Who is the fairest of them all…… Part IV …. Decide the methodology of measuring quality.

Though SLA defines the level of the service and it includes the element of quality but it is very necessary that the smallest nitty gritty of measuring quality be extremely well defined. As an overseas client off-shoring legal work you need to be very sure about how you would like to measure the quality of the finished work-product that you receive from the Indian LPO. Such methodology of measuring quality must be put to test by application of such quality measurement parameters on the work of your own attorneys working in your on-shore office. This will allow you to test the feasibility of application of such methodology on any work product.

It is advisable that the demonstration of such quality measurement on the work products of foreign attorneys be provided to the senior management of the concerned LPO. As an overseas foreign client you need to make sure that your attorneys who are in charge of measuring the quality of the off-shored work have a clear understanding of such parameters as laid down in the contract.

Instances are not unknown where foreign law firms which hired contract attorneys in their own countries to act as QAs for a particular off-shored project, had a tough time because their own contract attorneys did not have a clear understanding of the agreed parameters.

Parameters of measurement of quality must be mutually acceptable by both parties to the off-shoring contract. As an LPO vendor you should insist that such parameters be made clear to you and you in turn pass on the parameters clearly to the lawyers working in your LPO.

Depending on the nature of the project the quality parameters may require a re-negotiation during the pendency of the project if the situation so demands.