Legal Technology Journal

Sam Clark, business continuity manager at Clifford Chance, and Capgen’s Jacqueline Austin-Lavery describe a document capture project driven by the firm’s move to Canary Wharf, which has since become part of the firm’s everyday business.

Clifford Chance’s document capture project was originally driven by the logistics of the move to new purpose-built offices in Canary Wharf in 2004. Early in planning for the move, it was obvious that it might take several months to move all existing documents and filing into the new offices and this would seriously disrupt the everyday workings of the business.

It was particularly important to avoid undue interruption to the firm’s clients. Managers were aware that not only would this compromise day-to-day efficiency, but it carried risks in terms of affecting clients’ perception of the quality of service received. Themove timetable was ambitious and it was vital it was not delayed.

Transferring the information

Part of the logistical challenge was the compressed time frame for the move, along with the sheer bulk of paper involved. ‘A key impediment was the amount of moving we could do while the premises were being fitted out. So the head of business services and facilities management brokered to restrict each person to four move boxes,’ explains business continuity manager, Sam Clark. ‘This meant a significant paper-reduction exercise for everyone. However, lawyers needed to retain easy access to both historic documents and those relating to their recent work. As a result, not only were their shelves full, but the contents would rarely fit into four boxes! Furthermore, lawyers would need to access their files during the move. If a client called to discuss a particular point in a document, it would not have been acceptable to say a file was buried out of reach somewhere in the move process. The obvious solution was a large-scale move to online documentation – scanning everything into an online store.’

The first step was to reduce the workload as far as possible by categorising all the paper files and finding them suitable ‘destinations’ during the move process. Each file would either go into an individual’s move box quota or be stored permanently offsite. A large yet niche body of documents resided within lawyers transactional bibles or ‘bound volumes’ and for these files it was decided that they be imaged and held online. This meant auditing all lawyers’ rooms and – crucially – persuading them to commit their files to electronic imaging. The premise was that thereafter they would have access to their collective information electronically.

Planning Project Exodus

For those files being imaged and held online, the next step was to scan and categorise the documents. Even after a previous 18-month paper reduction exercise, this was an immense task as close to 7 million pages were designated for scanning. Although the planning for this seemed in some ways to be similar to moving everything over to Canary Wharf, this project offered far more control and was limited by fewer time constraints.

A suitable partner was found in Ikon Imaging Services to handle the scanning and indexing and Project Exodus commenced. A definitive list of all files to be processed was created and held on the firm’s archives database. Bar codes were used to track the movement of files between the Clifford Chance offices and Ikon’s document capture centre in Slough.

Virtualising bound volumes

Although Clifford Chance had a document management system based on a Hummingbird platform, this project uniquely sought to enable transactional documents to be made available via an online information store, which was developed in-house. Accessible via any web browser, so long as the requisite ID and password is used. Access to the web store can be applied at an individual document or file level.

A critical part of the project was the creation of an online index reflecting the existing order of documents with the aim of providing quick access to the key documents in each deal. ‘For example you could have ten documents tabbed up to virtualise the presentation of the data,’ explains Clark. ‘We developed our existing client facing web application (CliffordChanceConnect), so clients could see the same online view of the documents the lawyers were using, albeit restricted to authorised users.

Clark outlines the process. ‘We took hard copy, profiled the object of the file, scanned it into portable document format (PDF), applied optical character recognition (OCR), and uploaded it to our web store. The process converted the scanned image into a profile or text searchable file, so from a knowledge management perspective it became possible to complete keyword searches over the content of documents or indeed search the profile of the file. You can’t do that with hard copy. If you image the content, you can search for a word or phrase and find all the references. So our knowledge management was rapidly enhanced.’

Crucially bound volumes were also ‘profiled’ by which organisations were involved – clients, counterparties, etc – and by practice area, work type and key features. So it became possible to search the web store by client name, practice area or work type, etc.

Setting up the web store

The scanned documents are held on a web store, which is separate from the document management system. As Clark explains, this stand-alone system provides highly controlled, auditable access to valuable information and knowledge resources – and offers additional security and resilience. ‘With a web store, you get a similar experience as you would with a CD, yet you can control and audit access as well as offer comments on documents to all,’ he says. ‘The web store doesn’t rely on physical components so there’s no issues relating to lost or degraded document pages, access to a CD drive, and so on. The purpose of Project Exodus was to capture the high-value documentation that needed to be moved so lawyers would have rapid access to it throughout the move process, wherever they happened to be working.’

