Quill Pinpoint® Blog

Microsoft closes its Legal & Professional Services team

2011-08-05T08:18:00.000+01:00

"Today we learned the disheartening news that Microsoft are closing its Legal & Professional Services sales teams entirely, effective immediately, and everyone associated will no longer be with the company after Friday."

http://www.theorangerag.com/blog/_archives/2011/8/4/4872245.html

LEGAL FUTURES » Exclusive: SRA will not start regulating ABSs on 6 October

2011-07-18T11:27:00.000+01:00

LEGAL FUTURES » Exclusive: SRA will not start regulating ABSs on 6 October

Google's Dark Side? Have you seen Google's new black toolbar?

2011-06-29T20:48:00.000+01:00

At first I assumed I had accidentally installed some custom addin, but no, it is simply a new dark background behind the links that have always been there.

Its amazing how one simple aesthetic change can be ... well ... disastrous! I personally do not like it at all & cannot find a way to change it.

Is this permanent or just a beta test I wonder?

World IPv6 Day

2011-06-12T17:01:00.001+01:00

World ipv6 day last Tuesday - This analogy explains it quite nicely :)

http://www.worldipv6day.org/

Eclipse Proclaim integrates with Quill Pinpoint API to meet the needs of a mutual client: Rollingsons

2011-05-26T00:38:00.000+01:00

"In a first of its kind, Eclipse has worked closely with Quill Pinpoint to create a link from Proclaim Case Management to the Quill Pinpoint Interactive application and outsourced legal cashiering service. This integration will enable Rollingsons to seamlessly transfer core case and matter information to online Quill Pinpoint ledgers and management reports ..."

http://www.legalsupportnetwork.co.uk/index.php/news/details/rollingsons_solicitors_chooses_eclipses_proclaim_case_management_system

Is Cloud Computing right for your firm?

2011-05-26T00:30:00.000+01:00

More on cloud computing in this LSSA article ,,,

"Cloud computing is often heralded as the Holy Grail for law firms looking for IT systems that are both robust yet flexible, says Ian Wimbush, Chairman of the Legal Software Suppliers Association. But what benefits can it really offer? ..."
http://www.legalsupportnetwork.co.uk/index.php/resources/details/is_cloud_computing_right_for_your_firm

The Solicitors Group - Law 2011 Manchester

2011-05-17T14:19:00.005+01:00

Quill Pinpoint are exhibiting at Law 2011 Manchester, Wed 18th May - Feel free to pay us a visit at our stand

Cloud Computing: What is it?

2011-05-08T17:49:00.003+01:00

The term "Cloud Computing" is currently dominating the technology headlines and is the IT industry's marketing buzzword of the moment.

However, although the term "Cloud" is relatively new, it is essentially a re-branding term that encompasses various technologies & concepts that have existed for some years now:

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

IaaS wraps up server, storage, internet connectivity, cooling, electricity & power backup into a rented service model - pay only for the compute power you use. And you can scale your resources up & down quickly as your business needs evolve - hence the term "elastic" in Amazon Web Service's "Elastic Compute Cloud" or EC2.

Services like EC2 & others such as Rackspace Cloud Servers have made this extremely cost effective by using virtual technology to share physical server resources in a highly economic way.

This kind of service is often more relevant for business to business (B2B) rather than business to consumer (B2C).

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

What is a platform? In terms of software, the platform has traditionally been the operating system, such as Windows, Apple OSX or Linux for example. In the internet connected cloud environment however, new platforms are appearing that enable software developers to write apps directly into the cloud based environment: Google App Engine & Windows Azure for example.

These new cloud friendly platforms claim to free the developer from worrying about deployment issues because they are handled by the platform. As with any platform however, you will inevitably become tied-in, so the decision on which platform to adopt is a commercial one. However, VMware's Cloud Foundry project claims to overcome this.

Software (or Applications) as a Service (SaaS)

Software as a service is how most consumers (or "users") will experience the Cloud. If you use a web based application, like Gmail, Hotmail, Salesforce or hosted Practice Management Systems for Solicitors, such as Quill Pinpoint's Interactive, you are already experiencing SaaS.

