Processing device, processing program, and processing method

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a processing device, a processing program, and a processing method capable of performing processing more efficiently on the basis of a legal document. [Solution] At least one processor executes processing for: acquiring legal document information relating to the content of a legal document including one or more parties; evaluating the credit status of at least one of the one or more parties on the basis of the acquired legal document information before a finalization procedure is executed on the legal document; and determining whether or not the finalization procedure included in the legal document can be executed.

Description

Processing Device, Processing Program, and Processing Method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a processing device, a processing program, and a processing method configured to process based on legal documents.

[0002] Conventionally, a system for acquiring matters described in a contract and performing a review regarding the contract has been proposed. For example, in Patent Document 1, "scoring means for calculating an evaluation score obtained by quantifying the creditworthiness of a lessee of a leased property based on description item data described in a predetermined lease contract request form created in advance and credit information data of a lessor of the leased property related to the lease contract, and a review for determining whether or not the lease contract request satisfies a predetermined approval criterion based on the description items described in the lease contract request form and the evaluation score calculated by the scoring means; and lease contract approval means for approving the lease contract request when the review means determines that the approval criterion is satisfied; and contract document creation means for calculating a lease fee based on the description items described in the lease contract request form and automatically creating a lease contract document with the lessee (lease contract party). An information processing system for supporting a lease contract characterized by including each means" is described.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-195516

[0004] Therefore, based on the above-described technology, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a processing device, a processing program, and a processing method that can be processed more efficiently based on legal documents according to various embodiments.

[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, "a processing device including at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor acquires legal document information related to the content of a legal document including one or more parties, and evaluates the credit status of at least one of the one or more parties based on the acquired legal document information before a finalization procedure for the legal document is executed, and is configured to execute a process for determining whether or not execution of the finalization procedure included in the legal document is possible" is provided.

[0006] This disclosure provides a processing device, a processing program, and a processing method that can process legal documents more efficiently.

[0007] The effects described above are merely illustrative for the sake of explanation and are not limiting. In addition to, or in lieu of, any other effects described herein or that would be obvious to those skilled in the art may be achieved.

[0008] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a processing system 1 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3A is a conceptual diagram showing a party management table stored in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3B is a conceptual diagram showing a document management table stored in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5A is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5B is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5C is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in the server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of a request form screen 20 output by a terminal device 200 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of a legal document input screen 10 output by a terminal device 200 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0009] 1. Overview of Processing System 1 The Processing System 1 relating to this disclosure is a system used to evaluate the creditworthiness of parties included in a legal document. In particular, the Processing System 1 of this embodiment acquires legal document information related to the content of the legal document and evaluates the creditworthiness of the parties based on the acquired legal document information before any confirmation procedures (e.g., contract signing procedures) are performed on the legal document. Furthermore, the Processing System 1 of this embodiment determines whether or not it is possible to perform the confirmation procedures based on the evaluated creditworthiness.

[0010] Such a processing system 1 can efficiently perform evaluation-related processing to assess the creditworthiness of the parties from legal document information. Furthermore, processing system 1 can efficiently determine whether or not the confirmation procedure can be carried out based on the creditworthiness assessed by processing system 1. In particular, by performing such evaluations and determinations before the confirmation procedure is carried out, processing system 1 can prevent the confirmation procedure from being carried out without such evaluations and determinations being made.

[0011] Here, an example of the legal document mentioned above is a contract, and the parties mentioned above are those who are counterparties to the contract. Also, as an example, the procedure for confirming a legal document is the procedure for concluding a contract. Also, as an example, the conclusion procedure is carried out electronically. Therefore, processing system 1 can efficiently evaluate the creditworthiness of the counterparty to the contract from the legal document information extracted from the contract. Furthermore, processing system 1 can efficiently determine whether or not to conclude the contract based on the evaluated creditworthiness.

