OTR-Legal Case Studies

OTR-Group has for over 20 years assisted clients involved in litigation and provides teams of highly qualified practitioners from diverse technical disciplines to support a wide range of legal actions. OTR-Legal also provides an in-depth analysis and review service of ICT contracts, to ensure clients maximise the services being provided and do not get caught out by any hidden terms or restrictions. Below are a few examples of the clients we have worked for and the value we have added.

Previous OTR-Legal clients include:

• One of the UK's largest Department Store: As part of a larger assessment project, OTR-Legal reviewed over 150 of the retailer’s major ICT contracts with over 40 suppliers, alongside its contract management processes. The review highlighted a number of areas for improvement, particularly in the management and documentation of Contract Variations. In addition, various problems relating to duplication, expiration and mismanagement of contracts were also exposed and remedied. As a result of using our services the retailer was able to streamline its contract management process and make considerable savings in hardware leasing costs.

• A major UK-based Chartered Surveyors: OTR-Legal provides this organisation with a bespoke contract review service, available at the client's discretion. When needed, OTR-Legal provides targeted comment on a contract before it is signed, highlighting clauses that could prove troublesome, that are too restrictive or that are irrelevant. We ensure that expectations are matched and where possible and if relevant, we provide alternative wordings for the problematic clauses.

• The European Commission: OTR-Legal provided technical advice to the Commission in its anti-trust case against Microsoft. We examined all aspects of the technology and contractual restrictions that limited OEMs' ability to integrate with Windows Media Player. With our technical assistance and presence at the Court of First Instance, the case was proved and Microsoft was heavily fined. OTR-Group has also fostered close relations with the European Commission. OTR-Group assisted the Directorate General XIII (Telecommunications, Information Industry and Innovation) of the EC to draft the contractual documents for signature by the participants in the COSINE project. OTR-Group has also advised Commission officials responsible for EC competition policy on the structure and dynamics of the EC software industry.

• A large UK-based Confectionery Manufacturer: We examined all aspects of their contract with SAP, highlighting contractual inconsistencies that saved them over £7,000,000 on their worldwide licensing agreements.

• In addition, we also worked for BP, reviewing their SAP contracts and identifying substantial savings and for HMRC, where we provided benchmarking services for 9 years, regularly providing over £1,000,000 in contract savings.

MAKE CONTRACTS WORK FOR YOU

Whether it is one individual contract, or every contract an organisation has in effect, OTR-Legal is able to provide a comprehensive review service. This can encompass contract comparison to ensure there are no overlaps in service provision to templates and filling advice to ensure there is consistency between contracts and change requests, making it easier to manage all active contracts.

OTR-Legal can provide a detailed review of all clauses and conditions alongside advice on how contracts are managed and variations are incorporated.  It is a common trick of ICT service providers to include restrictive terms and clauses in a contract that the customer often overseas, only to find their hands tied behind their back by these very clauses at a later date. OTR-Legal has a wealth of experienced staff and associates, built up over many years, to ensure that the right expertise is applied to the right case, at the right time. OTR-Group's significant cross-market experience is available to guarantee that a client's needs are fully researched and addressed, furthermore. OTR-Group is entirely independent from other consultancies and suppliers.