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Ambition breeds success for specialist IT law firm [Birmingham Post (England)](Birmingham Post (England) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) AS a niche law firm set on growth, Technology Law Alliance is going from strength to strength and for each of the last four years, the firm has been consistently recognised as the top performer in its sector when it comes to advising businesses on their IT and outsourcing contracts. Founded in the Midlands in 2003 by former Wragges lawyers, Jagvinder Kang and Stephen Ollerenshaw, the Technology Law Alliance team has grown steadily - pursuing its vision to become the country's leading firm of technology law specialists. The firm has now been consistently ranked as a 'Tier One' provider of technology law services by Legal 500, and on a par with the specialist teams at 'Magic Circle' law firms in London. Kang and Ollerenshaw have also been consistently recognised in the Legal 500's elite 'Leading Individuals' list of lawyers in the UK, with 2014 seeing them standing tall as the only 2 recognised practitioners in this list for IT and telecoms contract work in the whole of the West Midlands. From its earliest days, the firm's business model has been based on being different and focussing on excellent client service. Jagvinder Kang, one of the founding Directors at Technology Law Alliance, says: "We set out to shake up the legal market by providing legal services with a much greater client focus. "We knew clients would benefit from having senior lawyers undertake their work, rather than having an army of junior lawyers led by a single partner imposed upon them, which is the traditional offering of most non-specialist firms. "When it comes to negotiating strategic IT contracts and closing deals quickly, throwing legal manpower at the job rarely works out for the best. It is far better to use experienced technology law professionals who work on similar contracts day in and day out." It is this approach which has seen the firm work alongside the in- house legal teams of large corporates. David Howitt, Head of Legal of regional heavyweight, Xoserve, comments: "We have valued Technology Law Alliance's sector knowledge, legal expertise and pragmatism, as a genuine extension to our in-house legal team." Of course, Technology Law Alliance knew when it launched over 10 years ago that growing market share and winning kudos in a highly- competitive legal services marketplace was not going to be straightforward even for a specialist team. "We knew it wouldn't be easy at first but we also knew that if we could prove ourselves on the toughest jobs, our reputation would speak for itself," adds Kang. Since then, the firm has had the opportunity to demonstrate this entrepreneurial spirit time and time again. One such opportunity came when the firm was selected to represent a large multinational in respect of a multimillion pound Cloud computing contract. The execution of the deal involved parallel negotiations with the General Counsel of a NASDAQ-listed US corporate as well as the company's European Head of Legal and the deal completed successfully in the space of just a few weeks. It is this dedication to deliver that has led to the firm's co- founders being recognised as 'Ambassadors of Enterprise' in the West Midlands. Over the years, the firm has significantly strengthened its team with some high-calibre Director appointments, including Gavin Wakefield, who was formerly UK Head of Legal for the global IT services provider, Capgemini UK plc. Jeremy Newton, a former Partner at international law firm, Nabarro, also joined the firm as a Director. Stephen Ollerenshaw comments: "The firm's strength is its people and we have been fortunate enough to be in a position to have some highly-talented people to assist our growth. This has enabled us to expand our client list to include major UK and international corporates and a host of IT services companies. "In today's marketplace, businesses are looking for pragmatic, commercial advice and they want it delivered in a cost-effective way by people with the right combination of expertise and experience. "This is part of our vision for delivering specialist legal services that will enable businesses to grow and realise their potential." Having advised on billions of pounds of technology deals since starting up in 2003, the firm has worked across a wide variety of industry sectors. This involvement means that most of the UK population are probably already using at least one technology-related service where the firm has been involved in the contractual arrangements involving that service. Ollerenshaw adds: "Technology is increasingly prevalent in every industry sector as businesses seek to do things more efficiently or leverage owned data in more creative ways. In recent years, we have certainly noticed that our team of specialists have been called upon to advise in industries as diverse as the automotive, banking, insurance, entertainment, retail, pharmaceutical, energy and logistics sectors." For businesses operating in sectors where available technologies are multiplying rapidly, it can be especially difficult for