Mumbai, March 3, 2011: The Law Society of England and Wales has chosen Tata Consultancy Services (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS), a leading IT services, business solutions and outsourcing organization as a strategic transformation partner, following a diligent process of evaluation.
TCS will work with The Law Society initially on a significant system development project, which aims to create a more effective online service for The Law Society and its members. This marks another step in TCS’ foray into the global legal services industry – a sector that can benefit tremendously from technology solutions that can improve the working environment for law firms, drive higher efficiency levels and, ultimately, their profitability.
In the UK in particular, the legal services industry is forecast to undergo material change as the Legal Services Act (LSA) 2007 comes into implementation in 2011. This act is aimed at liberalizing the legal services market and bringing the entire market under one regulatory framework by creating “Alternative Business Structures” – that will allow non-lawyers in management and ownership roles. Once the LSA comes into effect, competition is expected to increase and new entrants into the sector will necessitate better regulation and robust systems to meet their demands. “Following the successful launch of our flagship Legal Management Solution (LMS), we are committed to helping the UK legal services sector during this defining period and strengthening our capabilities as a preferred technology partner to this industry,” said AS Lakshminarayanan, VP and Head, TCS Europe.
The application to be developed by TCS will enable The Law Society to manage the changes brought on by the LSA by streamlining operations and improving efficiencies. This will be done by a systematic review of the society’s business processes, information practices and systems needs, many of which have previously comprised simplistic, fragmented and siloed solutions. The TCS application will also help the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) toward regulating not just individuals, but firms and Alternative Business Structures – by improving internal processes resulting in more effective regulation and reduced cost structures.
Commenting on the partnership, Steve Jeffree, CIO and Operations Director, The Law Society, said, “As a result of the changing nature of the society, we not only needed a platform that provided the maximum opportunity for the transformation, but also a partner with legal domain knowledge and deep competencies in application development and its implementation. TCS has the depth of expertise and wealth of supporting tools, which allow us to implement these changes and ultimately help us become an agile organization.”
About Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (TCS)
Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, business solutions and outsourcing organization that delivers real results to global businesses, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT and IT-enabled services delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model™ (GNDM™), recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata group, India’s largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has over 186,500 of the world’s best-trained IT consultants in 42 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of over US $6.3 billion for fiscal year ended March 31, 2010 and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India. For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com.
About The Law Society
The Law Society and the Solicitors Regulation Authority are collectively known as The Law Society.
The Law Society
The Law Society represents solicitors in England and Wales. From negotiating with and lobbying the profession's regulators, government and others, to offering training and advice, The Law Society helps, protects and promotes solicitors across England and Wales.
Solicitors Regulation Authority
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) deals with all regulatory and disciplinary matters and sets, monitors and enforces standards for solicitors across England and Wales. Formerly known as the Law Society Regulation Board, it acts solely in the public interest.
TCS Media Contacts:
Global:
Email: pradipta.bagchi@tcs.com
Phone: +91 22 6778 9999
India:
Email: ashish.babu@tcs.com
Phone: +91 22 6778 9077
USA / Canada:
Email: m.mccabe@tcs.com
Phone: +1 646 313 4594
UK:
Email : priyanka.mehta@tcs.com
Phone: +44 207 245 1394
Europe:
Email: abhinav.kumar@tcs.com
Phone: +32 22821927
Law Society Group Contacts:
Head of Media and Public Relations: gemma.buxton@lawsociety.org.uk | Phone: +44 20 7320 5811
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