[0012] Furthermore, examples of creditworthiness include the circumstances surrounding the transactional risks of the parties, more specifically, whether or not the parties belong to anti-social forces or the creditworthiness of the parties. Therefore, processing system 1 can efficiently perform these processes by evaluating whether or not such transactional risks apply based on legal document information and determining whether or not to proceed with the confirmation procedure based on the result of that evaluation. In particular, processing system 1 can perform evaluations and determinations based on transactional risks before the confirmation procedure is executed, thereby enabling the execution of transactions with sufficient consideration of such risks.

[0013] Furthermore, information identifying the parties whose creditworthiness is to be assessed is extracted from legal document information and information entered into request forms to request registration of those parties. Therefore, in processing system 1, information regarding the parties required for assessment and determination is extracted from legal document information and information obtained from request forms that are configured to appropriately acquire the information necessary for determination, thus enabling efficient processing.

[0014] Furthermore, for example, when a first user performs a process related to evaluating the creditworthiness of a certain party for their own benefit, and a second user requests a determination of whether or not a confirmation procedure can be performed for the same party, the creditworthiness evaluation performed for the first user will be used. In addition, such use will not be permitted without restriction, but will only be allowed if at least one of the first or second user permits it. Therefore, processing system 1 will be able to operate the results of the creditworthiness evaluation efficiently and safely.

[0015] In this disclosure, a legal document is a document that includes one or more parties. Examples of such legal documents include various types of documents such as contracts, invoices, quotations, notices, notarized documents, rules, regulations, notifications, or consent forms. Furthermore, legal documents are not limited to the language in which they are written, such as Japanese, English, Chinese, or a combination thereof. In this disclosure, contracts are given as a suitable example of a legal document. Examples of such contracts include confidentiality agreements, service agreements, basic transaction agreements, development outsourcing agreements, license agreements, gift agreements, sales agreements, lease agreements, settlement agreements, or joint research agreements, as well as various forms of documents such as memoranda, rules, regulations, agreements, applications, purchase orders, requests, promissory notes, or acceptances that can prove the above facts or the formation of an agreement. In the following, a service agreement will be given as an example of contract information, but it is not limited to this.

[0016] Furthermore, in this disclosure, legal document information refers to information related to the content of the legal documents exemplified above. Such legal document information may be in any format, such as document data format, presentation data format, image data format, print layout data format, or text data format obtained by extracting text information from files of these formats, as long as the information is obtained from the legal document. In addition, legal document information does not have to be all the information contained in the legal document, but may be only a part of the information contained in the legal document.

[0017] Furthermore, in this disclosure, a confirmation procedure is a procedure performed in relation to a legal document. Such confirmation procedures are, for example, procedures that substantially confirm the content of a legal document or substantially confirm the execution of an action stipulated in a legal document based on its content. Examples of such procedures include conclusion, payment, settlement, ordering, agreement, consent, acceptance, approval, or a combination thereof. These confirmation procedures may be performed electronically or through physical media such as paper documents. The following explanation will focus on the case of concluding a contract electronically, but it is not limited to this.

[0018] Furthermore, in this disclosure, "user" can include either an individual or an organization. For example, it may refer to an organization such as a business operator, or it may refer to an individual belonging to such an organization. Therefore, a party management table may be provided for each user, but it may also be provided on an individual basis or on an organizational basis such as a business operator. Also, the terminal device 200 is a terminal that can be used by a user, but it may be used by an individual or by an organization such as a business operator (in this case, strictly speaking, it could also be said that it is used by an individual belonging to the organization).

[0019] 2. Diagram 1 of the configuration of the processing system 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the processing system 1 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. According to Figure 1, the processing system 1 includes at least a server device 100 and a terminal device 200, and each device is connected to communicate via a wired or wireless network. When the server device 100 obtains legal document information related to the content of a legal document obtained from the terminal device 200, it evaluates the creditworthiness of the parties included in the legal document and determines whether or not it is possible to perform the confirmation procedure. The terminal device 200 accepts user input via an input interface to input legal documents and displays various information (e.g., determination result information) received from the server device 100.

