Founded in 2010, Medical Defence Shield (MDS) is a not-for-profit organisation that offers advice on both employment and medical defence issues to doctors across the UK, under one roof. One day, they might be advising a Consultant on their terms of service. The next, they might be representing a GP before the Medical Practitioners Tribunal. As Head of Legal, Sarah Dodds heads up a close-knit team of four in-house lawyers.
Eight months ago, MDS were using another provider for their legal research. But having LexisLibrary at law school, Sarah was keen to investigate whether LexisPSL might be a better option.
“My only experience of 老司机午夜福利 was as a student, so I was taken aback by how professional LexisPSL was and how much it could offer us. I was looking for another resource that could match the one we were using. Once I tried LexisPSL, I realised it could not only match that, but offer us a lot more.”
Tailor made solution
But familiarity wasn鈥檛 the deciding factor. As Sarah explains, one of the main reasons she decided to switch was the freedom to pick and choose her own perfect, tailor-made package.
鈥淥ther providers can be quite strict about signing up for separate packages, to cover different areas of the law,鈥� she explains. 鈥淲ith 老司机午夜福利, we were able to get all our needs included in one bespoke package, with no add-ons.鈥�
鈥淎s an in-house lawyer, I also have to deal with the day to day running of the organisation. The corporate and commercial law content helps me with that. And because we work in the medical field, some of the employment issues we鈥檙e dealing with arise out of clinical negligence issues. The content on personal injury helps with that.鈥�
In one case, this meant they were able to find a principle in law which limited their client鈥檚 liabilities.
鈥淲e were able to respond to the employer, ask them to reconsider their position, and resolve some of the issues pre-hearing. We couldn鈥檛 have done that without access to those other 鈥榗rossover鈥� areas we get with 老司机午夜福利,鈥� Sarah says.
An effortless transition
Normally people are reluctant to move to a different system, however user-friendly it may be. But according to Sarah, her colleagues didn鈥檛 need to be persuaded. 鈥淭here was no resistance, because they鈥檇 all used LexisLibrary at university too. As soon as I mentioned 老司机午夜福利, they were all fully on board.鈥�
And the transition was just as smooth, without any teething troubles. 鈥淲e had one meeting, there was one form to fill in, and the changeover itself took one day. It did not take much time.鈥� she adds.
The system is so easy to use, they haven鈥檛 needed to ask for extra help or training. And they regularly receive e-mails and videos from 老司机午夜福利 with useful tips to help them get the most from their subscription.
When they do have questions, LexisAsk makes it easy to get help quickly. 鈥淥nce, I couldn鈥檛 find some information I needed on Scottish employment tribunals. So I sent an email to LexisAsk and got a response in 24 hours, pointing me to the right place. It was all there.鈥�
“Once, I couldn鈥檛 find some information I needed on Scottish employment tribunals. So I sent an email to LexisAsk and got a response in 24 hours, pointing me to the right place. It was all there.”
Reaping the rewards
As well as LexisLibrary for deep research and LexisPSL for practical advice and quick answers, MDS also has Smart Forms and Smart Precedents. And according to Sarah, each one is helping MDS in its own way.
Of LexisPSL, she says 鈥渋t鈥檚 got the right balance of information, if you just need a starting point or quick summary. But then it gives you the links, if you want to delve deeper into the detail. You are familiar with the legislation, but it鈥檚 helpful when you need to check the specific sub sections you need to rely on.鈥�
As for LexisLibrary, 鈥渨hen relying on rates and limits, such as the statutory maternity pay or compensation caps for employment tribunals, for example — I can quickly check these in one or two minutes, instead of spending time searching for these.鈥�
But perhaps it鈥檚 the Smart Precedents that are saving MDS the most time. 鈥淏efore, we would draft our own documents and letters. Now, I look to see if there鈥檚 a precedent first. Across the team, I鈥檇 say that鈥檚 probably saving us up to an hour a day.鈥�
鈥淎nd when we need to instruct counsel, we use the precedents to send them a skeleton they can continue to work on. That鈥檚 probably saved us around 拢1,000 on counsel fees so far.鈥�
Confidence booster
Eight months on, MDS鈥� suite of 老司机午夜福利 products are not only saving them valuable hours, but giving them more confidence in the quality of their own work.
As Sarah says, 鈥淓verything I鈥檝e needed to do my job so far, I鈥檝e been able to find through 老司机午夜福利. I鈥檝e never looked for something and not been able to find it. I use it at least once a day.鈥�
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