Some solutions also offer a "hosted desktop", using Microsoft Remote Desktop for example, which allow you to run existing desktop apps & perhaps Microsoft Office whilst still gaining benefits from cloud delivery.

Apart from the potential cost saving implications, another advantage of this model is that any processing intensive parts of the software are handled by the service, so in theory at least, you can access your applications via lower powered netbooks or mobile devices.

Security is also potentially enhanced with SaaS.

Cloud without the storm?

So are the key drivers of cloud computing, such as: cost savings, mobility & business agility all too good to be true? Well, as with any supplier, carrying out due diligence is vital.

Three things to consider as a consumer of cloud computing resources:

1. Security

Ensure internet traffic between you and the service is encrypted using industry standards such as Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), Transport Layer Security (TLS) or Secure Shell (SSH) etc.
Ensure that storage of data at the service end is secure, again using industry standard storage encryption techniques.
Use best practices when it comes to password security and, where it is a multi-user system, take time to ensure roles & authorization rights are correctly configured to your needs.

2. Data Protection Act

The UK data protection act tells that "transfers of personal data outside the European Economic Area (EEA) are prohibited, unless adequate protection is shown". Ensure your provider understands the implications of this.

3. Risk

Does your provider have adequate business continuity arrangements in place?
What SLA's do they provide?
How can you get access to your systems & data if the provider goes out of business?

Summary

Despite the issues raised above, the Cloud has enormous advantages: mobility, vast amounts of computing power at your fingertips, no upfront capital costs & cost effectiveness.

Is this how all applications will eventually be delivered & consumed? Any comments most welcome.

Further reading:

The National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST): Definition of Cloud Computing
Quill Pinpoint's Cloud 9 article in their December 2010 edition of ReadIt

Quill Pinpoint at Sole Practitioners Group Conference 2011

2011-05-04T16:46:00.002+01:00

See Quill Pinpoint at the Sole Practitioners Group Conference, Majestic Hotel, Harrogate, May 6th to 8th 2011

http://www.quill.co.uk/news/See-us-at-Sole-Practitioners-Group-Conference-2011/

The Know List Article "Lawyers - you get the software you deserve"

2011-05-03T16:15:00.007+01:00

"Smaller [legal] practices have some great solutions from experienced [legal software supplier] teams ... even LPO options, from firms like Quill Pinpoint"

Blog article here

PDF article here

Only Time Will Tell

2010-11-19T15:14:00.000Z

The 10th edition of Quill Pinpoint's Readit! news letter has been distributed and also published in PDF format.

In this issue:The importance of Lexcel, Cloud Computing, Legal Marketing Cooperatives, Surviving a SRA (Solicitor's Regulation Authority) audit & more ...

Readit! Edition Q4-10

2010-11-05T17:05:00.000Z

On the 12th November 2010 (12/11/2010) the Institute of Legal Cashiers & Administrators (ILCA) changes its name to the Institute of Legal Finance & Management (ILFM).

Dilligence & Vigilance remain as its core values.

http://www.ilca.org.uk/NEWSROOM/NEWSDETAILS/tabid/71/news/676/Default.aspx

Quill Pinpoint wins ILCA Solicitors Software Users Award 2010

2010-09-23T12:17:00.000+01:00

The Institute of Legal Cashiers (ILCA) has once again surveyed users of Legal Accounts Software to find the supplier rated most highly by its members.

Full Story here ...

People and Software Services ...

2010-07-24T11:44:00.000+01:00

Quill Pinpoint not only develop web based legal accounting & document management software for their clients but they also host their applications & client's data within their own data centres.

Quill Pinpoint's primary and recovery data centres are equipped with HP hardware and VMWare for server virtualization. Virtual machines and data are replicated to a co-location recovery data centre for business continuity & disaster recovery (BC&DR) purposes. And two internet pipes serve the primary data centre: one which uses the BT exchange and other outside of that for further BC&DR.

Law practices can write part of Quill Pinpoint's BC&DR plan into their own thereby outsourcing the IT part of their plan. and for those firms using the optional hosted Document Management System (DMS), Quill Pinpoint effectively become their virtual office.