[0020] In this disclosure, the processing unit means a server device 100, a terminal device 200, or a combination thereof. That is, the following description will focus on the case where the server device 100 functions as a processing unit, but the terminal device 200 can also function as a processing unit in the same way. Furthermore, in this disclosure, the storage and processing performed by the processing unit may be distributed to other terminal devices or other server devices. In other words, the processing unit is not limited to those consisting of a single enclosure, but includes the server device 100, the terminal device 200, other server devices, other terminal devices, or a combination thereof.

[0021] Furthermore, although only one terminal device 200 is shown in Figure 1, multiple users can utilize the processing system 1. That is, the terminal device 200 is not limited to just one, and may include multiple terminal devices 200 depending on the number of users.

[0022] 3. Configuration Diagram 2 of the Server Device 100 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. According to Figure 2, the server device 100 includes a processor 111, a memory 112, and a communication interface 113. Each of these components is electrically connected to the others via control lines and data lines. The server device 100 does not need to have all of the components shown in Figure 2; it is possible to omit some components or add other components. For example, it is possible to use an external memory connected via communication as memory, or a database device or other server device. It is also possible to distribute and execute some processing with processing devices, including other server devices. In other words, the server device 100 is not limited to a single device, but also includes cases where it is distributed across multiple devices depending on the handling of information and the processing load.

[0023] The processor 111 functions as a control unit that controls other components of the processing system 1 based on processing programs stored in memory 112. Based on the processing programs stored in memory 112, the processor 111 acquires legal document information, evaluates the creditworthiness of the parties included in the legal document, and determines whether or not the final proceedings can be carried out. Specifically, it executes processes such as "acquiring legal document information related to the content of a legal document containing one or more parties," "evaluating the creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties included in the legal document before the final proceedings for the legal document are carried out," and "determining whether or not the final proceedings can be carried out based on the evaluated creditworthiness," based on the processing programs stored in memory 112. The processor 111 is mainly composed of one or more CPUs, but may be combined with GPUs, FPGAs, etc. as appropriate.

[0024] Memory 112 is composed of RAM, ROM, non-volatile memory, HDD, SSD, etc., and functions as a storage unit that stores various information. Memory 112 stores instruction commands for various controls of the processing system 1 according to this embodiment as processing programs. Specifically, memory 112 stores programs for processor 111 to execute, such as "a process to acquire legal document information related to the content of a legal document including one or more parties," "a process to evaluate the creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties included in a legal document before the confirmation procedure for the legal document is executed," and "a process to determine whether or not the confirmation procedure can be executed based on the evaluated creditworthiness." In addition to these programs, memory 112 also stores various information stored in a party management table, a document management table, etc. Note that this information does not need to be always stored in memory 112 within the server device 100, but may be stored in a database device installed remotely. In that case, the database device is also included in memory 112.

[0025] The communication interface 113 functions as a notification unit for sending and receiving various types of information with a terminal device 200 connected via a wired or wireless network. Examples of the communication interface 113 include wired communication connectors such as USB and SCSI, wireless communication transceivers such as wireless LAN, Bluetooth®, LTE, and infrared, and various connection terminals for printed circuit boards and flexible circuit boards. For example, the communication interface 113 receives document information from the terminal device 200 and transmits judgment result information to the terminal device 200.

[0026] 4. Other Devices The configuration of the terminal device 200 includes, for example, a processor that functions as a control unit, a memory that functions as a storage unit, an input interface that functions as an input unit, an output interface that functions as an output unit, and a communication interface that functions as a communication unit. Each of these components is electrically connected to each other via control lines and data lines. The terminal device 200 does not need to have all of these components; it is possible to omit some or add other components. The terminal device 200 can be any device that can communicate with the server device 100 via a wired or wireless network, and smartphones, tablet devices, laptop PCs, desktop PCs, scanners, cameras, and multifunction printers can be used as terminal devices 200. As mentioned above, if there are multiple users, multiple terminal devices 200 will be used for each user, but each terminal device 200 may be of a different type. Also, it is not necessarily required that there be one terminal device 200 for each user; multiple users may use one terminal device 200, or one user may use multiple terminal devices 200.

