "We wanted to ensure that we had fully reviewed all options available to us rather than automatically upgrading to Axxia DNA," said Olswang IT director Clive Knott. "There were a number of reasons that made Axxia DNA our preferred choice; they clearly demonstrated the solution and the likely business, time and financial savings, the increased business efficiencies, the web based browser platform and the underlying business process management." Phase one of the project focuses on time, billing and enquiries with phase two moving towards conflict and risk management. Orange Rag comment: In recent months we've lost track of the number of time we've been told that Axxia had lost its way and that DNA was a flop. Perhaps the problem was that users just didn't "get it" in terms of what DNA, with its built in BPM platform, can actually do? Or, maybe part of the problem was Axxia struggling to explain the message to the market? Either way the penny has certainly dropped at Olswang and hopefully more orders should now follow, just as – after a relatively slow start – orders are starting to come in for Elite's new 3E system, which also combines PMS with BPM functionality. Friday, August 24
And if you are looking for a new job... maybe give Monster a miss
by
Charles Christian
on Fri 24 Aug 2007 13:53 BST
We know the end of the summer is that time a lot of people come back from the beach thinking... "that's it, I can't stand working for those jerks any longer" and hand in their notices. But in case you are planning to do that, you may want to give the Monster jobsboard a miss for a while. Monster have just issued the following statement...
"Monster Worldwide Inc is continuing to actively investigate and take measures to address the impact of the malicious software, called Infostealer.Monstres, on the company's resume database. Monster has identified and shut down a rogue server that was accessing seeker contact information through unauthorized use of compromised legitimate employer-client log-in credentials. "The information contained on this server was limited to names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. The company is currently analyzing the number of job seeker contacts impacted by this action and will be communicating with those affected as appropriate. Monster is in the process of reaching out to its entire employer population to mitigate any ongoing issues. In addition, Monster is placing a security alert on the Monster.com site. This information is located on its Security Center and is designed to let visitors know to be vigilant about any phishing email that appears to be from Monster." The announcement follows revelations earlier this week that individual computers infected with Infostealer.Monstres trojan virus were programmed to use pilfered recruiter credentials to pull a broad range of information relating to job candidates and feed them to a server in Eastern Europe. Because the queries were coming from many different internet protocol addresses, rather than a single machine, the fraudulent requests were probably more difficult for Monster to detect.
And Microsoft confirm their second legal CRM of the week
by
Charles Christian
on Fri 24 Aug 2007 08:47 BST
You'll have seen it intimated in the comments following the Dundas & Wilson story but Microsoft has now confirmed that US/international law firm Reed Smith LLP is also switching to a CRM platform based on Microsoft Dynamics CRM. In this case the firm is partnering with Client Profiles Inc, who have developed their own CRM4Legal implementation based on the Microsoft application. Reed Smith (the 15th largest law firm in the wortld) will be rolling out the system to 1500 lawyers in their 21 offices around the world, including the UK where they currently rank 153 in the Insider top 250 chart. (Client Profiles have also ently opened a UK office.)
Gregory Jordan, firm-wide managing partner at Reed Smith commented "We are dedicated to being one of the leading client service firms in the world and recognise that understanding our clients’ legal needs is critical to award-winning client service. We are partnering with Microsoft and Client Profiles on a firm-wide, global CRM initiative to use technology to help us identify new opportunities for strengthening, broadening and deepening our existing client relationships. The technology will also enable the firm to streamline our methodology for integrating new attorneys that join laterally or through combinations with other firms.” While Brad Wilson, general manager, Microsoft Dynamics CRM at Microsoft added “The path to CRM success is often blocked by poor user adoption, largely due to CRM systems that are unfamiliar and difficult to use. Microsoft Dynamics CRM works the way people work, through familiar Microsoft Office and Outlook interfaces, which helps ensure active adoption and broad applicability to a wide variety of users and teams within organisations like Reed Smith.” Wednesday, August 22
Dundas & Wilson go with Microsoft CRM option
by
Charles Christian
on Wed 22 Aug 2007 11:17 BST
And another law firm opts for a CRM solution that is not InterAction – Dundas & Wilson LLP has just announced it is to deploy Microsoft Dynamics CRM, with the project being handled by ePartners. The CRM system will be used to support D&W’s fee-earners client-facing activities, to support ongoing marketing and business development strategies, and to provide a single point of access to client information gathered from other systems within the firm. Phase 1 of the project will be implemented over the next 6 months.
