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| Deal Proof 3 | Utilities |
| Lawyers hate typos and
inconsistencies in documents. That is why we are masters of proofreading. However, if you
are tired, you can miss something. That is why you need Deal Proof. Deal Proof 3, from Expert Ease Software Inc., is an electronic proofreader and summary tool. It doesn’t check your spelling, which should be checked by your word processing software, but it does help ensure your documents are consistent and error-free. When you run Deal Proof on a Word or WordPerfect document, it will check to make sure referenced definitions exist, terms are defined only once, a defined term is actually used in a document, and the definition is actually in the section where it’s supposed to be. For example, if you use the term “CPI” in your document, but don’t include a definition, Deal Proof will flag the error. If you indicate “CPI” is defined in a specific section, but the definition isn’t there, Deal Proof also will flag the error. Deal Proof also will:
The program even caught an error in the 11th draft of a document, flagging an inconsistent wording of “such extension option” in one place and “such extension” in another. Deal Proof’s Version 3 has several new features legal professionals will enjoy. Now, you can check documents besides transactional documents, such as litigation, real estate and tax documents. You also can directly access statutes and cases cited in your documents with links to Lexis and Westlaw. The QuickSift research tool, lets you search public and private databases to locate model language for your agreements (searching the Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR database for stock transaction clauses). Errors now are presented in one dialog instead of several (although the multiple dialogs still are available), which makes it easier to view your errors. You also can scroll through flags one at a time, like a spelling checker. After you finish going through the individual flags, you easily can clean them out. The program installs effortlessly into Word or WordPerfect. It then creates a toolbar icon in Word 97/2000, so you can use it easily on an open document in Word. I didn’t encounter any problems when I installed and ran the software using Word 2000. But the product does have a few flaws. Deal Proof has a feature for checking for incorrect section references, but it’s turned off. In other words, the feature appears on screen but nothing happens when you click on it. The product designers included the feature in an early edition of Version 1, according to the company. But they decided not to make it usable until they perfected it. The company can activate the feature for free and plans to make the feature active in a later version. If you don’t use auto cross-references in your word processing program, you need this feature to ensure accuracy. Deal Proof is also quite expensive. A single user license costs $1,650, plus an additional 20 percent per year for support (e.g., if you paid $1,500 a license, a year’s worth of support costs $300). This may be more than you are willing to pay. Also, it may be overkill in many situations. You may not need it to check your short documents, or standard forms that have been checked by several people. But, if you are interested in squashing errors in your documents, then Deal Proof is the software you need. There is only one real proofreading program, and that is Deal Proof. |
Expert Ease Software Inc. (800) 488-6996 www.expertease.com Price: Single User: $1,650; discounts for buying more licenses Microsoft Windows 95/98/NT 4.0/2000/ME Reviewed by Richard C. Belthoff Jr., chief operations counsel at Compass Group USA Inc., in Charlotte, N.C. PROS CONS VERDICT |
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