The Scotsman - 21st February 2006
CAPSOFT, an Edinburgh-based software company serving the UK and international legal markets, has today reported on the success of its latest offering to the UK legal sector.
The company, which is the sole distributor of HotDocs products in the UK, has used its software to provide the legal and business sectors with free access to more than 1,000 government forms.
Its website - www.capform.co.uk - was launched in November 2005 and has received more than 1,500 registrations. It fills a gap in the market that was created when LexisNexis closed down www.everyform.net and customers turned to Capsoft for help.
As the creator or Everyform - which was sold to LexisNexis in 2001 - Russell Shepherd, the managing director of Capsoft, was well-versed in offering a free, online library of forms.
Using HotDocs Player 2005, forms were gathered, formatted and made available on the internet. The use of HotDocs document assembly software enables the user to complete the forms on screen, and save them to their own PCs. In addition HotDocs Is available on the site as a free download.
Forms available are from a variety of sources including the Inland Revenue and the Court Service. Capform also offers form packs: the most popular of which are Court Service forms pertaining to the Children Act and divorce-related topics.
Shepherd says: "Due to our dialogue with existing Capsoft customers, we were aware demand was there for this type of service. However, the sheer volume of uptake in such a short timescale has exceeded all expectations - this site is going from strength to strength."
Nationally, 16 of the UK's top 30 law firms use HotDocs. Kevin Greer, a legal innovation manager at Morgan Cole, says: "The key benefit of HotDocs is the time saved in creating documents. It allows a PC sitting on a fee-earner's desk to become more than just a typewriter. By improving the efficiency and accuracy of document creations, the to-and-fro between fee earner and secretary is reduced - and in some cases such as case management - eliminated."