Tom Clowes, Dundas & Wilson Strategic Projects Director, explained why ePartners was selected for this project: “We didn’t look upon this as a traditional CRM installation; we’re not looking to record each and every bit of client data – it’s about putting a system in place that offers real benefits to the way we work, for our fee-earners and our clients. ePartners clearly understood what we were hoping to achieve and how we operate. They were able to define for us the most effective way to roll out the project and putting processes in place that really work in the legal services market.” Clowes added “As integrating information from other business systems in D&W was a key objective, the choice of Microsoft software was important. It also offers the ease-of-use of the Microsoft Outlook front-end which the fee earners already understand, simple but effective functionality, and will offer easy integration with other applications. It works the way we do; we’re not having to make any changes to the way our lawyers work, plus it gives us a great platform for future investments.” Paul White, head of Microsoft Dynamics UK, said “This serves to demonstrate the flexibility of Microsoft Dynamics CRM – and its ability to serve organisation in many different industries. It also serves to demonstrate e-Partners ability to provide fast growing organisations with relevant advice about how technology can support their ambitions for their business.” Sam Dharmasiri, managing director of ePartners UK, said “The legal services market is one of the most exciting and demanding, from a use of technology point of view. For a supplier to succeed, they have to really understand the way law firms operate and how technology needs to work with them. We’re looking forward to starting on this project with Dundas & Wilson, who are a great name for us to be working with.” www.epartnersolutions.com Monday, August 20
First issue of Insider Colour Supplement out now
by
Charles Christian
on Mon 20 Aug 2007 17:25 BST
Legal Technology Insider, the publishers of The Orange Rag, have today launched the first issue of the Insider Colour Supplement, a new webzine
designed to complement the Legal Technology Insider newsletter's
coverage of legal IT developments and events. In particular it allows
us to carry longer feature articles we simply cannot accommodate
space-wise within the newsletter and colour photography, which is just
plain impossible in a newsletter that uses black ink on orange paper
(unless you are David Dickinson).
Our August issue includes a white paper by Norm Mullock of Redwood Analytics on diversity within law firms, Robert Dougan of Solution Canvas on why there is room for another new supplier in the legal IT market and an overview of Recommind's new e-discovery system PLUS two photo caption stories: the DictateNow sponsored Tiffin Cup at the House of Commons and the Thomson Elite user conference in Las Vegas. The URL for the webzine is www.theinsidermag.net
Open Text commits to MS Sharepoint
by
Charles Christian
on Mon 20 Aug 2007 15:15 BST
It has been a long-time coming but those lovely people at Open Text (previously Hummingbird) have finally woken up, smelled the coffee – and realised the future of document management systems could well lie with Microsoft Sharepoint. Earlier today, at the ILTA event in Florida, Open Text announced plans for an integrated solution with Microsoft software for matter lifecycle management and practice support targeted to law firms worldwide. The new solution will combine Open Text's specialized legal industry expertise in matter lifecycle management and proactive compliance, with the collaboration and document management capabilities of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.
"A law firm, like any organization, is looking for new ways to increase productivity and reduce risks," said Brian Zeve, managing director, Microsoft Professional Services Industry Solutions. "We've seen a strong reception for SharePoint Server 2007 in the legal market and Open Text is adding even more value to help customers address the twin concerns of compliance and productivity. By offering Open Text's legal capabilities within SharePoint Server 2007, we'll be able to offer customers the kind of integration they need for a truly comprehensive ECM strategy." Thursday, August 16
TFB win ILCA 'best software supplier' award
by
Charles Christian
on Thu 16 Aug 2007 09:37 BST
TFB has won this year's ILCA Best Software Supplier of the year award. The award, organised by the UK's Institute of Legal Cashiers & Administrators, and this year sponsored by the Legal Support Network, is voted for by members of the Institute, as well as partners and cashiers of practice management systems across England and Wales.
Commenting on the award, TFB's managing director Simon Hill said "Winning this award is not only a great achievement for TFB, I hope it is also indicative of the confidence our clients have, not only in their system, but in TFB and the future of their software. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who voted for us and offered their support. User feedback is one of TFB's building blocks and whether that is conveyed at a user group meeting, via the online client portal or simply over the phone, we value our clients' input into the development of the products and services we provide. "The legal market has seen many changes in the past twelve months and I'm certain that there are many users of other systems who are feeling very unsure about what the future holds. We have already gone on record as saying that we have no plans to develop a successor product to Partner for Windows and will continue to maintain and develop a product which is clearly gaining favour amongst the ILCA's members. TFB's commitment to our clients and our products remains as strong as ever." • Over the last few months TFB has also become the first supplier to achieve accreditation as 'Recognised Supplier' by the Law Society of Scotland, picked up a 'Highly Commended' at the Legal Technology Awards, and has been named as preferred supplier to the New Zealand Bar Association. Monday, August 13
Aderant point to implementation time as USP
by
Charles Christian
on Mon 13 Aug 2007 14:55 BST
So why should a law firm pick a practice management system from Aderant rather than from Thomson Elite when, on the face of it, they are apparently Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum products with little to differentiate one from the other? Aderant however says that one area where it is now developing a clear edge is in the ease of and time it takes to implement its systems.
