Pinsents seals Red Star deal on Internet

Pinsent Curtis partners have joined the ranks of Internet surfers after becoming what is thought to be the first law firm to use the Internet in a corporate deal.

A team led by head of commercial John Pratt turned to the Internet to complete documentation for the management buy-out of parcel firm Red Star from British Rail.

Pratt said: "It's certainly the first time we've used it. I believe it's the first time any firm has used the Internet to send documents. It was an eye-opener for us. We will certainly be using it again in similar circumstances."

The firm was forced to use the Internet when it had only one day to review hundreds of documents.

The system allowed papers relating to agreements between Pinsents' client, the management team, and Red Star and 11 train service operators to be corrected on screen within minutes of entering the conditional sale agreement - deadline for the deal's first phase.

Four partners, Pratt, Stephen Brown (property), Leon Flavell (corporate) and Glynn Rylands (pensions), led a team of five assistants and 10 trainees.