Suppose you have an international takeover bound to strict deadlines, where the various parties are in different locations. Suppose moreover that one of the parties involved is a listed company, and the timing of the deal is relevant in view of the closing of the stock exchange. These are special challenges that create a lot of (additional) pressure since it is often a race against time to get all the necessary documents ready for signing on time. And then the signing still has to happen… This challenge is familiar to many lawyers involved in mergers and acquisitions. After all, collecting the necessary signatures is not easy — in other legal cases either. The lawyers at ConSenso, however, no longer have to lose any sleep over it, thanks to SignHere — so says Michiel Valkeners, corporate law attorney and partner at ConSenso.
ConSenso is a law firm with offices in Genk and Tongeren. The firm employs around 30 lawyers in various fields, assisted by a team of some 10 administrative staff members.
Like many law firms, ConSenso produces a lot of documents that require signatures. “It is difficult to put a figure on it, but it will not surprise anyone that a legal case involves a lot of paperwork,” Valkeners explains.
Many of those documents require signatures or initials on each page – quite a challenge. “It is not always easy to collect all signatures and initials, especially in complex cases where a lot of documents, and therefore a lot of pages, have to be signed by different parties,” Mr Valkeners says.
The office had therefore been looking for a while for a solution that would allow them to sign documents efficiently. The search gained momentum when the coronavirus emerged and physical meetings were no longer possible, making it even more challenging to get all the documents signed (simultaneously).
“We looked at various tools, but SignHere stood out for us,” Mr Valkeners underscores. “Some tools, for example, only work with signing by electronic identity card, but not everyone has a card reader at hand — certainly not when working from home. Other tools go no further than a simple electronic signature, but these do not have the same legal clout as a qualified signature. At SignHere we don’t have those limitations. In fact, they offer all options, so we can choose the signing method that best suits a particular document.”
That was not the only reason why ConSenso chose SignHere. The quality of the service also proved to be a decisive factor. “During our search for the perfect tool, the SignHere team stood out for their speed of action. After the first contact we quickly had a kick-off meeting, where they immediately explained the possibilities of the platform to us. We then received a quick response to every question we had,” says Valkeners. “That show of professionalism and flexibility, and the fact that we can contact their helpdesk 24/7 with questions, gave us the confidence to go with SignHere.”
SignHere has already amply proved its added value at ConSenso, and not only in the international case mentioned in the introduction. It has also proven its worth in all the other cases that are reviewed on a daily basis. “It is also just so simple and user-friendly. With one simple action you can sign all the pages of a document in one go,” says a convinced Mr Valkeners.
In the meantime, SignHere has become firmly established within the law firm. The tool is used daily to have all sorts of documents signed, Mr Valkeners attests. “From purchase and sales agreements to minutes of general meetings, not a day goes by without us using the SignHere platform. We even use it to have our fee contracts signed by the client. And contracts with new colleagues or trainees also go through SignHere. The tool is so easy to use. Everything is self-explanatory. It’s great to work with. Our clients think so too, by the way.”
Michiel Valkeners ‐ PartnerIt is also just so simple and user-friendly. With one simple action you can sign all the pages of a document in one go
