How to Achieve Your Law Firm’s ROI in Online Research Services

08
Dec
2014

Donna Terjesen

There are two groups of law firms being rewarded by the market: go-to firms whose clients are returning to a strong, established brand and firms which are adapting their model to create a more client-driven, client-centric organization by demonstrating high-level efficiencies and driving value to the delivery of legal services.  Some firms pursue both strategies, some one of the strategies, some neither.

Law firms’ value lies in the knowledge of the law and so is the primary target for driving value to the client. More to the point, today’s attorneys require access and mastery of a variety of types of knowledge extending beyond legal expertise in order to serve as high value business advisors to clients or business managers of their departments, and are persistently tapped to perform at high levels using the most innovative knowledge platforms. 

However, the landscape of "knowledge" is in rapid change and driven by proliferating advancements in technology—specifically, the law firm library is no longer a “place” and the librarians who staff them not “keepers of books.”  

The questions law firms are struggling with is whether or not their library is structured appropriately in order to manage the pivotal knowledge content which meets the newer demands of today’s attorneys as well as strategic purchasing practices which achieve the firm’s ROI.  Law firm management executives are challenged by library expenses as this expense ranks among the top fourth or fifth costs for a law firm—coupled with the fact that client push back on the research services platforms are now a high priced cost of doing business in the 21st century.  

The game has changed because the market has shifted from two major vendors –LexisNexis and Westlaw--to several new entrant, niche vendors.  There is BloombergBNA, for instance, which is showing a commitment in developing a dynamic interface with a mix of strategic legal and business content.  Their message is fresh and innovative, speaking to needs of the practitioner in this changing environment. Fastcase, Loislaw and Google Scholar present an opportunity for attorneys and firms to find cheaper or no cost options for researching primary law. 

Online vendors are all promoting their versions of “Just in Time” solutions promising a way to provide attorneys with turnkey and actionable knowledge in order to compete in the competitive marketplace and prove to their clients a high level of expertise and competency.  Rightsizing or reducing library research costs are problematic as online vendor negotiations present the complexities of the shifting vendor marketplace.  

These newer innovative technologies and online vendors offering similar services often result in market confusion and fragmented purchasing processes, causing redundant services and even higher costs to the firm.  Similarly, as the market continues to favor mergers, purchasing decisions and vendor consolidation or expansion become a strategic, long term decision as well.

The first step in purchasing research services is for firm leaders to understand the law firms’ value proposition and pricing considerations. Taking this approach will dramatically change old buying patterns and will formulate new standards and criteria. The best mixes of information resources are those that provide the firm with continued value, provide innovation platforms, mobile access, and unique content to support the research and growing practice needs of each attorney end user.  

Buying considerations should also include strategic administrative departments and executive level management.  The socialization between all parties will support an internal alliance and will be instrumental if a change in usage preferences and patterns is an end result of the project. Deploying a methodical and structured project approach will streamline the process and provide a deliberate strategy.  

Engaging in an open RFP process, while daunting, can ensure the firm is contracting for the most cost effective mix of resources from one or more vendors by educating the firm leadership, obtaining the most accurate market information, clearly defining the attorney end-users’ and practice area needs, eliminating redundancies—and driving immediate savings to the bottom-line.

Here’s an example.  An AM Law 50 firm we recently worked with VIS and engaged an RFP for their online research services.  This firm is both a go-to, strong-brand firm, as well as a firm leading the edge of adapting their business model to the client-centric shifts in the market.  The firm’s vendor contract was up for renewal, and the leadership seized the opportunity to take an unbiased view as to which online service could provide not only the best content overall, but which would be most beneficial to their end users in the most cost effective manner—thereby improving services to its clients.

After reviewing the existing online research service contracts, identifying research needs, evaluating other vendor online research services and tools, developing an RFP process with selected vendors, analyzing the RFP responses and making recommendations as to the contract and related offerings, and facilitating contract negotiations with the selected vendor or vendors—the firm was able to capture six figure savings while allowing for expansion of the firm’s other research providers.

What is remarkable is not just that the firm captured these substantial savings within the first 12 months of the new contract period, but the firm was able to identify the end-users’ preferences and deliver the most efficient and potent set of tools for their attorneys.  These kinds of savings are imperative, but more so is the ethos of efficiency, eliminating redundancies, empowering attorney end-users—and, of course, succeeding in the ultimate goal of driving value.