Success Stories
Case: 
Gallagher Sharp, Attorneys
Gallagher Sharp is a trial and business practice firm focused on the defense of civil claims and lawsuits for corporations, insurance companies and their policy holders. The firm’s areas of experience include general litigation, business and employment, insurance, transportation, professional liability, product liability, mass torts and appellate law.
Challenges
- Different filing systems made it increasingly difficult to leverage firm knowledge
- E-mail and externally generated documents were stored separately from related matter content, impairing document retrieval efficiencies
- Lawyers needed to be able to access complete matter-related e-mail and other content in a unified matter file
Benefits of Using Interwoven
- An electronic matter file helps lawyers maximize the value of firm content, expertise, and best practices
- A unified content environment aids efficient file handling and simplifies e-discovery
- An automated new matter opening process streamlines the assignment of cases and the creation of a structured electronic matter file
Synopsis
Gallagher Sharp has long relied on Interwoven WorkSite as a definitive platform for leveraging information assets and maximizing staff productivity. Says Associate Mark Turner, “Interwoven WorkSite keeps us from having to reinvent the wheel all the time. We simply look in the repository to see what kind of work has already been done on a subject; it gives us a headstart on the matter at hand."
After nearly a decade on WorkSite, Gallagher Sharp found that it was time to upgrade its filing practices. As its database grew larger, inconsistencies in manual document profiling were making it more difficult to find items even within a single matter. “You could search by matter number and get 5,000 hits; on the other hand, more precise searches might miss items that had been filed using different terms,” recalls Turner. Finding similar cases to re-use their content and expertise required multiple searches.
“We felt that a structure and metadata provided by an electronic matter file would help our attorneys and paralegals find things more quickly.” By updating its WorkSite implementation from a traditional document model to an electronic matter file, the firm could realize the benefits of leading-edge best practices for legal technology while continuing to leverage its existing Interwoven investment.
Upgrading to an Electronic Matter File
Gallagher Sharp worked with Interwoven partner Smart Solutions, Inc. (www.smartcollabs.com) to roll out electronic matter files across the firm, organizing all matter-related content into a standardized folder structure within dedicated matter workspaces. Smart Solutions also helped the firm create a workflow for assigning new cases to a practice group and generate the appropriate workspace, accelerating the new matter opening process. Workspaces were also created for internal departments such as accounting, marketing, and docket. “We’re getting every group and every document onto WorkSite so there’s a simple way to organize and locate any type of information the firm deals with,” says Bob Madden of Smart Solutions.
“As Interwoven WorkSite’s electronic matter file helps us become more effective in leveraging our firm information, that efficiency translates into money saved for our clients, and time we can dedicate to other aspects of the case. It’s a real win-win.” —Mark Turner
Maximize the Value of Firm Information Assets
“The ability to have an entire case file in front of you instead of having to do multiple searches in multiple systems, and having it all indexed by group, is extremely effective for organizing and staying on top of a file,” reports Turner. “Beyond that, WorkSite helps our lawyers leverage their colleagues’ existing research and knowledge for current matters, and draw on our firm’s best expertise and best practices in everything we do.”
Pre-defined folders for each matter ensure correct and consistent filing by attorneys and staff. “In the past, the same type of content might end up in three or four different places,” says Turner. “Now, if you’re looking for a particular interrogatory or an idea of how to phrase something, you can immediately go directly to the discovery folders in a variety of cases, instead of having to figure out how the documents were labeled and stored.” As WorkSite’s electronic matter file helps us become more effective in leveraging our firm information, that efficiency translates into money saved for our clients, and time we can dedicate to other aspects of the case. It’s a real win-win.”