Peter Baverstock is CEO of LEAP, which offers cutting edge case management systems to small law firms. LEAP entered the UK market 18 months ago with an established pedigree in Australia where it’s the biggest software provider to the conveyancing industry. Peter told Jane Common at Today’s Conveyancer why the firm is racing ahead in leaps and bounds…
What’s your background prior to joining LEAP Peter?
“I joined LEAP in 2013 and worked with them for a year prior to launch in October 2014. In June this year I’ll have been working with the legal software market for 20 years! It’s amazing how fast technology moves but that’s one of the great things about this job – it’s never dull.”
How many firms have joined LEAP since launch In the UK?
“We’re at over 450 firms now so it’s going incredibly well and that’s testament to the amount of research and development money we put into our software – over £5m a year. LEAP is well thought-out – intuitive and easy to use. And we take care of every detail, working hard to make our technology the best and most user-friendly there is.”
And what reception is the software getting from your clients?
“I go out and meet lawyers and they tell me about all the flavours of case management systems they’ve used in the past – with mediocre levels of success. When I hear about the positive change LEAP has brought to their working lives I’m over the moon.
“Our mantra is that we help lawyers who help people. Most of the firms we work with don’t have practice managers let alone IT departments, so that’s smaller, high street firms. And we’re passionate about driving efficiencies for them.
“What really makes LEAP stand out, apart from the technology, is the fact that it’s an integrated system so there’s no duplication of information and lawyers can talk directly to their clients.”
In a nutshell how does the LEAP technology work?
“Well, in conveyancing work in order for lawyers to maximise their profits they must perform as efficiently as possible. It’s all about how quickly and accurately a conveyancer can work and this is where LEAP steps in. Key functions within the software that really aid conveyancers include firstly, the ability to generate forms and documents quickly and accurately with all the matter details merged directly to the chosen document. Then there’s LEAP’s seamless integration with search providers InfoTrack, enabling lawyers to order property searches directly from the matter.
“Both functions cut down significantly on the amount of time and resources spent processing non-fee earning work.
“Also, as the system is cloud based lawyers can access their matters – and benefit from all that LEAP has to offer – on the move. People manage their working lives differently now – remotely on the train or wherever. It’s all there, at the touch of a button.”
How long does it take for someone to get online with LEAP?
“We can have a new client up and running within weeks with minimal disruption – we have some of the best data conversion services in the UK. We’re making our clients more efficient so we have to be efficient as well. We also offer all our new clients a free, professionally designed website to help generate new business.”
So that’s the first 18 months – what about the next?
“I’d like to see the very sharp growth we’ve experienced continuing and to meet lots more satisfied customers. The more lawyers we can help make money through saving time – well, that’s what we’re here for. And we’ll carry on tweaking the system and adding new options – lawyers have been crying out for a lot of our features for a long time but the technology wasn’t there. Now, with LEAP, it is.”
For more information about LEAP, log on to info.leap.co.uk