[0027] The terminal device 200 inputs legal documents via an input interface by processing a program stored in memory using its processor, and transmits legal document information obtained from the legal documents to the server device 100 via a communication interface. Specifically, the processor of the terminal device 200 photographs legal documents via a camera that functions as an input interface, and inputs the captured image data as legal document information. The processor of the terminal device 200 also receives user input via an operation unit such as a touch panel that functions as an input interface, and inputs a file in the selected document format as legal document information. Furthermore, the processor of the terminal device 200 captures image data of a document via a scanner unit via an operation unit such as a touch panel that functions as an input interface, and inputs the captured image data as legal document information. The processor of the terminal device 200 transmits the document information input in this manner to the server device via a communication interface.

[0028] The terminal device 200, for example, processes a program stored in memory using its processor, and further outputs various output information received via the communication interface through the output interface. Specifically, the processor of the terminal device 200 receives judgment result information indicating whether or not a confirmation procedure can be executed from the server device 100 via the communication interface, and outputs this screen to an output interface such as a display.

[0029] 5. Various Information Used in Processing System 1 Figure 3A is a conceptual diagram showing a party information table stored in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of this disclosure. According to Figure 3A, the party management table stores party name information, representative name information, contact information, party attribute information, anti-social group check information, and credit check information (an example of credit status) in association with party ID information. The party management table can be managed separately for each user. That is, Figure 3A shows a party management table prepared for a user with user ID information "S1", but similarly, party management tables are also prepared for users "S2", "S3", "S4", etc. Furthermore, by allowing any user to access each party table, it is possible to use, for example, anti-social group check information and credit check information stored in the allowed party management table for other users. Users who have these separate party tables may be multiple users belonging to the same organization, or they may be users belonging to different organizations and unrelated to each other. A single party table can be used by multiple users who have access rights, such as belonging to the same organization. This allows multiple collaborating users to utilize a single party table.

[0030] "Party ID information" is unique information about a party included in a legal document, used to identify each party. Party ID information is generated by the server device 100 each time new party information is extracted, for example, from legal document information or information entered in a request form. Note that a party can be any individual or organization included in the legal document.

[0031] "Party name information" is information that indicates the names of the parties included in a legal document. Party name information may, for example, be the name of the individual or organization that is a party, but it may also be any other information that allows for the identification of the party, such as a personal number, corporate number, abbreviation of the individual or organization, or telephone number. Party name information is typically extracted by the server device 100 from legal document information or information entered into a request form.

[0032] "Representative information" refers to information that identifies the representative of a party included in a legal document. For example, representative information may be the name of the representative of an organization (e.g., a business or association), but any information that allows for the identification of the representative may be used, such as the representative's personal identification number, abbreviation, or telephone number. Representative information is typically extracted by the server device 100 from legal document information or information entered in a request form. It should be noted that the representative does not necessarily need to have the authority to represent the organization.

[0033] "Contact information" refers to information indicating the contact details of the parties involved. While contact information may include, for example, the parties' telephone numbers, any information that allows for contact is acceptable, such as an email address or social media account. Typically, contact information is extracted by the server device 100 from information entered in the request form, or entered via the input interface of the terminal device 200.

[0034] "Party attribute information" is information that indicates the attributes of a party. Examples of party attribute information include the party's address, website URL, or the name of the person in charge. Furthermore, when the server device 100 performs processing related to anti-social group checks and credit checks, various information used in these processes, such as arrest records, history of affiliation with anti-social forces, litigation history, administrative sanctions, reputation, public position, registration history on sanctions lists, performance, financial status, transaction history, or account information, may also be stored as party attribute information. In addition, party attribute information may include information about the party and its management.

