*By Claudio Bernardo
In recent years, legal efficiency has become a global trend in the labor market and has been revolutionizing the routine of departments within companies. Thanks to it, the legal area is able to relate intelligently with all the others, in addition to contributing to the success of the strategies designed for the business. The main objective of this model is to ensure that all sectors act in an integrated manner, providing benefits such as increased process efficiency, productivity and quality levels.
To better understand the impact of legal efficiency on companies, it is important to understand how it is related to what already exists in the day-to-day of the company. legal management, since every company has a legal department or, at the very least, a structure that helps navigate legal issues in two respects.
The first of them is linked to litigation, that is, when the company needs to defend itself or propose an agreement. When none of the service strategies work, there is usually a crisis management before the judicialization takes place. With this, there is a fundamental participation of the legal department, which works to defend the company's interests against those who, in some way, understand that they are being harmed.
The second aspect is linked to the advisory, that is, it works to help the company sign contracts, distribute powers of attorney to defend those who are its attorneys in each area, in addition to helping the company's structure to resolve legal doubts, which are closely linked , sometimes, to labor issues.
Whether the contentious or advisory aspect, the legal area is an area that enters the circuit to solve or mitigate problems. Between the last 5 and 10 years, there has been a great concern on the part of the legal department to approach the other sectors of a company, which has helped to streamline processes. Therefore, it can be said that the legal department is a guardian of everything that can or should be done by a given company from a legal point of view, to advance strategically and defend itself against what could create a threat.
Technology as a pillar for the legal area
THE tecnologic innovation brought to the legal sector greater chances of success in the results of processes and, therefore, is being increasingly used by companies. It is important to emphasize that, even in a cliché way, the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated this evolution of technology, in view of social distancing and remote work, in which it was necessary to deal with the problem and find unusual solutions.
Faced with this scenario, the legal area underwent a series of changes that, after a period of adaptation, became very beneficial. Among the advantages presented, automation was one of the highlights, as it eliminated common tasks and allowed teams to dedicate themselves to more strategic work.
Technology has also provided resources for more effective and transparent legal management, with a reduction in the number of errors and risks, and greater productivity, as the tools can ensure greater assertiveness in tasks and reduce rework.
When there is this interaction with technology, it is easier to understand everything that happens in a department of a company and all the improvements that can be made. In the legal environment, especially, it is possible to propose innovations for the sectors that will soften the chances of filing new lawsuits.
In addition, checking the operational routine of a company's sectors, reviewing processes, understanding all stages and implementing efficient flows are some of the steps that can lead to success in implementing legal efficiency.
It is important to point out that the use of ideal software for each area and that are centralized in the activities of the departments is essential. With this, it is possible to understand the company's conflicts to define the best impact reduction solutions.
From this, it is understood that the legal area is a fundamental piece for the connection of strategic management with the company's operation and that, the sooner key people realize this, the faster the legal sector will become protagonist of the change that is possible be done within these companies.
*Claudio Bernardo is Director of Vertical Jurídica at Grupo Benner, a company that provides information through software and processes with the aim of revolutionizing business
Notice: The opinion presented in this article is the responsibility of its author and not of ABES - Brazilian Association of Software Companies