Firms with head offices outside of the UK can monitor and supervise their UK offices from abroad. Quill Pinpoint offer free access to the firms accountants therefore helping to reduce the firms risk, improve their compliance with the Solicitors Accounts Rules (SAR), speed up audit times and ensure key management reporting such as cash flow forecasting is accessible to the right people.

Coupled with their outsourced Legal Cashiering service - provided by fully trained UK based legal cashiering teams - Quill Pinpoint provide their clients with an entire virtual business service: not just Software as a Service (SaaS) but the much more demanding and difficult to achieve: People and Software Services.

http://www.quill.co.uk/pinpoint/outsourced-services/

Professional Certificate in Legal Accounts Management

2010-07-21T10:08:00.002+01:00

It was a proud day for Quill Pinpoint when the first twelve of its "home grown" legal cashiers stepped up to receive their Professional Certificate in Legal Accounts Management at an awards ceremony at the University of Chester.

Their journey started in 2007 when the company experienced difficulty in recruiting enough high calibre legal cashiers to meet the growing demand for the Quill Pinpoint outsourced legal accounting service. A decision was taken to recruit promising candidates for a rigorous in-house training programme that would tap into the wealth of knowledge and experience within the company, producing legal cashiers who would meet the exacting standards and also lead to a recognised qualification that would offer them real career progression.

One of the main advantages of in-house training has been the opportunity for trainees to be mentored by existing experienced Quill Pinpoint legal cashiers. This has ensured that they are fully versed in the technical aspects of the Pinpoint Interactive system as well as the importance of ensuring that no breaches of regulations occur by following the stringent procedures that are laid

One of the company's key objectives was for the training to provide a recognised qualification and to this end a number of avenues were explored. As the University of Chester already had a track record of working with employer-led training programmes, they were selected to deliver and support the academic aspects of the training. The qualification awards 60 UCAS points on completion.

According to HR director Maria Hadfield, the programme has exceeded every aspect of the company’s expectations. “The exercise has improved motivation, self-development and staff retention and proven to be an excellent return on our investment,” she comments.

Unexpectedly, the course proved to be engaging even to some of Quill Pinpoint’s most experienced cashiers and last year the opportunity to participate was extended to all legal staff. "Continuing professional development is valuable at every level and, of course, the chance to achieve a university-accredited qualification is the icing on the cake" adds Maria.

Twelve more staff will commence training at the start of the next academic year.

Re-Branding

2010-07-20T14:57:00.000+01:00

Quill Computer Systems Ltd began life over 35 years ago as a software supplier to the legal profession in England & Wales. Then in the mid-1990's our sister company called Pinpoint Accounting Ltd was born that provided outsourced cashiering services to law firms using Quill's accounting software systems to drive it.

Since then, the marketing of these two businesses has been divided leaving our brand & our overall mission unclear to our potential clients.

So this year we undertook a full re-branding exercise by re-building our marketing essentials, such as brand-name, logo, brochure, newsletter & web site from the ground up. See the results for yourself www.quill.co.uk

Also our latest Readit! newsletter can be found here

Virtual Office

2009-06-10T05:55:00.000+01:00

June 2009 sees the release of our new Document Assembly & Management module built directly into our flagship web browser application, Pinpoint Interactive.

The new module allows our clients to automatically assemble documents from precedent templates and attach them, along with emails, photos or sound files to their cases, generating automatic time recording & calendar reminders if required. And our optional Microsoft® Office Add-ins for Outlook® & Word make this a totally seamless user experience.

This new module fills a market need for the growing trend whereby the partners of a law firm are located in distributed locations with no central office. For virtual practices like these, using technology to network with each other, the Pinpoint outsourced cashiering service powered by Quill’s cloud computing solution is a “no brainer” as it provides a named legal cashier, a secure web based practice & document management system, daily & monthly reporting compliant with the Solicitor’s Accounts Rules and a ready-made business continuity & disaster recovery plan.