At the end of July, Aderant announced the rapid deployment of its systems at the offices of London-based Mishcon de Reya. The implementation of the PMS part was completed within five months of the firm deciding to switch suppliers, after attempting to implement a different PMS – in fact Aderant managed to meet the target date that had been set for the initial implementation project. (Although neither Aderant nor Mishcon mention the name of the supplier of the problematic implementation in their announcement, Insider records show that in June 2004 we reported that the firm had selected Elite to replace its old AIM PMS.) After seeing how well the core PMS aspect of the project went, the firm also decided to deploy Aderant Expert Mobile Office straightaway and rolled out Handheld Time to their fee earners, which has been live for over six months now. The firm says Mobile Office allows the firm to offer fee-earners yet another option to accurately capture time, resulting in an increase in time capture for participating fee earners by as much as 15%. And then, earlier this month, Aderant announced that the German law firm Luther had successfully completed a global implementation (to 230 lawyers and consultants throughout 13 German offices and five international operations in Ankara, Brussels, Budapest, Istanbul and Singapore) of the Aderant Expert PMS in only seven months. The firm, which is part of the expanding European partner network – the Pinsent Masons Luther Group (PMLG), required a new business management solution because it had terminated its association with Ernst & Young and could no longer share its IT infrastructure and services. The ending of this arrangement also meant Luther faced an extremely tight – and unyielding – implementation deadline, with the firm needing to be live on its new system by July 2007 when its service agreement with Ernst & Young expired. • In an interview with Aderant earlier this summer, the company's CEO Mike Kohlsdorf told the Insider that along with organic growth, Aderant was also investigating expanding its market share of the legal IT sector through strategic acquisitions. No names were mentioned but the implication was this included the acquisition of legacy PMS suppliers that still had substantial user bases. Wednesday, August 8
Professional Plus in administration
by
Charles Christian
on Wed 08 Aug 2007 08:49 BST
Professional Plus, the legal IT consultancy, has gone into administration. The following notice has been issued by joint administrators Kevin Brown and Anthony Hyams of Marriotts LLP
Professional Plus...
Asking price: Undisclosed Offer for sale the business and assets of this software system designer. Principle features include – An established business development software house turning-over circa £400k pa including;
the developed software and design rights to
BCon Business Continuity communications framework software, and
Info plus Web Intelligence tool
For further information contact: Marriotts LLP, Allan House, 10 John Princes Street, London, W1G 0AH - Tel: 0207 495 2348 - Fax: 0207 495 2318 - Email: thyams@marriottsllp.co.uk So are legal IT consultancies finding it difficult to remain in business as independent organisations? Are we even about to see the IRISisation of this market? It's already happened in the US, with two of the better known names – Hildebrandt and Baker Robbins – being acquired by the Thomson Group and over here in the UK Tikit has acquired 3 consultancies in the PMS, CRM and KM sectors. Earlier this week another UK consultancy told The Orange Rag that they had just been approached by a consultancy looking for someone to buy its business. As the md of one consultancy put it "I think it adds to a trend of pure consultancies finding life difficult. Not because of lack of business but because of competition and shifting market trends and the ability to keep up. We certainly need multiple revenue sources to make the whole thing work well and have to constantly invest in R & D." Tuesday, August 7
New survey out now
by
Charles Christian
on Tue 07 Aug 2007 19:06 BST
There's a new survey doing the rounds - see URL links below - however if it lands on the desks of any of your users, please note that it is being conducted by the IRIS/CSG Legal empire (aka the legacy of Darth Murria).
