30 November 2007

We are happy to announce that the new revamped Advice and Assistance Online account is now available. We believe the new service is much improved and easier to use than before.

The Online account allows you to Create and Submit ,View History, Receive Decision Messages, Create Offer Negotiations and also allows you to print accounts and offers.

If you have not used the Online account before, this is now an ideal time to try it and benefit from automatic calculation of fees, and quicker turnaround times on, the online account target is currently 14 days.

You can see a demonstration of the new online account below.

Some of the service's features and changes are:

Key Features

• Re-use of known data
• Validation on entry
• Pick lists available
• Time and line automatic calculation of fees - linked to fees tables
• Conjoining and apportioning built in
• Authorised expenditure limit clearly displayed as account is compiled
• Automatic calculation and breakdown of totals
• Automatic reordering of entries
• Facility to save draft and edit.

Key Improvements

• You can now print accounts and offers
• The main account entry page has been revamped to display the account as a list as you are creating the entries
• Any conjoined calculations are displayed as the account is being created
• The account synopsis questions have all been changed to reflect the paper synopsis changes
• The overall speed and performance has been improved
• The offer screen has been improved to make it easier to use

Existing Account Users
We apologise for any inconvenience caused to firms who were previously using the online account whilst we developed this new improved version.

You will now be able to continue using the online account and we hope you agree that this version is an improvement of the previous version.

As well as new cases you will also be able to create an online account for any case that already exists online.

We would welcome your comments and feedback on the new improved service.

Please do not hesitate to contact Diane or Pat if you require any assistance in using the new version.

Firms who would like to start using the account
Using the online account is simple. You should view our demonstration - use the link below - on how the online account works.

You will automatically have access to the online account via the create account link on the left hand menu or via the account tab in the view case screens. You can then start using the online account to create accounts for existing online cases and new online cases.

You can contact Diane or Pat if you require any assistance.

Demonstration Movie
The purpose of the movie is to demonstrate the main changes and improvements in the new account which will allow you to continue using the online account with minimum disruption.  The account demonstration also contains instructions and hints for new users.

View the demonstration now

If you have any difficulty in viewing this format, you can see the demonstration now in a different format - this format will ask you to open the file before you can view it.

How to view the movie
Select the link provided. You can monitor the progress via the progress bar. You can also control the movies with the playback control buttons provided at the bottom of the screen:

• Play: plays the movie / or restarts it if Pause has been clicked
• Back: moves you back one step per click
• Forward: moves you forward one step per click
• Pause: pauses the movie until Play is clicked
• X: Exit, closes the movie window
• Rewind: Restarts the movie from the beginning

Contact details for any queries
Pat O'Connor - 0131 240 1892
Diane Ireland - 0131 240 2013

We look forward to hearing your feedback on the revised Online account service - and please do get in touch if you have any questions on using it.

Diane Ireland
Legal Aid Online Marketing Manager