For further info, please contact Andrew Sherwin on 0161-236 2910 or email: info@quill.co.uk

Promoting Professionalism

2009-04-08T06:21:00.000+01:00

With more legal practices taking the decision to move away from traditional partnership arrangements and becoming limited companies, Andrew Sherwin of Quill Group Ltd - a member of the Institute himself - asks the Institute of Directors (IoD) what they offer their members.
What is the IoD?
The Institute of Directors is the world’s most experienced and long-standing organisation for business leaders. It is a politically independent professional network with over 50,000 members, dedicated to raising professional standards and to helping their members understand and fulfil their roles and responsibilities as business leaders. Members have access to a range of products, services and advice to support them as they work towards the long term success and future of their organisations.
Representation and networking
As a prominent voice of industry, the IoD plays a key role in representing the views of its members to government, politicians, the media and other influential bodies. Through their lobbying group, they strive to drive and shape change that will improve business practice and achieve regulatory regimes that complement well-run organisations. The IoD provides an extensive and exclusive network for members on a local, national and international level which is supported by more than 1,000 events a year. They hold some of the biggest and most prestigious events in the UK business calendar, attracting world-class speakers – presidents, prime ministers and leaders of global corporations.
Supporting members
In addition to representation and a rich business network, the IoD provides its members with a host of expert, impartial advisory services and information on governance and other key business issues. Their award-winning team of professionally qualified researchers and consultants offers members the vital resources required to run a successful a business.
Why would the IoD be relevant to me?
When you first set up or manage your own business you will be an expert in your area of law but you may not know all the finer details of finance, HR, marketing or your personal liabilities as a company director. The IoD can provide advice, support and guidance on such issues and many more, helping you to run a successful business.

Further information and details of how to join the Institute of Directors: www.iod.com
Further information on outsourcing your Legal back office functions: http://www.quill.co.uk/pintpointlegal.htm

Book Review: Richard Susskind: The End of Lawyers?

2009-04-08T06:12:00.000+01:00

Susskind unveils his fascinating vision of the Legal Industry of the future. He challenges solicitors to ask themselves what parts of their workload might be undertaken more quickly, cheaply, efficiently, or even to a higher quality using less expensive workers and smart systems and processes.
He suggests that the “internet generation” and "disruptive technologies" coupled with a market pull towards commoditisation of legal services will change the face of the legal profession. Susskind points out that, increasingly, many firms are being called upon to undertake work on a fixed fee basis rather than an hourly billing basis forcing partners to explore ways to cut costs such as outsourcing, not just the back office functions, but also many of the routine legal processes.
As a true futurist, Susskind claims to not predict the future but "lay out a buffet of possible options" and although the threat for legal services (as we know them) is clear, Susskind presents a great opportunity for innovative & entrepreneurial solicitors.
More info: http://www.susskind.com/endoflawyers.html
ISBN 978-0-19-954172-0

New Tax Year 2009/2010

2009-04-08T05:48:00.000+01:00

The new tax year is the ideal time to consider outsourcing your payroll needs to Pinpoint Payroll because there is typically no charge for implementing new clients in April, the first month of the new tax year.
With over 20 years experience in the outsourcing of UK payroll processing, Pinpoint’s clients include solicitors, retailers, manufacturing and service industries, in fact anyone who needs a reliable, secure, discreet and cost-effective service. For more information please see our case studies.
Cath Delacoe, the Pinpoint Payroll Manager says: “our team has a wealth of experience in payroll matters which, combined with an in-depth knowledge of our clients, enables us to handle employee and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) enquiries and even host PAYE inspections”.
Pinpoint Payroll Key Features:
• Your own Pinpoint Payroll clerk
• No long term commitment
• BACS accredited
• BACS transfer and reporting
• P45, P35, P60 production
• SMP, SSP calculations
• Loans, CCJ, expense and pension deductions all handled
• HMRC on-line submission
Join an increasing number of firms that enjoy the benefits of outsourcing their payroll to Pinpoint Payroll.

Read It! ... Know It!

2009-03-09T12:33:00.000Z

Some of you may have seen these statistics in our latest printed edition of ReadIt!, but for those that haven’t, I reproduce some of them here:

- In 2008, Pinpoint posted over 1.5 million accounting transactions on behalf of its clients... and reconciled over 60,000 bank statements.
- Over 550 individual law practices use Quill & Pinpoint products & services.
- Pinpoint is (probably) the largest single employer of legal cashiers in the UK.
- Pinpoint has its own legal cashiering training school accredited by the University of Chester.
- Quill was one of the founder members of the Legal Software Suppliers Association (LSSA).
- There are no setup charges when implementing Pinpoint Payroll in April/May.