[0035] "Anti-social force check information" is one aspect of a party's creditworthiness and is used to determine whether or not the legal procedures for confirming a legal document involving that party can be carried out. Examples of such anti-social force check information include the results of an assessment of whether the party in question, or its officers or employees, belong to or are suspected of having ties to anti-social forces. Evaluation criteria may include, for example, the Ministry of Justice's "Guidelines for Companies to Prevent Damage from Anti-Social Forces," organized crime exclusion ordinances established by each prefecture, and the user's compliance policy. Anti-social force check information is typically stored as classification information indicating either "suspected of being an anti-social force" or "not suspected of being an anti-social force," but it may also be stored as numerical information indicating the likelihood of a suspected relationship with anti-social forces, or as classification information of three or more categories such as "high," "medium," and "low." Furthermore, anti-social force check information does not necessarily have to match the facts regarding whether or not a party belongs to or is suspected of having ties to anti-social forces. Anti-social force check information is merely the result of an assessment, and the result may differ from the facts.

[0036] "Credit check information" is one aspect of a party's creditworthiness and is used to determine whether or not the legal procedures for confirming a legal document involving that party can be carried out. One example of such credit check information is information indicating financial creditworthiness. Credit check information is typically stored as classification information indicating either "doubtful about ability to pay" or "no doubt about ability to pay," but it may also be stored as information that numerically represents financial creditworthiness, or as classification information of three or more categories such as "high," "medium," and "low." Furthermore, credit check information does not necessarily have to match the facts. Credit check information is merely the result of an evaluation, and the result may differ from the facts.

[0037] Furthermore, in such a party management table, other information may be appropriately stored, such as information on each party's past transaction results or historical information on past valuation results for each party.

[0038] Figure 3B is a conceptual diagram showing a document management table stored in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. According to Figure 3B, the document management table stores party name information, document attribute information, content information, and status information in association with document ID information. It should be noted that the document party management table can be managed separately for each user. That is, Figure 3B shows a document management table prepared for a user with user ID information "S1", but similarly, document management tables are also prepared for users "S2", "S3", "S4", and so on.

[0039] "Document ID information" is information unique to each legal document and is used to identify each legal document. Document ID information is generated by the server device 100 each time a new legal document is acquired by the server device 100.

[0040] "Party name information" is information used to identify the parties included in each legal document, and is one of the legal document information related to the content of the legal document. For example, such party information may be the name of the individual or organization that is a party, but any information that can identify the party may be used, such as a personal number, corporate number, abbreviation of the individual or organization, or telephone number. Party name information is typically extracted by the server device 100 from legal document information or information entered in a request form.

[0041] "Document attribute information" is information that indicates the attributes of each legal document and is one of the legal document information related to the content of the legal document. Examples of such document attribute information include representative information, address information, type of legal document, title of legal document, transaction amount, contract start date, contract end date, whether or not it is automatically renewed, contract period, contract termination notice deadline, or contract signing date. Document attribute information may be entered by the user after receiving user input via the terminal device 200, or it may be extracted by the server device 100 that acquired the legal document by analyzing the content information of the legal document.

[0042] "Content information" is information related to the content of each legal document and is one of the legal document information related to the content of the legal document. Such content information includes, as an example, each information in the form of document data, presentation data, image data, print layout data obtained from a legal document, or text data obtained by extracting text information from files of these forms. That is, when the legal document is a contract, the content information typically includes the image data of the contract itself, the text data obtained by recognizing the text part from the image data, and the like. The content information does not necessarily include all of the legal document and may be only a part of the legal document.

[0043] "Status information" is information indicating the progress of the procedures related to each legal document. Such status information includes, as an example, the "preparation stage" which is the stage of drafting a legal document or pre-registering the parties included in the legal document, the "review stage" which is the stage where at least one of the parties reviews the content of the legal document in advance, and the "conclusion stage" which is the stage where procedures are carried out for the content of the legal document to be finalized. That is, when the legal document is a contract, the status information typically includes the contract preparation stage of pre-registering the parties included in the contract, the contract review stage of pre-reviewing the content of the contract, and the contract conclusion stage which is the stage where the contract signing procedure is carried out, corresponding to the preparation stage, the review stage, and the conclusion stage respectively.