A major benefit of the web store was that it facilitated knowledge sharing across the global business without the reliance on hard copy. ‘The advantage of scanning the information into a web store is that you can broaden out your knowledge by client or by product type to a far wider audience. So everyone in the organisation can learn from its collective experience whilst controlling and auditing access appropriately,’ observes Clark.

Business benefits

The project presented a clear business case, the key elements of which are outlined in the following paragraphs:

• Addressing different stakeholder requirements The business case for the project was based on the interests of several groups of stakeholders. Those managing the office move wanted everything – including files and documents – moved efficiently as possible; the lawyers wanted enduring immediate access to their information; and the organisation wanted to grow its knowledge management and sharing capability.
• Controlling costs Another key objective was to control operating costs by making the best use of expensive office space. The document capture project reduced the amount of space used to store files on site. As Clark explains, regulations limit document destruction, but if hard copy is not used on a regular basis, it can be stored offsite. This also reduces the risk to important documents which can be stored in a secure databased environment. ‘People working on the same deal would borrow files from colleagues’ shelves and forget to return them. So there used to be e-mails going around asking whether anyone had seen a particular project file. People would also photocopy documents several times. All this added to production costs whereas imaging once and sharing with many, provides a more efficient and consistent process,’ he says. ‘As well as scanning hard copy, documents can also be uploaded into the web store direct from the document management system. In fact, any electronic file can be uploaded.’
• Providing online access to documents Building the web store enabled the firm to enhance its service by giving clients online access to documents via the internet. This reduces production costs and enables clients and lawyers to access the same documents simultaneously. It could also potentially reduce printing, but as Clark observes, this suggests that lawyers and clients look at documents exclusively online, when they may still prefer hard copy on occasion. Online access supports remote and mobile working, which is increasingly prevalent among lawyers and their clients.
• Improving response speed and client service Greater and quicker global access to transactional documents facilitates knowledge sharing across the business, supporting client service. A searchable archive supports business development as access to similar matters completed elsewhere in the business helps increase response speed.
• Reducing risksClark underlines other key benefits around risk management and business continuity. ‘Document access can be tightly controlled whilst there is less risk to the firm’s knowledge resources if documents are held in the web store. Events such as a fire could ruin or deny access to lawyers’ files. It needn’t be an issue with your own premises, law firms are impacted by transport problems such as strikes or events in neighbouring buildings – web-based sources don’t suffer from these disruptions.’

Business as usual

Efficiency and consistency in the project were critical success factors. ‘Capgen refined the whole procedure as they had invested heavily in developing the imaging software and processes,’ says Clark. ‘We outsourced the initial imaging project to Ikon, but following the move, it was decided to bring the process in-house and shift it from a bulk project to an everyday business process – a “lite” process. An in-house imaging centre was created and internal staff were trained by Capgen in the use of the software and process design. The imaging team is now part of our document service centre handling an average of 35,000 images a week. There have been subsequent discussions about adding mechanisms to the web store to bulk print files or burn them to CD, so that different formats could be offered to clients whilst taking advantage of an underlying core efficient process.’

Lessons learned

Clark highlights some of the lessons learned from the original document capture project. ‘It’s important not to regard a move project solely as a logistics exercise in shifting people and equipment from one location to another; there are other opportunities such as improving knowledge or risk management strategies,’ he observes.

Document imaging has also facilitated relocation exercises in other Clifford Chance offices as well as protecting valuable information and know-how. ‘People naturally consider hard copy as more tangible, but not only is it paper heavy, but hard copy degrades,’ says Clark. ‘If you scan documents, you can always read or print a fresh copy. People also tear pages out of files, but if you print one page from a document in the web store, you don’t leave the original with a page missing, so document imaging helps to enhance the security and integrity of important documentation.’

A consistent process does not reflect a one-size-fits-all approach. ‘It’s important to recognise that certain work types are paper heavy,’ says Clark. ‘For instance, if you’re a mergers and acquisitions lawyer, at the end of a deal you can scan all the key documents in to the web store and move on, but if you’re a real estate lawyer or litigator, your team’s access to information may be best based on hard copy, albeit at defined stages.’ ‘Changing processes and systems also entails a culture change. In this case success meant persuading lawyers to be part of an enhanced knowledge-sharing process. This needs to be supported by a reward system that recognises knowledge sharing,’ adds Clark. ‘Ultimately it is to the benefit of clients.’ Another critical business benefit of ongoing document capture relates to the fact that lawyers are moving firms more than ever before. A capture process that operates day in, day out supports the firm’s strategy by protecting it from the risk of losing knowledge when key people leave the firm and ensuring continuity of information and expertise to lawyers and clients.