Nottingham City Council has appointed AIM Professional Systems to supply and implement time recording, database and case management software applications for its legal services division.

Fifty lawyers and 20 support staff within the division will be using AIM's Evolution product in order to streamline business processes, improve the collection and storage of data, and increase efficiency.

The move is part of a drive to obtain accreditation with the Lexcel quality standard.

AIM will be implementing the software in three phases, starting with time recording, so that staff can gradually build their confidence in using the system.

Lette Baker, practice manager at Nottingham City Council, said: "We will be able to reduce the pressure on individuals facing excessive administration duties and create free time for them to concentrate on the professional content of their work. This improves confidence in the division and helps us meet productivity targets."

She added: "It was important that we selected a system that was not only easy to use for case progressing but demonstrated council-specific terminology and features."