Two events in the last 48 hours have confirmed that legal outsourcing to India is especially on the move in the UK right now. First, the UK's Law Society Gazette reports that Mumbai-based Pangea3 has opened a London office, which will serve as a base for the company's expansion into Europe in general. Here's an excerpt from the story:
"Brian Allan, [Pangea3] vice-president of legal services in Europe, will head the office on London’s South Bank. He said the decision was taken because the LPO market in Europe has become increasingly buoyant over the last year. Around 80% of Pangea3’s clients are general counsel and 20% are law firms. The LPO provider operates facilities in Delhi and Mumbai, with headquarters in New York. Co-chief executive David Perla claimed that the company’s expansion in Europe will allow it to increase revenues by 15% over the coming year. Perla said that Pangea3 will recruit ‘at least’ 100 more lawyers in Delhi and Mumbai by the end of 2010, adding to its existing 450-strong workforce. Allan said that over the last two and a half months, the company has already recruited 100 operational staff in India.Allan added: ‘We have been in the US for more than five years and managing our European clients from there. But our European clients are demanding more services and attention.’"
Other Indian legal services outsourcing companies with London offices include CPA Global, Integreon, and SDD Global. Formed in Mumbai in 2003, Pangea3 has been a pioneer in the legal process outsourcing industry. Pangea3 was ranked by Indian research company ValueNotes as one of the top three "pacesetters" in the field. Pangea3's clients include General Electric, Sony and American Express.
In a second news-making development, one of the UK's top 20 law firms, CMS Cameron McKenna, is outsourcing its entire back office operation to Gurgaon-based Integreon, according to a report in today's Legal Week. The deal reportedly will bring $848 million in revenues to Integreon over a 10-year period. Legal industry expert, Professor Richard Susskind commented: “This is a hugely significant development that sets the pace for the global legal market. The scale and ambition of the arrangement is remarkable, and the business case is compellingly strong – by outsourcing many of its non-core activities to Integreon, CMS Cameron McKenna should achieve major cost savings and free itself to focus more strategically on its clients and services.”
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