[0044] In addition, in such a document management table, other information such as user ID information indicating the user who input each legal document or authority information indicating the authority of the user may be appropriately stored.

[0045] 6. Processing Flow Executed by Server Device 100 <Overall Processing Flow> Figure 4 is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, Figure 4 is a diagram showing a series of processing flows performed for handling legal documents. This processing flow is mainly performed by the processor 111 of the server device 100 reading and executing a program stored in memory 112. In the following, each process will be explained using a contract as an example of a legal document, but it is not limited to this.

[0046] As shown in Figure 4, the processor 111 performs preparatory processing (contract preparation processing) to register at least one of the parties included in the contract, which is a legal document, in the party management table (S111). Specifically, for example, when the processor 111 receives a registration request from a user, it generates party ID information and stores the necessary information in the party management table, and performs anti-social group checks and credit checks on the registered parties during the process. The processor 111 then evaluates the creditworthiness of the parties and stores the results in the party management table. The processor 111 also determines whether or not to proceed with the contract signing procedure based on the evaluated creditworthiness and outputs the result to the user.

[0047] Further details regarding the preparatory process (contract preparation process) will be explained in Figure 5A.

[0048] Next, the processor 111 executes a review process (contract review process) for reviewing the content of the legal document (S112). Specifically, the processor 111 acquires legal document information related to the content of the legal document including one or more parties and extracts information related to the one or more parties. Then, the processor 111 performs an anti-social check and a credit check on the extracted parties. When the processor 111 evaluates the credit status of the parties, it stores the result in the party management table. In addition, the processor 111 determines whether the contract conclusion procedure may be executed based on the evaluated credit status and outputs the result to the user.

[0049] Regarding the details of the review process (contract review process), it will be described again in FIG. 5B. Also, in FIG. 4, only the part related to the evaluation of the credit status among the processes performed by the processor 111 as the review process (contract review process) is described. Naturally, various processes such as the risk determination process of the legal document, the internal decision-making process of the user, the party, or the process related to the addition or correction of the legal document may be executed.

[0050] Next, the processor 111 executes a conclusion process (contract conclusion process) for finalizing the content of the legal document (S113). Specifically, the processor 111 extracts the information of the parties included in the legal document to execute the conclusion process. The processor 111 performs an anti-social check and a credit check on the extracted parties. When the processor 111 evaluates the credit status of the parties, it stores the result in the party management table. In addition, the processor 111 determines whether the contract conclusion procedure may be executed based on the evaluated credit status. If it may be executed, the execution of the conclusion process is continued.

[0051] Regarding the details of the conclusion process (contract conclusion process), it will be described again in FIG. 5C.

[0052] As shown in the processing flow of Figure 4, the creditworthiness of the parties is evaluated through anti-social group checks and credit checks before the legal document is finalized. Therefore, it is possible to reliably determine whether or not the finalization procedure can be executed based on the creditworthiness evaluated by the server device 100, enabling a more efficient determination and preventing the finalization procedure from being executed without evaluation or determination.

[0053] In Figure 4, the preparation, review, and signing processes are described as a series of steps, but this does not mean that each process is executed sequentially. Naturally, each process may be executed at any appropriate time interval.

[0054] <Details of Preparation Process (Contract Preparation Process)> Figure 5A is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of this disclosure. Specifically, Figure 5A is a diagram showing the detailed processing flow of the process executed in the preparation process (contract preparation process) of Figure 4. This processing flow is mainly carried out by the processor 111 of the server device 100 reading and executing a program stored in the memory 112. In the following, each process will be explained using a contract as an example of a legal document, but it is not limited to this.

[0055] According to Figure 5A, the processor 111 initiates the processing flow by receiving a party registration request from the terminal device 200 via the communication interface 113 to pre-register information of one or more parties included in a legal document (S211).

