2019 Legal Awards

36 SME NEWS / 2019 Legal Awards , Mattersmith Limited Best IT & Outsourcing Lawyer 2019 Feb19375 Mattersmith is a legal andmanaged services business that operates a unique platform designed to support the negotiation, documentation andmanagement of contracts. We invited Founder Andrew Scott to tell us more about the firmand the solutions it has to offer. Since its inception in 2017, Mattersmith has been committed to supporting clients when advice matters and improving their operational risk management and efficiency through advanced technologies designed specifically to address the needs of legal practitioners. Thanks to Andrew’s experience of interna- tional legal practice at the highest level of IT, outsourcing and data protection work gained over nearly 30 years, the firm is able to support clients across the banking, financial services, and technology sectors. Andrew explores how the firm works to ensure excellence for every client it has the privilege of working alongside. “Giving advice is art not science and quality should never be sacrificed, but speed counts too. At Mattersmith we get under the skin of a matter, so our clients can take a view safely, and when they already know what is needed, we help them to repeat the result consistently. Our aim is to reduce the time it takes for a client to achieve the value they are seeking to achieve from a given project, transaction or workstream. “In order to provide the best possible service, we understand that we must thoroughly understand the client’s goals and the drivers that impact whether and how they are then achieved. With that established, it is possible to determine whether and, if so, how, tech- nology can make the process more adept or more productive.” Within the legal industry today, Andrew sees many exciting developments which offer Mattersmith the chance to enhance its service offering, as he explores in more detail. “In today’s legal market, competition amongst law firms remains healthy, and the trend of clients demanding more for less is set to continue. Whilst this is a threat, for firms, like Mattersmith, that are able to deliver value through the application of law tech it is an opportunity. A lot has been said about the impending disruption of tasks performed by lawyers and the loss of significant numbers of jobs caused to a greater or lesser degree by the use of technology. However, disruption and innovation are not the same – they may be linked but are not necessarily so. “Legal practice is difficult to disrupt because problems are solved through knowledge, experience, and judgment, and clients are inherently risk-averse when it comes to relying on a computer alone for that purpose. In years to come it may well be that limited robo-legal advice will be delivered, but in relation to the range of tasks that are performed by lawyers, technology will improve productivity and likely accelerate the redistribution of work between commodity and managed service providers, clients themselves, and external counsel, rather than cause a seismic decline in legal work across the board. Legal technology may be a vector of disruption, but it can also make life easier for lawyers and support new services or delivery models. For practitioners, technology is and will remain both a sword and a shield. We are very much of the view that for the foreseeable future, in all but very straightforward matters, technology that supports lawyers in their day to day prac- tice will enjoy greater uptake than software which seeks to substitute their advice. An important decision facing firms is whether to buy in technology or invest in development in-house. Lack of skills or a clear sponsor, or the nature of the firm’s financial model, may well dictate one route or the other. Mattersmith has taken the strategic decision to develop its own solutions, which we are happy to make available to clients and other law firms. We are confident in our ability to identify and develop solutions that improve the speed and productivity of our work and, by extension, the work of others.” As he looks to the future Andrew foresees even greater success for his young and flour- ishing firm, as he is proud to conclude. “Overall, at Mattersmith our aim is to grow the monthly recurring revenue we generate from fixed retainers based on solutions to the everyday needs of our clients, whether services, technology or a combination of the two. To that end, we will continue to invest in our people and our platform to ensure our continued success moving forward.” Contact Information: Company: Mattersmith Limited Name: Andrew Scott Address: Harecross, Longframlington, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE65 8AN Telephone Number: 07402 727000 Web Address: www.mattersmith.co.uk “We are confident in our ability to identify and develop solutions to use in cases that improve the speed and productivity of work.”