The latest and past editions of ReadIt! can be downloaded from our web site here: Quill.

Pinpoint in the Law Society's Software Solutions Guide 2009

2009-03-09T12:23:00.000Z

Quill Pinpoint are delighted to have come first in the category of "Improves efficiency and effectiveness of law firm" in The Law Society's Software Solutions Guide (SSG) 2009 released this month. Law Society's Software Solutions
The independent market research also revealed that we were the "most improved supplier" according to the customer satisfaction index.

The Law Society’s SSG panel also commented that Quill Pinpoint "seem to be closest to their clients" and that the service was "innovative, developing, market-focused and a rounded approach to outsourced cashiering, case management & financial management".

Latest Products by Quill Ltd

2008-12-08T05:30:00.000Z

Cash Flow Forecasting

In today's uncertain economic climate, our Cash Flow Forecast module is proving to be one of our most popular solutions. Built by our in-house development experts, this easy-to-use Excel module links seamlessly with your existing Quill systems, and enables you to anticipate, plan & report on your money movements.

Safety.net

We all dread the day we need to restore data from our backup tapes. Are they reliable? Have they been tested on a regular basis? Has some of our data simply not
been backed up due to staff leaving their PC’s logged in? If questions like these cause you to break out in a cold sweat,consider outsourcing your backup requirements to us. Safety.net takes a backup of your Quill data and uploads it over the internet to Quill’s data centre, giving you a reliable and off-site backup solution. Many of our clients have reported a better night’s sleep since using Safety.net - leave the worrying to us.

Online support call logging

Our support team handles calls of all natures, not just IT. From Printer problems to SRA rules to general guidance navigating our applications,our support team is there to assist. Over the last few months we have been working on a new system that will allow you to log support calls & track the status of them online. When you submit your call details, it will pop-up immediately on our support system and will be allocated to one of the team. Any updates to the call will be emailed to you so you
are kept informed throughout the process. This direct link to the support team will eliminate frustrations caused by our reception desk being busy with other calls. We will be rolling out this service to you in the New Year.

New Client Services Manager

2008-11-26T11:29:00.000Z

I am delighted to announce that I have recently accepted the position of
Client Services Manager within the Quill Group. In this new role, I
will be managing the support & training teams and keeping our
Quill Inhouse Legal and Pinpoint Legal clients fully informed of any new
changes, developments or areas of interest within Quill and the legal
market as a whole. I also expect to be doing a lot of listening too ....
on what we do right and, of course, how we can improve.

One of my first tasks is to ensure all Quill Inhouse Legal
clients are up to date with the latest suite of Quillennium Interactive
modules. In the current economic climate it is imperative that you,
like other practices, take full advantage of features such as cash flow
forecasting and credit control, which both help create
efficiencies and save valuable time and money.

We are also working on enhancements to your software maintenance service
such as on-line call logging, automatic software updates, health check
reviews & e-mail notifications to name a few. I will keep you posted on
our progress.

We will soon be launching our e-news letter to compliment our quarterly
printed version and, if you would like to receive these, please give us
your email address here: e-news

Also, new to our web site is a Chartered Accountant Directory,
searchable by postcode that is free to access here:Chartered Accountant Search

If you have any questions regarding any of our legal software or
outsourced services or would like to discuss any IT matter please feel
free to contact me at contact

Thank you for your continued commitment to Quill and I look forward to
speaking with you soon.