[0056] Here, Figure 6 shows an example of a request form screen 20 output by a terminal device 200 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, Figure 6 shows an example of a request form screen 20 output by the terminal device 200 via the output interface when a party registration request is sent. The processor of the terminal device 200 receives user input via the input interface and activates the party registration function. When the party registration function is activated, the processor of the terminal device 200 outputs the request form screen 20 via the output interface.

[0057] According to Figure 6, the request form screen 20 includes input boxes for entering party information, a back button 24 for canceling input and returning to the previous screen, and a send button 25 for sending the entered information. The input boxes include an address input box 21, a party name information input box 22, and a representative information input box 23, which are required to be entered as party information. The processor of the terminal device 200 accepts the user's selection of any of the input boxes 21 to 23 via the input interface and accepts the user's input of any string via the input interface. When input is made for each of the input boxes 21 to 23, the processor stores the entered string in memory.

[0058] As described above, the request form screen 20 includes a back button 24 and a submit button 25. When the processor receives user input for the back button 24 via the input interface, it deletes the arbitrary string information stored in memory and outputs the previously displayed screen via the output interface. On the other hand, when the processor receives user input for the submit button 25 via the input interface, it reads out the party information, which is an arbitrary string stored in memory, and sends the party information to the server device 100 as a party registration request via the communication interface.

[0059] As shown in Figure 6, the party information is pre-entered by the user via the request form screen 20, making it possible to efficiently perform the process related to evaluating creditworthiness.

[0060] Returning to Figure 5A, when the processor 111 receives a party registration request containing party information entered via the request form screen 20 in Figure 6 through the communication interface 113, it stores the received party information in the party management table (S212). Specifically, when the processor 111 receives party information, it refers to the party management table based on the entered address information, party name information, and representative information to check whether the same party information is already stored. If the same party information is not yet stored, the processor 111 generates new party ID information and stores the received address information (party attribute information), party name information, and representative information in the party management table in association with the new party ID information.

[0061] Here, for example, evaluating the creditworthiness of a party requires at least the party's name information and representative information. Therefore, the processor 111 checks whether the party information stored in association with the newly generated party ID information includes the party's name information and representative information (S213). If the information is not included, the processor 111 cannot evaluate the creditworthiness and outputs a warning to the terminal device 200 that sent the party registration request via the communication interface 113, indicating that the party information cannot be registered. On the other hand, if the party's name information and representative information are included, the processor 111 executes the processing related to the evaluation of the creditworthiness.

[0062] Specifically, the processor 111 first performs an anti-social group check (S214). This anti-social group check can be performed by any method, such as by the processor 111 performing it based on a predetermined first evaluation logic or by using a first trained evaluation model.

[0063] (A) Method of execution based on the first evaluation logic First, we will explain the method of execution based on the first evaluation logic. For example, the processor 111 accesses a database prepared externally via a communication interface and obtains party attribute information associated with the party name information and representative information from the party information stored in S212. Then, the processor 111 evaluates each piece of information based on predetermined evaluation criteria based on the obtained party attribute information. An example of such evaluation criteria is as follows.

[0064] - If the representative has a criminal record, 5 points are added. - If the representative has a history of affiliation with anti-social forces, 20 points are added. - If the party has a history of litigation or administrative sanctions, 2 points are added. - If the representative holds a high public position, 3 points are added. - If the party is registered on a sanctions list, 15 points are added.

[0065] The processor 111 adds points based on the above evaluation criteria using the party attribute information. If the total points reach a certain number (for example, 20 points) or more, it determines that the person is "suspected of being an anti-social force," and if the total points are lower than that number, it determines that the person is "not suspected of being an anti-social force."

[0066] (B) Method of execution using the first pre-trained evaluation model Next, a method of execution using the first pre-trained evaluation model will be described. For example, the processor 111 accesses a database prepared externally via a communication interface and, based on the party name information and representative information stored in S212, obtains party attribute information associated with the party name information and representative information. Then, the processor 111 inputs the obtained party attribute information into the first pre-trained evaluation model and obtains a numerical value from the first pre-trained evaluation model as an output value indicating the possibility of a suspected relationship with anti-social forces.

