'The legal profession depends upon secure, anytime, anywhere access to information, and being able to safely manage documents is an important part of that,' explained Ed Miller, CEO of Xythos, as Xythos yesterday announced the selection and deployment of its Enterprise Document Manager by Daniels Law Offices, P.C.

"With Xythos Enterprise Document Manager, firms like Daniels get the benefits of an enterprise-class document management system with the ease of use of a simple web-based application," Miller continued. "In addition, Xythos' offline document synchronization capabilities are particularly well-suited to courtroom environments," he added.

Daniels has already begun to migrate its physical records to the Enterprise Document Manager 5.0, ultimately scanning most of these documents into the system. The application's XML-compatible metadata support ensures that the firm's debt collectors have access to all of the case information they require to accelerate account reconciliation by supporting easy keyword and metadata queries. Integrated library services - document check-in/out, version control and file-level access control also help to keep Daniels users all on "the same page" once documents have been added to the system. As a result, Daniels clients, eager to understand the disposition of their cases, can now look forward to even swifter case settlements.

Representing clients including Bank of America, Capital One, Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital, Daniels Law Offices, P.C. is the oldest retail and commercial collection and bankruptcy law firm in Massachusetts, handling hundreds of thousands of documents for its clients each year. As a result of the high volume of settlements managed by the firm, individual litigators often require rapid access to case material, even when disconnected from Daniels' network. "We have to deal with both traditional documents generated on paper, but saved electronically as well as those we create or receive in digital formats. Xythos' open-standards based design provided us with the system flexibility we needed to manage all types of documents using a single application," explained Paul Flaherty, Vice President of Information Technology. "Although our staff is constantly revising documents, there was practically no training required for them to use Xythos and it helps ensure that they are collaborating upon the correct document version as well," he added.

The Xythos Enterprise Document Manager 5.0 is well-suited for organizations struggling to manage growing amounts of electronic and physical documents. In addition to supporting common scanning technologies and Internet standard WebDAV, the latest version of the software includes integrated document classification and indexed search features designed to improve content discovery and assist with regulatory compliance. Basic document workflow features have also been added to the application to help organizations automate common document routing and approval procedures.