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Is your in-house legal team swamped with mounds of paperwork or drowning in the details of litigation? Do non-core functions consume more of your time and resources than crucial cases and urgent matters?
If you answered yes to these questions, you might consider adopting business process outsourcing (BPO). Why is that?
Let us satisfy your curiosity by laying out the benefits of legal process outsourcing (LPO) for your firm’s growth.
Redefining Legal Service Delivery With Outsourcing
Outsourcing legal services has become a stepping stone toward cost efficiency. BPO providers offer easy access to specialized expertise and advanced technology at hourly, monthly, or subscription-based pricing.
According to a report published in Research and Markets, the global LPO industry reached $14.29 billion in market size in 2023. The study anticipates the market to expand to $45.54 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 26.4%.
The sector encounters a high demand due to different legal reasons, such as workplace issues, domestic violence protective orders, and debt matters. This rising need for legal support urges regulatory firms to acquire the following LPO services:
- Legal research and analysis
- Technical support
- Document review and organization
- Intellectual property support
- E-discovery software management
- Litigation support
- Contract management
- Security and compliance support
- Customer service
- Data entry and legal transcription support
Five Benefits of Legal Process Outsourcing
As you explore what BPO is used for in the legal industry, you must also understand its advantages for your business. These insights assist you in developing criteria for a service provider that fits your qualifications, work strategies, and budget limits.
The knowledge also gives you a comprehensive overview of what to expect when outsourcing legal work. You can set appropriate key performance indicators (KPIs) to make smart decisions and achieve business targets. Start your effort by checking out each benefit below.
1. Decrease Operating Costs
Cutting expenses on time-consuming and non-core processes marks the first achievable advantage of LPO. Deloitte’s latest statistics reveal that 57% of surveyed executives hire BPO companies to reduce costs. This convenience pushes 64% of them to acquire outsourced legal support.
Recruiting third-party legal professionals from locations with lower labor costs leads to substantial cost savings. For instance, seeking skilled assistants from the Philippines reduces salary expenses by up to 90%.
You can temporarily hire Filipino specialists for $2.51 per hour. This fee is significantly lower than the average hourly salary of $20.85 in the United States. In addition to decreased human resources (HR) expenditures, here are other ways BPO cuts your business costs:
- Avoid investing in additional office space and utility bills.
- Prevent buying extra work equipment.
- Steer clear of costly operational delays and backlogs.
- Refrain from training new hires or full-time employees.
- Deduct employee benefits from HR capital.
- Stop spending on job ads and promotional materials.
2. Access Specialized Skills
Taking advantage of specialized skills is among the crucial benefits of legal process outsourcing. BPO providers employ subject-matter experts who know the ins and outs of the sector. Their work experience is tailored to your unique requirements.
BPO’s diverse talent pool comprises regulatory specialists capable of accomplishing tasks quickly and effectively in various practice areas. These fields include intellectual property support, contract management, and litigation assistance.
Service providers also allocate sufficient funds for continuous training and development programs. These initiatives help their workers enhance their skills and maintain excellent performance despite time zone differences.
Additionally, providers ensure their workforce is current on the latest technology, regulatory trends, and industry best practices. This up-to-date knowledge allows their employees to deliver the best solutions for any legal or operational needs. Utilizing the best legal AI software further enhances these capabilities by streamlining contract reviews and ensuring high accuracy, thus optimizing overall legal operations.
3. Optimize Legal Tech Advancements
Expect to gain access to cutting-edge technologies when exploring the benefits of legal process outsourcing. The following solutions assist your in-house and third-party teams in completing work faster and more accurately.
- Artificial intelligence (AI) tools automate repetitive and tedious tasks, including document processing and data entry. They boost workflows, reduce human errors, and help prevent employee burnout.
- Advanced document management systems facilitate cost-effective legal and case file storage, retrieval, and sharing. Their features, such as automatic document trackers and secure access controls, enable safe and smooth paperwork management.