businesses to make the right choices when it comes to outsourcing specialist IT and telecoms services - everything from moving data to the Cloud to implementing offshore services. These businesses increasingly need to be able to ensure that they have checks and balances in place in respect of service delivery, as well as sensitive issues such as data protection. However, such contracts often have a jargon of their own and this can be inscrutable to non-specialists. Access to the right legal team, which is used to dealing with such contracts on a daily basis, can be very helpful in such circumstances. While the technology still has far to go in terms of realising the full extent of its capabilities, the specialist team at Technology Law Alliance has been advising clients on Cloud computing contracts for over ten years. Guy Mucklow, Managing Director of the award-winning Cloud services provider, Postcode Anywhere, comments: "Even though Postcode Anywhere is recognised as a leading player in its field, Technology Law Alliance's knowledge and expertise has enabled us to punch far beyond our weight in legal negotiations with global corporates and other large organisations. "In doing so, the firm has provided true value to our business." As technology law specialists who understand different technologies and how they can add value to business operations, Technology Law Alliance is well-place to provide this kind of support. Their insights can sometimes also help businesses to look beyond the brief by highlighting areas of potential risk or opportunity to clients. Kang, who is dual qualified as a software engineer as well as a technology lawyer, explains: "Recently we were advising a global client on some safeguards, which were needed as part of their product offering to address data protection and privacy laws. It was clear that the design of the product was too far down the line to make any changes to the actual component. "Instead, we were able to recommend a genuine workaround solution, which ensured the company's compliance with the relevant legislation. "This is the kind of added value that other technology lawyers will struggle with, but by contrast, it is just part of what we do." This approach is endorsed by Jane Bevan, UK General Counsel of global IT services provider, Capgemini UK plc. She says: "They provide the highest-quality legal advice in a responsive and commercial way. They are a trusted adviser - they provide answers and ideas, not problems." Other good indications of the firm's success are the positive comments that are made during negotiations, by parties on both sides of the fence. In some instances, this has led to the firm picking up work from the company or in-house legal counsel they were previously negotiating with. The leading household company, Vax, was signed up as a client in this way. Frazer Cross, Head of Legal for Vax, comments: "I first encountered Technology Law Alliance when I was working across the table from them in my former FTSE100 in-house legal counsel role. "When I became Head of Legal for Vax, I knew that I wanted them on-side for our organisation's technology contract work - their commercial and pragmatic nature, coupled with their expert legal knowledge makes them a truly unique proposition." Ollerenshaw comments: "It is always appreciated when the commercial team or in-house legal counsel on the other side of the negotiations, is so impressed by our firm's performance that they either look to engage our services for future work, or they think of us when they join a new organisation. This is testament to the professional, expedient and thorough approach which we take." As the legal services marketplace continues to evolve, providers of specialist legal services are expected to benefit. For this reason, Technology Law Alliance is optimistic about its future and is continuing to expand its business regionally and nationally. Kang concludes: "We had a goal when we set out, which was to be one of the leading technology law firms in the country. "The latest entries in Legal 500 show how we have consistently accomplished this, and in a relatively short time frame too. "Going forward we will retain our entrepreneurial spirit and make sure that we continue to deliver what our clients want from us and more. "We must continue to be flexible and nimble to meet the ever- changing requirements of the industry and if we do this, the sky's the limit in terms of what we can achieve. "Who would have thought that a newcomer firm arriving on the scene just over ten years ago would achieve the same industry recognition for excellence as the City of London's 'Magic Circle' law firms? "Our success proves that in a world where deals need to be struck on the right terms, in faster timescales than ever before, specialist legal knowledge counts." Their commercial and pragmatic nature, coupled with their expert legal knowledge makes them a truly unique proposition Head of legal, Vax They provide the highest quality legal advice in a responsive and commercial way. They are a trusted adviser - they provide answers and ideas, not problems General counsel, Capgemini UK plc (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |