To try DocuShare on-line please visit our web site at www.xerox.com/docushare/
SUCCESS STORY
Web Based Solution Puts 
Law Firm in the Lead
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley LLP,
one of the largest law firms in the nation,
recently embarked on a technology journey
that will forever change how it conducts
business. With over 680 employees, 300 
of them attorneys, the firm practices all
types of business-related law from ten
locations on the East coast. The firm
prides itself on offering convenient and
responsive service, and has built it’s 
client strategy around this quality. 
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley also
recognized that timely, effective communication 
of information was a critical
deliverable in a geographically-dispersed
firm. State-of-the-art technology solutions
took a leading position in Blank Rome
Comisky & McCauley’s customer 
service strategy with the addition of
Xerox DocuShare. 
Improved collaboration and ease of handling 
documents for clients was the top
priority. The e-mail systems needed to 
be harnessed, and pockets of information
unified under a corporate-wide intranet
to optimize distribution to employees,
clients, and specialists. For nearly a year
and a half, the firm searched for the right
document management application to
meet these criteria. The firm had already
successfully outsourced its mail and copy
center functions to Xerox, and was interested 
to learn more about the document
management solutions Xerox had to offer.
In response to this request, the Xerox
sales team proposed the implementation
of a document management system using
DocuShare as the document repository,
and the Xerox DigiPath solution to convert
hard copy documents to searchable
objects prior to uploading to the repository.
Anthony Hazboun, Manager for Advanced
Services, Xerox Business Services, indicated 
that the objective of the solution 
was twofold: First, to break down the 
barriers that blocked information flow
among team members at different locations, 
in different organizations, and with
different computer platforms; Second, 
to help attorneys manage specifications,
briefs, proposals, and other critical documents 
that are typically created and used 
collaboratively, and that required version
control and revision tracking. 
“My initial reaction was love at first sight.”
said Laurence Liss, Chief Technology
Officer for Blank Rome Comisky &
McCauley. “DocuShare’s internet 
orientation was very desirable and helped
us establish a readily maintainable and
affordable means of communicating with
our clients. The pricing looked excellent,
especially when one considers that many
performance benefits and features not
available competitively-priced applications 
are included.”
As a law firm, Blank Rome Comisky 
& McCauley is committed to service. 
Attorneys compare the firm to concierge 
service, committed to quality, speed, 
cost-efficiency, opportunity-creation 
and teamwork. DocuShare neatly aligns
with the firm’s philosophy. “The system
provides members of the firm and our
clients the ability to collaborate from 
anywhere in the world, securely across
the Internet using a standard web browser
. This provides a unique, value-added
service for our clients. Using this tool 
we believe we will obtain important 
productivity improvements for both 
attorneys and support staff,” said Liss. 
Xerox DocuShare Helps Set 
New Standards for Service at 
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley
DocuShare has been integrated with Blank
Rome Comisky & McCauley intranet presence,
offering a seamless transition from straight
web pages to a secure, easily-maintained 
document repository
In just a few months DocuShare has proved to
be the most effective method for sharing
information amongst co-workers and clients
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley has
embraced the Internet as a means for 
reaching clients and sharing information
To try DocuShare on-line please visit our web site at www.xerox.com/docushare/
SUCCESS STORY
Xerox DocuShare Helps Set 
New Standards for Service at 
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley
The full text search capabilities and 
the electronic storage of documents 
can save clients thousands of dollars. 
“I am working with a client on a business
transaction worth over $35 million,” 
stated Larry Beaser, former counsel to a
Pennsylvania governor, former Chancellor
for the Philadelphia’s Bar Association and
a member of the Blank Rome Comisky &
McCauley Technology Committee. “We
measured the growth of associated documents 
in inches each day; by the end of
1997 the stack of documentation was over
four feet high. We could not adequately
track down specific information in the
paperwork. If someone needed an 
interpretation of a document it would 
take a staff member or me a significant
amount of time to pull together the information. 
The paperwork was difficult to
manage. With DocuShare, I am able to
find specific information with just a few
mouse clicks, saving time and money,”
continued Mr. Beaser. 
“Before DocuShare, collaboration was 
difficult, involving a combination of 
e-mail and faxing. We had between 
15 and 20 servers, each with its own 
document management configuration.
Novell shared directories provided limited
access internally, and did not allow us to
share information outside of the office 
at all. Additionally, we faced the security
and data integrity problems associated
with e-mail and attachments,” said Mr.
Liss.
“Previously, I lugged home information
every day, but now I can log on to the
Internet at home and access any information 
I need,” stated Mr. Beaser. “As an
attorney, it is important to track successful
actions. I might spend an hour or so 
getting a phrase to read just right.
DocuShare’s version control function
helps to track the history of one’s work.
Additionally, I have been able to easily
teach my clients to use it, giving everyone
access to the same documents.” 
“We recognized Blank Rome Comisky &
McCauley needed a solution which
crossed all media, all document types, 
all storage and delivery mechanisms,”
stated Mr. Hazboun. “As multiple 
type objects can be stored within the
DocuShare repository, attorneys can
search both digitally created and hardcopy 
documents in a single swoop. Stored
objects or documents can be viewed at
the attorney’s desktop, routed to the 
local desktop printer or, for large print 
volumes, output on the 135 pages per
minute Xerox DocuTech printer in the
centralized copy shop. A robust, sustainable 
solution which meets Blank Rome
Comisky & McCauley’s highly-specific
needs was crafted using off-the-shelf
Xerox applications and hardware.”
“DocuShare maps to the way people 
work today, sharing information across
geographical, functional and system
boundaries. In the spirit of the Web,
DocuShare creates a common ground
among users. Regardless of technology
expertise, each can participate in the 
collaborative process of developing and
sharing information,” said Doug McLean,
vice president, sales and marketing, Xerox
Internet and Software Solutions (XISS). 
DocuShare was implemented in less than
To try DocuShare on-line please visit our web site at www.xerox.com/docushare/
four months, using the firm’s training
staff in cooperation with Xerox. “We first
determined what needed to be taught:
how would the user benefit from the
technology and how would we demonstrate 
practical ways to use it,” said 
Diane O. McCullough, training manager
for Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley.
“From this we selected the topics to train
people in, and determined the amount 
of time required, keeping in mind that
attorneys and paralegals bill for their
time and classroom time takes away from
their billable hours. We set aside 2 hours
for the DocuShare training, with our one
hour internet browser class being a prerequisite. 
A trainer from Xerox taught 
our IT staff onsite in 2 sessions: a general
user training class, then an administrative
class. We then identified a beta group and
trained that department. We then trained
the rest of the firm with 2 trainers in an
18-seat classroom, giving them total
hands-on training.”
(Continued)
Even the most detailed information is stored within
DocuShare in a structured, easily-accessible manner
for maximum usability
Copyright © 2000 Xerox® Corporation. All rights reserved. Xerox®, The Document Company®, the digital X and DocuShare® are trademarks of Xerox Corporation. 
All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies and are recognized as such. 
P/N 610P65227 2/00
Overall, Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley’s
staff had an easy time learning to use
DocuShare. “Because of the browser
interface and the ease of use, it only took
a few hours for most people to master the
application. Sometimes it would only take
minutes for someone to feel comfortable
with DocuShare,” said McCullough.
“After our people realized how easy it
was to collaborate with their clients over
the Internet, they really took to DocuShare.
It makes collaboration much easier
because it is accessible immediately,
24/7, from anywhere you have an 
internet connection,” said McCullough.
Although DocuShare has been in place
less than a year, its use is growing
throughout the firm. One of the senior
partners who is on the Technology
Committee immediately started loading
his department’s forms into DocuShare
and, within a month, had over 700 
documents in the repository. The collaboration 
efforts within his department have
increased, and attorneys no longer have
to hunt down documents from previous 
transactions or amongst themselves. 
Another senior partner has scanned in
several binders worth of documents for
collaboration with his client. They are
scanned and saved in Adobe Acrobat 
PDF format, making it easy to perform 
a full-text search for key words with
DocuShare’s built-in search tools. This
has eliminated several file drawers of
paper. Attorneys who often work from
remote sites use DocuShare to access
forms and documents, rather than dialing
in to their PCs at the office. A popular
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley
DocuShare collection is the useful web
sites section. Diane McCullough created
hyperlinks to hundreds of web sites of
specific interest to the firm. Attorneys 
and staff now routinely reference this 
collection first when doing research. 
DocuShare also contributes to enhanced
communication between the different
groups at Blank Rome & McCauley 
creating an environment of improved
“community spirit.” The firm’s internal
news bulletin, published 3 times a 
week, now gets posted to the “Firm
Communications” area in DocuShare 
and people access and read the bulletin 
at their convenience, from anywhere.
This has eliminated the copying and 
distribution of this formerly paper-based
document, reducing time, cost, and labor.
Back issues are also available online,
archived in DocuShare and fully searchable 
should anyone need to find specific
information contained in an older edition.
DocuShare is also used to advertise items
for sale, birth/death announcements,
sporting activities, and other social 
activities that previously resulted in
numerous e-mails. 
Clearly, DocuShare is giving Blank Rome
Comisky & McCauley an edge in service.
Not only is it making their work more
manageable, it is providing clients cost
savings while improving collaboration
among its legal teams and their clients.
Staying ahead of the competition means
doing things more efficiently, using 
fewer resources, but most importantly it
means being the best in your profession.
Capitalizing on the benefits of technology,
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley are
confidently setting the standard for legal
service in to the 21st century.
FOR MORE INFORMATION 
OR TO ORDER DOCUSHARE
Please contact your authorized 
Xerox Channel Partner or Xerox sales 
representative. Or call the DocuShare
sales department directly:
United States: 1-800-428-2995
Outside U.S.: 1-650-813-7279
Europe: +44 1488 657686
Questions? Comments? E-mail us at 
xissinfo@pahv.xerox.com or visit our 
web site at www.xerox.com/docushare/
HOW THEY DO IT
DocuShare is installed on a server
running Windows NT 4.0 and
Microsoft IIS. The firm also uses
Novell's 4.11 network operating
system. Users access DocuShare
from their Windows 95 desktop
systems using their web browsers.
The overall installation serves
nearly 700 users in ten locations
via an 800-node network.
To try DocuShare on-line please visit our web site at www.xerox.com/docushare/
“Previously I lugged home 
information every day, but now 
I can log onto the Internet at
home and access any 
information I need.”
Larry Beaser, Partner,
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley
(Continued)