- E-discovery solutions simplify electronic data collection, categorization, and analysis for legal proceedings. These platforms make it easy to handle big digital data without missing information during litigation or investigations.
- Cloud computing and security systems help BPO companies safely store, manage, and access data from any location. These tools employ encryption, multifactor authentication, and regular data backup features to ensure the confidentiality of sensitive legal information.
- Legal analytics platforms help third-party teams speed up case assessment, risk analysis, and decision-making. The resulting insights assist you in making informed strategic choices and optimizing your legal strategies.
- Collaborative tools enable seamless remote communication between your in-house and BPO teams. Video conferencing, instant messaging, and project management software streamline real-time workflow coordination and connection.
4. Address Fluctuating Workloads
Dealing with fluctuating workloads is among the top challenges in the regulatory segment. However, one of the benefits of legal process outsourcing is that BPO providers combine human capabilities with technological advances to accelerate work without compromising output quality.
For example, your lending company experiences periodic spikes in loan-related workloads due to the holiday season. Many people seek your loan services to purchase installment-based gadgets or home appliances.
To avoid the hassle of preparing paper-based contracts, you can hire an LPO provider to deliver a scalable workforce and smart contract technology. The vendor quickly amps up these resources to boost your loan application, reimbursement, and collection processes during the peak season.
Meanwhile, you can retain the third-party team during quieter periods to avoid adding new full-time employees. You can negotiate with your BPO partner when you need to scale down resources and adjust fees.
This outsourcing approach reduces unnecessary costs during low- or high-demand periods. Here are different ways BPO companies can help address your fluctuating workloads:
- Offer flexible contracts that ensure you only pay for the services you use.
- Deploy professionals with the necessary expertise for complex tasks.
- Send regular updates regarding work progress, related issues, and improvement areas.
- Adjust business hours to match clients’ time zones.
- Automate repetitive tasks and deliver support for self-service options.
5. Prioritize Strategic Legal Work
Given all the previous benefits of legal process outsourcing, maximizing such BPO opportunities lets your in-house unit focus on more strategic projects. This high-value work includes thorough case analysis, client representation, and strategy development.
For instance, your corporate law firm undergoes complex mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions. Your in-house team oversees these critical deals with another company, performing due diligence and strategizing to ensure success.
However, the need to handle a large volume of paperwork hinders your team from prioritizing the most pressing requirements. This is where acquiring LPO is ideal. Entrusting market research efforts, document reviews, and compliance checks to third-party workers lets your internal unit concentrate on contract drafting and negotiation.
The combination of specialized expertise and advanced tech enables the BPO team to accomplish necessary paperwork and tasks quickly and effectively. The fast delivery of market insights helps your executive team formulate a plan and close the M&A deal on time.
Can You Rely on LPO for Complex Legal Matters?
Yes, you can depend on an LPO provider for complicated regulatory matters. Although businesses commonly acquire LPOs for routine legal tasks, service providers can handle more intricate and demanding processes when approached strategically.
Expect that what BPO usually offers for front and back offices is also the same benefit you get when outsourcing core legal functions. Consider critical factors when entrusting your primary tasks to a third-party team to achieve better results. The LPO provider should have:
- Legal experts specializing in the specific area of law relevant to your complex requirements
- Advanced technologies to handle legal processes faster and more precisely
- Robust quality assurance measures, performance evaluations, compliance checks, and data security protocols to maintain the outsourced work’s integrity
- Open and centralized communication channels to ensure smooth data exchange and workflow
The Bottom Line
Working with external teams gives you various advantages, from cost reduction to task prioritization. They provide easy access to scalable experts and modern solutions without allocating much money to your non-core functions.
The specialized services that providers offer also help streamline your primary projects. As long as you take note of key considerations and find the best provider that fits your needs, your complex legal matters are safe with BPO.
Let’s connect if you want to experience the benefits of legal process outsourcing. Unity Communications leverages a flexible workforce and cutting-edge technology to help meet your urgent regulatory needs.