It is also interesting to note that the IRIS Group (AIM, Laserform, Mountain & Co and Videss) would appear to acknowledge only 5 competitors in their market space, namely (in strictly alphabetical order): AlphaLaw Axxia Eclipse Pilgrim TFB Wot no Linetime? There again, before she left the group Vin Murria told me she had talked to at least four of these companies as well - although to-date only TFB have gone public on their side of the negotiations and why they thought it was a bad idea. To locate the survey use this link http://qmark4.brad.ac.uk/q4/open.dll?NAME=irissoftware&GROUP=irissoftware and select the Iris Survey link OR try http://143.53.238.233/q4/session.dll Monday, August 6
If you enjoyed Vinasty, you'll like this
by
Charles Christian
on Mon 06 Aug 2007 12:52 BST
In our snail-mail over the weekend we received an anonymous letter containing a printout of an email message apparently doing the rounds. The laws of libel mean we are unable to reproduce this message in full but here is the expurgated version...
"I have information from an insider at (insert name of legal software supplier) that the company have completely lost an entire customer's data. It would seem that (insert name of legal software supplier) had been sending out backup DVDs to customers that were blank but forgot one database and then zapped it." The message goes on to name the law firm to whom this is supposed to have happened, alleges that the supplier has no proper disaster recover capability and has been "misleading the Law Society". It ends with the comment "I hope this may be of interest to you and you are able to verify with the customer. Solicitors aren't allowed to lie ...are they?" There was also a covering note containing the comment "Due to the unhinged nature of (insert name of MD of software supplier) and his (insert name of Easter European country to which the supplier is apparently outsourcing R&D work) associates, I am not prepared to put my name to this information." Obviously we are following up this story but it is our experience that (a) suppliers inevitably tell porkies when faced with allegations of this sort and - rather more importantly - (b) law firms that are victims of computer disasters rarely, if ever, go public with their complaints. (There are usually two main reasons for this (i) they don't want to jeopardise any settlement deal they are negotiating with the supplier and (ii) it doesn't look good in the credibility stakes to be known as a law firm that was stiffed by one of its own suppliers.) • We are not sure about the relevance of the reference to the Law Society as the supplier in question is not listed in the Society's Software Solutions Guide. Friday, August 3
All systems go - AIM & Iris launch DMS offering & Arlene comes out fighting
by
Charles Christian
on Fri 03 Aug 2007 11:48 BST
We've had the hype, we've had the controversy and we've had Vinasty. Now it's time for work with the IRIS Software Group this week launching IRIS Document Management for Legal based on Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services. This is the first product to be launched following the strategic mergers of Computer Software Group (CS Group) and IRIS.
IRIS Document Management delivers full-featured document and content management to the legal sector and makes its first appearance embedded in the widely used AIM Evolution practice and case management system. Client Connect.Net, an extension to the Document Management solution, opens the way for secure exchange of documents with clients, referrers and collaborating teams and practices. Commenting on the launch Arlene Adams, managing director IRIS Legal & Compliance, said: "Following the recent mergers of CS Group and IRIS we’re excited to be launching our new IRIS Document Management Solution specifically for lawyers. The ability to launch this document management product, so soon after the merger, demonstrates that we are delivering on our promise to lead and drive innovation for the legal profession using industry standard products. Under the IRIS Group we have been able to pull together resources resulting in us delivering the product ahead of schedule and at a more cost effective rate. I am delighted that our customers are already seeing the value of the combined group." Jim Chase, Operations Director, IRIS Legal & Compliance added: "By building our document management solutions around Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services we have tapped in to a class leading document library services that enable us to manage, share and publish documents. The most exciting aspect of this is that we can offer a seamless experience for end-users in their preferred business applications whether practice and case management, SharePoint portal or Microsoft Office. By extending the Microsoft solution to deliver in a Legal context we deliver the best technology without best-of-breed costs or integration headaches. "Apart from secure and scaleable storage and management, retrieval of documents can be achieved by meta-data and key word searching. Content searching comes as standard with this technology so precedent gems should never be mislaid for long. Robust versioning and audit support a strong compliance regime. Publishing is also catered for. "The nice thing about this technology model is that it offers the potential to deploy the SharePoint document management solution embedded with any IRIS case and practice management product such as Videss Legal Office and Mountain Connected. This reinforces our message of solution choice for or the legal profession." IRIS is anticipating an initial release with AIM Evolution during the autumn of 2007 with similar options for Videss and Mountain customers following during 2008. With her feet now under the table, Arlene Adams has also issued the following statement "the new combined group, encompassing numerous software legal brands such as AIM Evolution, Laserform, Videss Legal Office, Mountain Software, GB Systems & Meridian Law and is the only company in the legal market to offer customers a real breadth and depth of choice. Our size of operation means that we can, and will continue to, cater for a diverse range of market