Legal Process Outsourcing: How to Find the Right Legal Transcription

Company

Outsourcing legal transcription is something legal firms do to be successful, but

success depends on choosing the right provider

The legal industry is intensely competitive, and law firms and attorneys find it quite

hard to pull on and attain profitable margins. With the workload high, law firms need

their staff to focus on the core tasks. But there are other procedural tasks involved

as well, including legal transcription and documentation. Spending time on these

tasks compromises the effort on the core processes, and the increased manpower

and resources also add to the costs. Outsourcing is the inevitable solution law firms

turn to, which is why transcription and legal services outsourcing are thriving fields

in the BPO industry.

The Growing Legal Process Outsourcing Industry

In 2014 the legal process outsourcing (LPO) industry was estimated to be worth $1

billion. And the 2015-2019 report of the Global Legal Process Outsourcing Market

reveals the likelihood of a 27.4% growth in the industry all the way up to 2019. The

trend is nothing new, and is not restricted to law firms alone. Back in 2011, research

carried out for the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards revealed that 72% of

the law firms surveyed and 43% of the surveyed corporations were either

outsourcing legal tasks or planned to do so in future.

While outsourcing legal transcription and other tasks belonging to legal practice

outsourcing is a good thing for law firms, it is important to know how to select the

right outsourcing provider. That’s where success lies.

There are quite a few factors to take into consideration:

• Turnaround Time

This is quite important, since you cannot benefit from the service rendered

unless it comes to you on time. As you know, many legal documents are

time-bound and so you must specify that you cannot relax on this

requirement. You must receive the transcribed document well ahead of when

you will need it. The turnaround time depends on the work and usually

extends up to 24 hours and even more.

• Confidentiality

Confidentiality is everything for a law firm. You would not have to explain that

to your potential outsourcing provider – they’d already know it. But you must

explore in detail what security mechanisms they have in place. Sophisticated

arrangements and written agreements must be in place for providers having

staff working offshore. The company should be able to provide you with a

written plan that reveals its method of keeping records confidential.

Encryption, SSL and VPN are the technical elements that should be

incorporated by a company. Ultimately, the security solutions must be

compatible with the requirements of your organization.

• Legal Experience and Reputation

Experience of the company in dealing with the tasks of law firms and the

experience of the provider’s typists and transcribers in legal matters help

make the outsourcing arrangement more efficient, and reduce the chances for

errors. It helps to ask other law firms you may know about the particular

service provider. Experienced providers would be well known in legal circles.

Providers having toppled deadlines and leaked information would have

significantly poor or even no reputation. It can help you make your decision

faster.

• Flexibility

Efficiency can only be experienced through flexibility. The services offered

must be scalable and customizable to the requirements of your firm. The

outsourcing arrangement has to ultimately be cost-effective and contribute to

the sustainability of your practice. The costs should be affordable.

Providers must be able to adjust document details such as a margins, font

size, layout, etc to suit your requirements. Providers offering a standard

format would not make your work easier, if that standard isn’t quite

compatible with your requirements. You may have to spend time and effort in

editing those transcribed documents as well.

• Technical Proficiency

Aptitude towards innovation and technology is essential for a legal service

provider. With security paramount and efficiency critical, the challenging and

competitive legal environment makes it essential for high tech solutions to be

employed for ensuring the aforementioned qualities. This can facilitate quick

reaction to sudden challenges.

• Mobile Device Proficiency

Mobile devices are indispensable. Their convenience makes them widespread

among attorneys who rely on them for business communication and

functioning while away from office. It would serve you better if your provider

can receive files and send transcribed documents through mobile devices as

well as tablets and laptops.

• Costs

This is one of the most important aspects of the outsourcing arrangement

that you must consider before signing up. What is the cost for providing

transcription of files? Are there any other costs involved apart from the

transcription itself? Are there infrastructural changes you need to make, and

will the entire arrangement be cost-effective in the long run for your firm?

Most importantly, are there hidden charges involved? You need to ask around

in legal circles about the provider, and if they have the habit of suspicious

dealings, you’d come to know it.

If you’ve managed to explore these factors and found that the legal transcription and

other legal services provider you’ve zeroed in on scores on these features, it should

be safe to outsource.