FAQ'S

Lexilia is an AI-based legal procurement tool. It enables the client to generate a request for proposal that provides the optimal level of detail about the contemplated legal assistance required, identifies legal service providers capable of providing the relevant legal services and compares the proposals received from legal service providers, resulting in actions that the client can take to select the optimal legal service provider.

The platform provides an objective analysis of law firm proposals, focusing the client’s attention on areas of concern. Given the degree of automation built into the platform, the platform also enables the client to cast a wider net, while dramatically reducing the time required to prepare the RFP and to analyse the pitches.

The platform does not choose – it assesses all the proposals received and aims to highlight any and all areas of the proposals that would benefit from further clarification, with a view to ultimately yielding a set of proposals that are genuinely comparable. The ultimate decision on which legal service provider will be retained, and whether it will be the one that has proposed the lowest fee, has the best credentials, is prepared to put together the best team, or otherwise, always remains with the client. The platform does generate a score for each proposal based on a combination of factors (using proprietary algorithms and/or the client’s input on the relevant criteria), but it is up to the client whether to consider the score determinative, relevant or to completely disregard it. In certain cases, the platform will provide benchmarking information on what similar work might have cost in the past, to enable the client to draw his or her own conclusions as to the level of fees proposed.

Absolutely not – all information submitted on the platform will remain strictly confidential. Only the client making the request will be entitled to see the information provided by legal service providers in response to the request, and the client will retain full control about which legal service providers will receive the information made available by the client. The information in RFPs and in pitches may be used for analytical purposes, but in no case would any information identifying the client (or the relevant legal service provider) be shared with any third parties.

We appreciate that clients have established relationships – in some cases, going back decades. The platform will provide you with an opportunity to explore other legal service providers and their offerings. No law firm in the world is capable of handling the entire spectrum of legal work, and the platform gives you an unbiased view on which other law firms would be well suited to work on your particular matter. You would also have a clear picture on how your preferred law firms’ pricing stacks up against the market.

To ensure the maximum degree of objectivity, the platform is not affiliated with any legal service providers. Any lists of legal service providers that the platform may deem suitable for the task at hand will be based on algorithms that compare the capabilities needed for the matter with the capabilities of the law firms that we have obtained from public sources and proprietary databases, along with indicative information about fees, diversity, ESG and other factors gleaned from public sources and proprietary databases as well. We appreciate that, in a philosophical sense, no system is completely free from bias, but we have designed the platform with a view to maximising objectivity. For instance, unlike search engines, we do not (and will not) accept any payments from legal service providers to have their names show up higher in the rankings. Any score generated for a legal service provider will be based on objective, verifiable factors, such as experience, qualifications, recognition by industry or trade groups, etc.

We have the utmost respect for legal rankings. However, the information available from the rankings is generic and not tailored to any particular transaction. The platform effectively functions like a procurement professional, formulating the RFP and conducting an in-depth analysis of the responses relevant to your particular situation.

In addition to professional qualifications, experience, fees and other factors that go into the counsel selection process, the success or failure of your relationship with the law firm can depend on a number of intangibles, such as chemistry between team members, effective communication, etc. Whilst we have tried to take as many factors as possible into account, even if the client selects the law firm that is, according to every single parameter imaginable, the best and most suitable law firm for the task, there can be no guarantee for that the client will be fully satisfied with the law firm.

We genuinely believe that law firm selection process would benefit from increased transparency and objectivity, and we want to enable clients to make informed decisions without having to spend countless hours conducting research. We also believe that the platform would be beneficial for legal service providers as well, as they would receive a very detailed RFP and (in most cases) would not have to engage with the client to clarify the parameters of the legal services that the client is seeking to obtain.

No, the platform is intended, and should be used as, a legal counsel selection tool. No information contained on the platform or received by the client constitutes legal advice, and the platform expressly disclaims, to the maximum extent possible under applicable law, any responsibility for the advice that any selected legal services provider may give to the client.

Absolutely! In the process of creating the RFP, you will be asked about diversity and inclusion requirements, as well as other factors that clients generally may consider relevant in considering law firm proposals.

We have tried to recreate a very sophisticated procurement professional. Using data provided by the client, the platform generates a draft of the request for proposals for the client’s review. Once the request for proposals is finalised, the platform will identify certain law firms that may, based on information available to the platform, be suitable for the task at hand. The list generated by the platform is based on literally millions and millions of data points collected from public sources and proprietary databases, including law firm credentials, information about fees recently paid by clients in relation to similar matters, industry publications, etc. The client will have complete control over the legal services providers that will receive the RFP and can tailor the list of recommended law firms as desired. The client may then use the platform to send the RFPs to the firms on the list using the platform (with a single push of a button, as it were), and the platform can collect all pitches received in response to the RFP and analyse the information using generative AI and proprietary technology. The analysis will be presented in an easy-to-read table format, together with recommendations on specific actions to be taken (for instance, the platform may indicate that requesting clarifications from the law firm about the pitch would be desirable). Finally, once all the information is in, the platform will generate the final report, containing a side-by-side comparison of the proposals and the scores for each proposal, based on the platform’s algorithms and models.