Ymijs system passes the acid test

INFOTECH Alison Laferla reports

City firm Herbert Smith is to install an Ymijs litigation support system, RKYV, after successfully testing the product in a recent case.

The firm spent about 18 months choosing the system, and decided on RKYV after using it in a large case recently. The system allowed lawyers to carry all the relevant documents - over 15,000 - to the case in a single computer.

Herbert Smith partner Nick Gardner said: "We are convinced that this is an important step in the management of large-scale litigation.

"Application of technology in this way will result in a more efficient service for our clients and is an indispensable tool

in document intensive cases.

"It is also entirely consistent with the thrust of Lord Woolf's proposals which emphasise the benefits technology can bring in the conduct of litigation."

The system is currently being installed in Herbert Smith's London office and is expected to be installed in its Hong Kong office soon.

RKYV allows documents to be scanned and stored electronically, and then incorporated into a database which can be indexed and searched. This means that time-consuming tasks, such as production of formal lists of documents, can be automated.

Harry Anderson, managing partner in the litigation department, said: "There have been several of these systems around for a bit, but it's really only in the last year or two that they have been getting good.

"Now I think litigation support systems will make a significant difference to the running of cases. Firms that take litigation seriously ought to have them."