Kind regards

ANDREW HODKINSON
Client Services Manager

Quill Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

2008-11-07T12:58:00.000Z

Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery has always been high on Quill's agenda, but this year we have taken it to a new level with a significant investment in new network hardware and virtual server technology.
Upgrading live & complex networks can be heart-stopping at the best of times and our people have really made an enormous effort to make the project a success.
Our renewed infrastructure is now based on all new enterprise HP servers, storage & switching equipment at both our primary & recovery data centres and includes HP's top of the range support service.
Servers that were once physical boxes have now been "virtualized" using the VMware ESX platform and it is this virtualisation that has enabled us to implement & maintain a complete recovery data solution located at one of our branch offices. Regular testing of our recovery solution has become much simpler with this solution.
In addition to hardware & server changes, we reviewed our internet connectivity and have now implemented a fail-over connection at our primary data centre using a wireless ISP (Metronet) that are unaffected by BT exchange issues. So, if our main internet is down, we can switch over very quickly to our alternative provider. In the unlikely event both lines should fail simultaneously, we have our recovery data centre to fall back on.
Our renewed network solution adds significant value to our overall service and gives our Pinpoint & Quill Safety.net clients access to enterprise level technology not normally available to small and medium sized legal practices.

Richard Salt
IT Director
Quill Group Ltd

The ILCA Solicitors’ Software Users Award 2008

2008-10-02T09:48:00.000+01:00

The survey results are in and the winner is Legato Computer Services Ltd with their Indigo software being voted the most highly rated supplier of 2008. AlphaLaw came in second with representation for both their Vantage and Esprit packages closely followed in third position by Access Legal Systems with its Practice Management suite.

Legato Computer Services Ltd beat all comers scoring 89.33% in a survey which saw the top four user-graded suppliers score over 84%.

SOFTWARE SUPPLIER (System) (%)
1 Legato Computer Software (Indigo) 89.33
2 AlphaLaw (Esprit/Vantage) 87.44
3 Access Legal Systems (Practice Management) 84.67
4 Quill In-house Legal (Quillennium) 84.31
5 TFB plc (Partner for Windows) 83.02
6 Perfect Software Ltd (Perfect Books) 82.90
7 Solicitors Own Software (SOS) 81.88
8 Eclipse Legal Systems (Proclaim) 81.67
9 DPS Software (One Office) 81.43
10 Edgebyte Computers Ltd (Lawbyte) 81.33

The results were obtained by submission on a web based survey, receiving a high level of response from the ILCA members who graded their software on the following criteria;- adequacy of training, ease of making postings, bank reconciliations, interest calculations, compliance to SAR’s, month end routine procedure, quality of help desk support, VAT return calculation, clarity of ledger card, nominal postings, bill postings, ease of reporting generally, upgrades and reaction time to regulatory changes.

In all, there were responses on behalf of twenty software providers, with AlphaLaw in second place and TFB plc in fifth place receiving over 40% of the respondents between them.

The users scored all of the software suppliers well on the speed and quality of helpdesk support, the scores this year being shown separately. Fourteen of them were considered to provide excellent or very good quality of helpdesk response, scoring over 80%. The speed of response raised a wider range of responses with only nine suppliers achieving 80% or more with average response times of ‘immediate’ or within one to two hours. Cognito Software Ltd was top of the tree in both sections of the helpdesk grading with 100% for quality and 95% for speed of response. Last year they scored 96.67% in this category, showing them to have a consistent excellent record.

The quality of training provided is an important consideration, not only at the purchasing stage but also for the availability of training for new staff members. The survey rated own Solicitors Software as the best user training provider, closely followed by IRIS Videss Ltd and Legato Computer Software Ltd. These top three were closely followed by TFB plc, Quill, Cognito software Ltd and Linetime who all scored 80%.

Scores were then consolidated into two categories. Ease of use for the daily user (making postings, nominal, bills and compliance to SAR) and ease of use for the month end routines (general reporting, VAT returns, interest calculations and bank reconciliations, amongst others). Almost all of the respondents considered the month end routines to be adequate for their purposes and the responses for daily use peaked at 93.33% for the winning software from Legato Computer Software Ltd.

David Sparkes, managing director, legalsupportnetwork.co.uk says “The use of technology and systems has never been so integral to the successful management and development of a commercially focused law firm. The subject of software is regularly high on the list of topics for discussion at our networking events and soon we expect to see more of this conversation move online as our own community grows. legalsupportnetwork.co.uk is delighted to sponsor the ILCA Award for the 2nd year running and congratulations to Legato Computer Services Ltd on achieving such recognition from the ILCA members”.

The Award will be formally presented at the forthcoming ILCA Annual Luncheon to be held in Middle Temple, London on 24th September 2008.