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London, UK, March 6th 2008 – BigHand has today announced that following the implementation of its award winning digital dictation workflow system at Bermans, the Top 200 firm has completely removed all document production backlogs. Savings have been made, as it has been able to recruit more lawyers without increasing the firm's pool of secretaries. This combination of cost saving and enhanced productivity has been attributed in full to the functionality and flexibility of BigHand3 software.

Additionally, the move from tape dictation to the BigHand system has afforded the firm notable flexibility, including the introduction of a ‘night shift’ secretary, receiving and transcribing dictations at home facilitating round the clock support. One fee earner now permanently based in Scotland is able to send all dictations directly to the Manchester office. Via BigHand the firm has enhanced the provision for remote working across the board, with lawyers often submitting dictations and instructions in to the office from a number of locations.

Paul Senior, Practice Manager at Bermans, comments on the firm’s return on investment:

''It's very unusual to be able to attribute tangible business benefits directly to the implementation of a new technology, but in this case I can honestly say that the investment in BigHand Digital Dictation is the best we've ever made. We're operating much more efficiently in terms of numbers and ratios. We move work between our two sites at the click of a mouse. The clients get a better service, as we can easily see what is awaiting transcription and prioritise as needed - and staff say it makes their lives easier, so there's even been a contribution to morale.

The next 12 months will be exciting for Bermans - we're about to introduce and integrate a new document management system, which will bring about further substantial improvements in efficiency.''

Prior to implementation, Bermans undertook a comprehensive review of the BigHand and Winscribe systems. They selected BigHand based on its leading product and remote working functionality, bespoke project delivery and reputation in support.

BigHand3 was voted ‘Best of Breed System of the Year’ at the Legal Technology Awards 2008, as well as being nominated as ‘Most Customer Focused Supplier of the Year’ and ‘Best Implementation of the Year’. No other digital dictation supplier won an award.


-ENDS-

Contact:
Jo Beckwith, BigHand. Email: jo.beckwith@bighand.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7940 5946
Further information about Bermans can be found at www.bermans.co.uk