Legal IT News: NextLaw Labs, RAVN, Free2Convey, Workshare, AdvoLogix, Xact Data, ILTA and more

Dentons and its technology arm NextLaw Labs are collaborating with RAVN Systems to develop a suite of technology solutions designed to help clients plan around the uncertainty created by last month’s Brexit vote.

The cognitive search engine tool can be used for Brexit-related contract reviews using RAVN’s Applied Cognitive Engine (ACE) Robot, which will review high volumes of contract documentation to identify provisions that could potentially be impacted by the UK’s secession from the EU.

Once contracts have been searched according to pre-determined “touch points” using a bespoke algorithm that has been developed by RAVN with input from Dentons’ subject matter experts, a report will be produced highlighting areas that merit further investigation and, where appropriate, giving legal advice as to the steps clients should consider.

Separately, Dentons and Nextlaw Labs are also developing a software application that automatically creates a “Brexit Action Plan” for clients based on their key areas of risk exposure. Clients will be able to log into a secure website that will ask them to select the key issues their businesses are primarily concerned with. Based on this information, an action plan will be produced that identifies concrete steps clients need to take in order to understand their exposure and plan an appropriate response.

Almost 200 law firms across England and Wales have registered as live users of Free2Convey since it announced the roll out of its integration with law firms’ case management systems (CMSs) on 28 June.

Matt Lancaster, one of the founding partners of Free2Convey said: “We have had exceptionally high levels of interest from law firms during the past few weeks and, without exception, everyone has been hugely positive about the benefits that the portal delivers. The fact that Free2Convey is free and doesn’t require any additional rekeying of data, as it integrates seamlessly with firms’ existing case management systems, are big draws. It’s also very different to systems that are already in use, as it displays the status of each solicitor or conveyancer in a chain, providing full chain view.”

Workshare has revealed a swell of customers in the Nordic region this summer joining or extending their accounts.

The firms using Workshare include: Wikborg & Rein, Simonsen Vogt Wiig and Haavind from Norway; Synch law from Sweden; Ploum Lodder Princen, and Barentskrans from the Netherland; and Castren and Snellman from Finland.

“We have always had a strong relationship with our Nordic customers. The community of Nordic CIO’s is very close and forward thinking – they have a strong network and we are excited to continue working with them to make sure Workshare is the best product possible for law firms around the world.” said Nick Thompson, Workshare’s chief revenue officer.

Birmingham law firm Sydney Mitchell has deepened its relationship with Solicitors Own Software (SOS) by signing up to SOS Connect for practice and case management.

The full service practice, which has four offices in and around the city, has been an SOS customer for many years and has now strengthened these links after replacing its incumbent case management software.

Houston-headquartered cloud-based law practice and legal matter management solutions provider AdvoLogix has entered into partnership with Carahsoft Technology Corp., the government IT solutions provider. Under the agreement, Carahsoft will distribute AdvoLogix to local, city, state, and federal government agencies to deliver the forefront of legal matter management solutions on the Salesforce App Cloud.

The AdvoLogix software-as-a-service suite enables government legal departments to improve matter management, streamline internal and external collaboration, prioritize workload, focus scarce legal capacity where needed, and simplify document and email management. Built on the Salesforce platform, AdvoLogix offers industry leading security and reliability with real-time transparency of system performance. Comprehensive mobility, extensive configuration and customization, and optional integration with thousands of add-on applications are offered to extend the solution to meet specific organizational needs.

Kansas-headquartered Xact Data Discovery (XDD) has just announced the opening of the company’s newest managed review centre in Chicago, Illinois. The centre expands XDD’s nationwide review footprint, supporting the continued growth of its managed review services in Chicago and throughout the United States.  

Smarsh, which provides cloud-based archiving solutions for compliance and e-discovery out of Portland, has partnered with secure communication platform Symphony Communication Services for enhanced archiving and supervision support.

Using The Archiving Platform from Smarsh, mutual customers can now archive, search and produce Symphony content in support of compliance and e-discovery initiatives.

Like other content in The Archiving Platform from Smarsh, communications and content on the Symphony platform retain their original appearance and format, so reviewers can easily search and assess a threaded conversation in context, with the unique characteristics of the conversation preserved.

The International Legal Technology Association, better known as ILTA, has announced that long-serving executive director Randi Mayes will step down from her position in 2017.  The organisation also announced the official launch of a formal search to identify a new leader.

Mayes, who has served the volunteer-led, staff-managed peer networking organisation since its inception, said: “It’s been extraordinarily humbling and gratifying to see the organization grow from a grassroots network to a large, international association. I’m proud of my matronly status, and I’m privileged to have witnessed the maturation of our beloved ILTA from a bumbling toddler to a highly respected adult.

The ILTA board of directors has formed a search committee to oversee the process of selecting a new executive director and retained executive search firm Vetted Solutions to coordinate the process. All inquiries regarding the position and search should be directed to Jim Zaniello at jim.zaniello@vettedsolutions.com