requirements. I am committed to all our existing legal product lines and have no plans to end of life any products in the IRIS legal family. "On a personal note I have worked in the software market for over 12 years and held many senior positions in both small and large technology companies. Most recently I was CEO for a mobile payments software company and prior to that held a director's position on the UK board of Sun Microsystems. During my career, whether in a small or large company, I have found the most successful strategy for growth is to have delighted customers. I strongly believe that in the software business delivering a quality product and service that meets or better exceeds a customer expectation is the best sales tool you can ever have. Creating and maintaining delighted customers will set the agenda for everything I do within the IRIS Software Group. "I am very excited about the opportunity the new IRIS Software Group offers to our customers. We are now by far the largest player in the UK legal software market. While some claim size isn't important in this instance it is. Our size allows us to invest heavily in R&D. This will deliver to you our customer continuous new features and innovation that in turn will help make it easier for you to run your business more efficiently. We not only lead the way in R&D but also in service and support. No other company in the market can claim to have over 300 people dedicated to the legal software market. For our customers this means you have an extensive breadth and depth of skills ready to support you. It isn't just about reactive support but equally I place huge emphasis on finding ways in which we can pro-actively prevent issues arising. This is an area where we really can exploit the collective knowledge and best practice of the IRIS Software Group who can boast to have one of the highest client retention rates in the IT industry. Through excellent product quality and testing together with a range of managed services we are able to deliver mission critical product and support to all our customers. Finally, when it comes to support it is reassuring to know that the IRIS Software Group have over 20 offices throughout the UK and are committed to developing our people to a level that sets the benchmark in the industry. "The UK legal market is of great strategic importance to the success of the IRIS Software Group. For this reason we are committed to grow and strengthen our market position through delivering excellence in all that we do but also by adding to the legal product family where we can see it will add measurable value to our customers. "I am delighted to be leading the charge of the IRIS Software Group in the UK legal market. It is my plan in the coming weeks and months to meet as many customers as possible as your feedback is central to any plan I build for the business." Thursday, August 2
August - and still no let up in M&A activity
by
Charles Christian
on Thu 02 Aug 2007 20:45 BST
Well it's August, which is meant to be the quiet season in the legal tech market but already we've got two new deals to report.
The first - by about 10 minutes - was the announcement of the acquisition of Whitehill Technologies (best known in the legal market for its document, compliance and billing automation and BPM systems) by Skywire Software of Frisco in Texas. The terms of the transaction, which is expected to be complete on or before 31st August 2007, have not been disclosed. Whitehill is a private company and Skywire is a privately-held subsidiary of the Hall Financial Group. This is an interesting deal - not least because there is currently a lot of interest in the legal market over Whitehill's new range of BPI business process automation systems (see July issue of Legal Technology Insider) - as Skywire's strategy is to focus on niche vertical markets, with the acquisition of Whitehill marking is debut in the legal IT market. Earlier today The Orange Rag spoke to Kevin Berry, Whitehill's V-P for legal sales. He said it would be business as usual for Whitehill customers as the company would be retaining its current staff, office locations and product ranges - although some rebranding will inevitably happen - as Skywire's strength is in acquiring and running successful businesses as going concerns. His view is that the announcement was good news for customers as by being part of a larger group (Whitehill has about 200 staff whereas Skywire has 400) there would now be greater resources to put into R&D and support services. The move also gives Whitehill access to a London office, as Skywire is already active in the UK insurance market, and longer term there may be some Skywire products that can be cross-sold into the legal market. Berry also said the deal would not affect Whitehill's relationship with its UK partner Saturn Legal - and added that the first fruits of this relationship would be announced within the next few weeks. This will include the first competitive swap-out of a Metastorm BPM system for a Whitehill BPI product - Whitehill has already replaced Metastorm in some US sites. www.whitehilltech.com www.skywiresoftware.com www.hallfinancial.com And, talking of Metastorm, 10 minutes after news of the Skywire deal broke, they announced the acquisition of the Proforma Corporation, a leading US provider of enterprise modelling solutions for enterprise architecture (EA) and business process analysis (BPA). Metastorm already operates in the EA and BPA sectors - and it is not immediately apparent what impact, if any, this will have on Metastorm's BPM (business process management/workflow) for which it is best known in the legal market. For the record, Ron Pellegrino, the president & CEO of Proforma said this about his company... "Proforma has built a strong market presence based on its ability to deliver powerful enterprise architecture, modelling and analysis capabilities that are also intuitive and usable by multiple people within an organisation - from architects to business analysts to Six Sigma Blackbelts". (We're not sure whether these are Ninja Six Sigma Blackbelts or just Common-or-Garden Six Sigma Blackbelts.) |
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