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Top law firm Lovells has devised innovative ways to induce
client lock-in. Some of the most innovative development work is being carried out quietly, behind the scenes, by some of the City's other large corporate firms. Lovells is one such player as evidenced by a three-year extranet development project to rival those of the industry leaders. The development team started with the most mundane functions of all - licence applications. Lovells receives thousands of requests for licence drafting each month - routine work, but with a high degree of associated liability. They set up a dedicated licence unit, staffed by four paralegals and three part-time lawyers. Using document-generation software from HotDocs, the unit was soon churning out licences at a rate of two per minute. "Instead of losing a couple of hundred pounds per licence, we now make a small profit," said property partner Robert Kidby. Forms can be filled out by applicants, drafted automatically using a HotDocs template and are sent directly to the relevant solicitor, who simply has to read, think and click his or her approval and the document is sent out automatically with a standard letter for each party. "This system cuts the transaction time to grant a lease by up to a month,
which means an extra month's rent for our client" Kidby added. |