In the fast-paced and highly demanding legal landscape, staying ahead requires more than just expertise and experience. It calls for efficient utilization of resources and strategic decision-making.
One area where law firms and legal departments are increasingly turning to optimize their operations is to outsource legal research. This innovative practice enables legal professionals to tap into specialized expertise, enhance efficiency and allocate resources strategically, all while maintaining a sharp focus on their core legal work.
We uncover the transformative potential of outsourcing legal research and explore how it can empower legal professionals to focus on what truly matters—providing exceptional legal services, improving ROI and delivering optimal outcomes for their clients.
What Is Outsourcing Legal Research?
Outsourced legal research refers to the practice of hiring external professionals or companies to conduct legal research tasks on behalf of a law firm.
It’s just like having an in-house legal research team of fact-checkers, paralegals or legal assistants, only your legal team is off-site.
Legal research is a critical component of the legal profession, involving the investigation and analysis of legal issues, precedents and statutes to support legal arguments and decisions.
By outsourcing legal research, law firms and legal departments can access specialized expertise, reduce costs and increase efficiency.
Related: Paralegal Outsourcing Services: Cost-Effective Support for Law Firms
Examples of Legal Research Outsourcing Services
Some examples of common outsourced research can include conducting case law research, legislative research and regulatory research to support legal arguments, inform legal strategies and ensure compliance.
Why Would a Law Firm Outsource Legal Research?
Save Money
Outsourcing legal research is cost efficient for law firms. Without the need to pay employee overhead or other costs associated with expanding your practice, law firms save money by outsourcing.
You can skip administration fees, added office expenses or any other unnecessary costs. Plus, outsourcing legal research can help law firms and legal departments manage workloads during peak periods, without having to hire additional full-time staff—reducing staffing costs.
External providers can often complete research tasks more efficiently and at a lower cost than in-house staff.
Save Time
Need an expert for a specialized case but don’t need them on your team full time? Outsourcing legal research allows law firms to access specialized expertise and experience in specific areas of law, which can save time.
Research can be time consuming. Legal support can increase efficiency by allowing law firms to delegate research tasks to external providers, freeing up time for lawyers to focus on other critical legal work.
Scalability Made Easy
Outsourcing support staff allows law firms to scale their research capacity up or down as needed, without having to hire or fire staff.
During peak periods, external resources can provide additional capacity to handle the increased workload, then during slow periods, law firms can reduce their research needs without having to bear the cost of staff salaries and benefits.
Access to Specialized Expertise
Outsourced legal support allows law firms to access specialized expertise and experience in specific areas of law.
Legal research professionals are often highly trained and experienced in legal research methods, and they can quickly identify relevant cases, statutes and regulations, and apply them to the specific legal issue at hand.
With outsourced legal office staff, you’re able to access fully-vetted legal support staff available on your team’s schedule, in your time zone, and have several years of real-world experience to help take your business to the next level.
How to Start Outsourcing Legal Research
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- Assess your research needs: Determine the specific legal research tasks or projects you are considering outsourcing. Identify the areas of law, types of research and volume of work that you would like to delegate to an external provider.
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- Research potential outsourcing providers: Look for reputable legal research providers that specialize in the type of research you require. Consider their experience, expertise, track record, client reviews and the range of services they offer. Make sure they’re in your time zone and research customer reviews or testimonials.
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- Define your requirements: Clearly outline your expectations, project scope and desired outcomes. Prepare a detailed brief that includes specific research questions, legal issues and any relevant guidelines or preferences you have.
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- Choose the Right Outsourcing Partner: Be sure to do your research so you find the right partner and don’t overpay for talent or underpay for lower quality services. Finding the best fit is all about transparency.
Related: A Guide To Using A Virtual Legal Assistants: Enhancing Productivity and Flexibility
Best Practices for Outsourcing Legal Research
Clearly Define Research Objectives
Clearly communicate the research objectives and scope to the outsourced team. Provide specific details on the legal issues, jurisdictions, sources and any specific requirements or constraints.
Choose A Reputable Provider
Research and select a reputable outsourcing provider with expertise in legal research. Consider their experience, track record, client testimonials and the qualifications of their legal research team.
Quality Control
Implement quality control measures to review the research output. This can include conducting internal reviews, establishing a feedback loop with the outsourced team and setting up a process to address any questions or concerns.
Need Better Legal Research on Your Terms?
Your law firm is growing, but you want to be smart about the way you do it. At Solvo, we can help. Avoid exorbitant labor expenses, while you take advantage of all-in costs with zero overhead. Plus, you’ll get a 30-day rolling contract with no cancellation fee. We’re experts at hiring qualified talent, and when working with us, you won’t have to worry about rigid labor laws, hiring the right support staff and more. Stop struggling and start scaling with us.
