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The Alternative Legal Service Provider (ALSP) market has grown enormously over recent years. In this video, Emma Dickin, Head of Practice Area Group In-House Strategy, chats with Jamie Fraser, CEO & Founder, NineNineSix, to go back to basics:

• What are ALSPs?
• Who uses them?
• How do you get the best out of them?

This video is part of a series in collaboration with Crafty Counsel and Obelisk Support.

So, what is an ALSP?

At its core, an Alternative Legal Service Provider (ALSP) is any business which offers legal services to in-house teams that is not a traditional law firm. They range from independent legal technology start-ups focusing on niche services to the Big Four which provide a comprehensive range of legal services.

ALSPs generally fall into three main categories:

• Independents - these form the majority of ALSPs and are normally fairly niche and agile, often basing their services on technology. Others are Alternative Business Structures (ABSs) and deploy consultant lawyers on a contractual basis for project work, as in the case of .
• Big Four - the Big Four accountancy firms (EY, KPMG, PwC and Deloitte) have made significant advances into legal services over recent years. Due to their size and talent pool, they are able to offer the full array of legal services provided by most traditional law firms, whilst also deploying technology and process improvement skills from across in their wider business.
• Law firm ALSPs – in the face of growing competition, some firms have created stand-alone businesses which act as ALSPs. For example, Pinsent Masons has which provides a roster of over 1,000 flexible third party consultant lawyers who can be deployed for specific client projects as and when required.
  

The common thread among all these different types of ALSPs is they use a combination of people, processes, legal technology, innovation and data, which they bring together to offer a more creative way to meet the legal services need of an in-house legal team.

What ALSP should I use?

Some ALSPs provide a wide a range of services, while others are much more niche. Over the past year, we’ve been working with Crafty Counsel to bring clarity to this growing area for in-house teams. maps the UK’s alternative legal service marketplace – organised by relevant categories – to help connect in-house teams with the right creative legal solutions.

ALSPs normally deploy sophisticated legal technology, alongside a variety of specialists, to streamline routine processes and optimise efficiency. This makes them particularly adept at handling highly repetitive, low-value, low risks tasks so that in-house lawyers can spend more time focusing on higher value work. But with such a broad skillset among ALSPs, they can also help with more strategic work and the rollout of legal tech.

• The types of services ALSPs provide can include:
  
• Legal document creation and review
• Intellectual property management
• Due diligence
• Litigation tools, e.g. e-discovery and case prediction
• Contract management
• Project management
• Legal operations
• Legal tech support
  

The practice note ‘Using alternative legal providers’ dives into this question further, and looks when in-house teams can use alternative resources to deliver the best business results.

How does cost pricing work with ALSPs?

ALSPs often have a cost advantage compared to the fees charged by traditional firms. Although some of them have an hourly rate, many work on a fixed price model. A fixed price offers transparency and clarity, and takes away the worry about rising legal costs – particularly at a time where budgets are under close scrutiny.

Further information

• Visit the to see the full range of legal services that ALSPs can offer
• The practice note ‘Using alternative legal providers’ offers a great, practical starting point for in-house teams and forms part of our dedicated sub-topic for in-house teams on managing external suppliers within In-House Advisor.
• ½Û×ÓÊÓƵ In-House Advisor offers dedicated practical guidance content for in-house lawyers, including practice notes, checklists, forms, calculators and more.
  

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