The legal industry is chalk-full of routine work challenges.

One of the most difficult, yet unresolved, issues involves paperwork…lots and lots of paperwork.

Lawyers tend to spend much of their time on manually reviewing several iterations of paper documents. With so much on their plate already, this increases the likelihood of tasks being forgotten, deadlines being missed, and clients being forced to wait longer than necessary to have their case matters solved.

This begs the question–how can you ensure that you have all needed information at hand without managing documents manually?

For Martin Algie, he turned to Woodpecker for the answer.

Working primarily with companies in Australia, Martin handles cases in the health and pharmaceutical sector, helping with contract drafting, negotiations, and litigation. These include procurement contracts, distribution contracts, and registration dossiers.

“There are two processes–one is reviewing and negotiating a contract. And the other is getting to the first draft of my own contract quickly and efficiently, so my clients can get their deals started.”

Adopting workflow automation to better serve client needs, faster

With Woodpecker, Martin has been able to put the power back in his clients’ hands using automation. 

“Using automation is so critical for democratizing access to legal services. I know that term is a bit overused, but so many small businesses don't get the proper legal advice and protection they should have. Now, my clients can create a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) within minutes and get a discussion started within hours.”

Currently, Martin is developing a suite of documents on his website where clients can create a shareholders agreement or a simple NDA on their own. He plans to charge a small fee to review the paperwork to give his clients some added reassurance.

Maximizing efficiency

“I run a busy practice, and in normal circumstances, without document automation, I would get client instructions in which they'd set out the requirements for the contract. From there, I'd get clarification on certain points, and then it might be one to two weeks to get them the first draft.  Now with the documents that I've automated, I can get the draft to them within an hour.”  

Documents that are more complex must be used differently, documents like procurement agreement, or “in-licensing” agreements as they are known in the pharma industry. It may not be appropriate for the client to create their own from an automated template. Automation has helped Martin get to the first draft of these documents (in addition to documents he uses regularly) quickly, allowing him to get that first draft to the client or the counterparty, sometimes weeks, and certainly days before other lawyers.

On a recent matter, the instructions the client provided lacked so much detail that he was not able to begin drafting the contract. To collect the information he needed, he sent them a link to a questionnaire that he had created in Woodpecker for Martin’s Service Agreement template. Martin realized that a discussion may have been needed eventually, but this turned out to be a very quick and effective way of progressing the matter and, what’s more, at a pace and in a way that suited the client, especially where adequate guidance is provided in the Questionnaire.

These shareable online questionnaires automatically generate your documents without you ever having to open Microsoft Word. Adjust questions as needed, send a secure link to recipients, and once the final questionnaire is submitted, the final documents and responses are delivered right to your inbox.

“Now, I can focus on much more important tasks, as well as the more enjoyable task of writing clauses that achieve a particular bespoke purpose. No more fiddling around looking for a document and performing clerical duties–find/replace–in order to get the client a product.”

Why Woodpecker

Martin had experimented with several other systems and found that they all fell short in terms of cost, capability and, importantly for Martin, ease of operation when compared to Woodpecker. 

“They were either hellishly expensive or had an impenetrable automation set up.”

Martin describes one software he tried out that created the document by way of an interaction with a bot rather than filling out a questionnaire. The idea of a bot (rther than an online questionnaire) was initially appealing; however, the complexity of setting this up for even a single document proved to be impossible. 

According to Martin, “when you’re running a busy practice, if it's that impossible, it just doesn't happen. The beauty of Woodpecker is that it’s simple. Its entry level functions are easy to use.”

Luckily, you even have the option to build complexity once you get comfortable with the technology, such as the contingent logic. 

“I just completed what I call a ‘health check’ for a service agreement using Woodpecker questionnaires and templates. Some of the contingent logic employed has six and seven steps in it, with multiple options. The client specifies whether they're the customer or the service provider, answers a few other questions referencing the contract as they go (using the extensive guidance provided in the questionnaire), and it produces a document with bespoke advice.”

Using customer feedback to drive product innovation

The simplicity of using Woodpecker’s technology is just one of several reasons Martin has been so satisfied with Woodpecker. Another reason that’s high on his list involves our customer service team.

Unlike other document automation platforms on the market, when a customer offers suggestions for adding functionality, Woodpecker’s customer support takes this feedback seriously. You can actually see your ideas reflected in the product down the road.

Traditionally product teams were the ones who would determine what the users needed. Sometimes it would take a year or two months to build something, only to find out there was never a market for it. 

Instead, Woodpecker builds viable products, releasing those features early into the wild to solicit feedback from our customers. Martin shares that he has been very pleased to see some of his ideas incorporated into Woodpecker product iterations, including our very popular client-facing questionnaires. 

Looking for document automation that works the way you work and listens when you have needs? Try Woodpecker today.

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