We want to be recognised as lawyers who are imaginative with a highly developed commercial
sense. To achieve this we must ensure that our service meets expectation and ensures your matters
are managed correctly. For more information about how we work please contact Jackie Reiss.
Appropriate Fee-Earner
A Collyer Bristow client partner on your team will delegate work (with your knowledge) to
fee-earners in International firms, according to the expertise required, leaving them the time to
supervise and manage the relationship. You would always be made aware and have CV details of those
acting on your behalf. Continuing reviews take place when critical milestones are reached, e.g.
stages in Dispute Resolution and special events such as settlement negotiations. At each review
stage, a plan of action would be proposed and agreed at no cost to yourselves.
Our Intranet based skills directory enables us to identify key lawyers from any of our
International firms who match any requirements you may have.
Clarification of Instructions
Upon receipt of any instruction, partners within your dedicated team will clarify instructions
with you.
Benchmarking/Auditing
We work with many of our clients on benchmarking/auditing exercises that are mutually beneficial
and we encourage you to discuss this with us, particularly for International work.
Response Time
In addition to our general client protocols we are used to working to specific service levels
and have in place agreed standards with a number of our International partners, for example:
- Same day acknowledgement of instructions
- Pre-agreed timescales to reply to correspondence
- Same day telephone call responses
- Pre notice of any anticipated slippage in previously agreed timescales with a new proposed
deadline
- Defined intervals for update reports
- Agreed intervals for client reviews
- We recognise the need to be flexible as clients requirements differ. We are very happy to
discuss this with you.
Helping Clients Budget Costs
With International work it is essential that quotations be given for all instructions, including
breakdowns of each stage and the costs involved in taking the matter forward. We keep fees and fee
estimates constantly under review and always try to be realistic in estimate fees for complex
transactions.
Recognising that clients need to be kept in the picture and that their individual requirements
may differ a style and frequency of reporting on both financial and transaction aspects will be
adapted to meet your specific requirements.
Accuracy of Material and Documents - Accountability
We employ a professional support lawyer to assist fee-earners in the preparation of documents
and to ensure that our national/International precedent systems reflects current laws and practice.
We also have proofreaders, electronic spell-check is on e-based systems to ensure all our lawyers
have access to regular reviewed precedents and other documentation.
We have a firmwide standard house style for all documentation which is closely monitored by our
Word Processing Department.
Overall Presentation Quality/Document Accuracy
We are judged by the quality of our results and products produced. We expect to send out
products which are "right". Often our clients like their "house style" to be adopted in an
appropriate situation which we usually can accommodate.
Client Relationship Management
Making sure that you, the client, is kept in the loop on all matters is particularly important
on International work. As consumers you all know how annoyed you are when you receive shoddy
service dealt out by someone who does not care whether you are happy or not.
You know how important it is to get it right, but you must also be aware how difficult it is to
achieve real client satisfaction in everything you do. Client Relationship Management/Client Care
is our straightforward way to achieve this and we have implemented a firmwide approach committing
many hours of partner time in the last year to managing relationships.
The purpose of our programme is to ensure regular communication with clients and to obtain
candid feedback on a wide range of service related issues including quality, resourcing,
communication, cost and commercial understanding. At the same time, we use the review to work with
our clients in planning for future legal requirements by understanding their commercial objectives
and business needs.