Best Practices: Engaging in Legal Process Outsourcing

Key Considerations

Financial Health

An LPO provider should be financially stable, so it

won’t go out of business mid-project. Evaluating fi-

nancial health for public firms is relatively simple:

information and analysis are easily found online.

Evaluating boutique providers requires a bit more

due diligence to determine financial viability.

Security

Legal departments that decide to outsource legal work need to be assured that their information will be secure when in the hands of an LPO

provider. Unfortunately, there may still be LPO providers that do not segregate data by client or have employees separated based on the client for which they are rendering services. Ask your LPO provider about its security practices, including password protection procedures, and make sure that you feel comfortable with your data in the hands of the LPO provider.

Business ExpertiseThe best LPO providers understand your business: for example, the regulatory climate for healthcare is substantially different than that of the technol-ogy industry. Find out how much experience the LPO provider has in your industry in particular.

best practices | may 2014

• Best Practices

Legal departments are facing the same challenge as the rest of the enterprise: how to become more lean and efficient while managing increasing responsibilities. General counsel are under tremendous pressure to control legal budgets that have either remained the same or decreased throughout the past few years. The current legal landscape, which includes new regulations, new technology platforms and mounting expectations from senior leadership, paves the way for legal process outsourcing (LPO) providers to deliver sophisticated support to enterprise legal departments.

The LPO industry has expanded dramatically in recent years as the number of LPO firms has grown. Today, services are delivered from LPOs with staff in the United States, Philippines, South America, Canada and England, amongst other locations, and the players have expanded from small boutique providers to global consulting, business process outsourcing and technology firms.

But as new players enter the market and existing players mature in their capabilities, it is more important than ever to select an LPO provider best suited to your needs.

Training

In the pursuit of cost reduction, it is easy to overlook training. LPO providers should em-ploy resources trained in the common law legal system and western jurisprudence. Projects in the United States should be staffed by lawyers who have passed a state bar exam. Even in offshore projects, LPO providers need to ensure that their teams are well-trained in the specific practices that may be part of your scope, for example, the various stages of a patent process.

Flexible Staffing Models

The LPO service model can be structured by staff-ing resources offshore, onshore or onsite at client facilities, or as a combination of these staffing models. Given the global nature of the modern workforce, an LPO provider must be able to offer its clients the flexibility to choose both onshore and offshore staffing alternatives.

Locations

As the LPO industry matures, India remains a top choice for delivery of LPO services. India works well as an LPO delivery location due to its use of the common law legal system, proficient use of the English language and the ability to scale resources up or down due to India’s large talent pool. As a result, delivery teams in India can integrate easily into the operations of a corporate legal depart-ment with minimal learning curves

Final Thoughts - What Makes a Successful LPO/Client Relationship

The key to achieving a successful LPO-client relationship is transparency. In-house lawyers are sophisticated and demanding clients who have carefully deliberated the choice to outsource legal work. They must have confidence that the team providing legal support services is equipped with the relevant skillset and has developed sound processes to execute the project. Likewise, the client should clearly communicate the scope, needs, and expectations from the outset, and both parties should engage in ongoing dialogue. An upfront investment in clear goals will pave the way for a productive relationship.

About Cognizant

Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) is a leading provider of information technology, consulting, and business process out-sourcing services, dedicated to helping the world’s leading companies build stronger businesses. Headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey (U.S.), Cognizant combines a passion for client satisfaction, technology innovation, deep industry and business process expertise, and a global, collaborative workforce that embodies the future of work. With over 50 delivery centers worldwide and approximately 164,300 employees as of June 30, 2013, Cognizant is a member of the NASDAQ-100, the S&P 500, the Forbes Global 2000, and the Fortune 500 and is ranked among the top performing and fastest growing companies in the world. Visit us online at www.cognizant.com or follow us on Twitter: Cognizant.

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