[0067] Here, the first trained evaluation model is generated as follows, for example. First, the processor 111 acquires one or more party attribute information for training as training party attribute information. Examples of such training party attribute information include arrest records, history of affiliation with anti-social forces, litigation records, administrative sanctions, reputation, public position, or history of registration on sanctions lists. Then, the processor 111 assigns a correct label to each training party attribute information indicating whether or not the person is suspected of being an anti-social force. Once the labeling is complete, the processor 111 performs machine learning of evaluation patterns for whether or not the person is suspected of being an anti-social force using the training party attribute information and the correct label information. This machine learning is performed, for example, by providing these sets of information to a neural network made up of neurons and repeatedly training while adjusting the parameters of each neuron so that the output from the neural network is the same as the correct label information. Once the parameter adjustment is complete, the processor 111 acquires the trained evaluation model. The acquired first trained evaluation model may be stored in the memory 112 of the server device 100 or in another device connected to the server device 100 via a wired or wireless network.

[0068] While the above uses a neural network as the learning mechanism, it is also possible to use learning mechanisms other than neural networks, such as convolutional neural networks, multilayer perceptrons (MLP), LSTM (Long Short Term Memory), GRU (Gated Recurrent Unit), GNN (Graph Neural Network), and Transformer; gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) methods such as LightGBM (Light Gradient Boosting Machine), XGBoost, and CatBoost; and learning mechanisms using ridge regression, logistic regression, support vector regression (SVR), nearest neighbor, decision trees, regression trees, and random forests.

[0069] Furthermore, while the above describes a first pre-trained evaluation model generated by training a set of training party attribute information and correct labels, it is also possible to use a first pre-trained evaluation model that utilizes deep learning, such as a generative pre-trained model. Among such generative pre-trained models, a pre-trained model called a Large Language Model (LLM) is particularly preferred. Even more preferred examples of such pre-trained models include BERT (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers) and GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer), and among these, ChatGPT or GPT-4 are particularly preferred examples. Thus, the first pre-trained evaluation model does not have to be generated solely for the judgment process; a general-purpose pre-trained model can be used.

[0070] Furthermore, the first pre-trained evaluation model exemplified above may be stored as a program in the memory 112 of the server device 100 and processed by the processor 111 executing the program, or it may be stored as a program in the memory of another processing device that is communicatively connected to the server device 100 and processed by the processor in that processing device. In the latter case, the processor 111 of the server device 100 will send input information in the form of a question to the processing device and obtain answer information as output from the processing device.

[0071] Furthermore, the first pre-trained evaluation model does not need to be formed by a single pre-trained evaluation model; it is also possible to use a combination of multiple pre-trained evaluation models. For example, it is possible to use pre-trained evaluation models with the same learner attribute information but different learner structures, or to use a general-purpose large-scale language model for one pre-trained evaluation model and a pre-trained evaluation model trained based on the learner attribute information for the other pre-trained evaluation model. When multiple pre-trained evaluation models are used in this way, it is possible to obtain an output by ensembling the response information from each pre-trained evaluation model. In addition, the learner attribute information input to the first pre-trained evaluation model may be converted into a numerical representation (e.g., a vector value) that is easy for the first pre-trained evaluation model to process by appropriate transformation processes such as embedding.

[0072] Furthermore, although the above description explains the case where each process is performed by the processor 111 of the server device 100, the process may also be generated by a model generation device connected to the server device 100 via a wired or wireless network.

[0073] Furthermore, the server device 100 may also be configured to prompt the user to evaluate the information provided, such as by issuing an alert, if there is information related to a party that may be suspected of having ties to anti-social forces.

[0074] As described above, when the anti-social check process is executed, the processor 111 stores the result of the anti-social check obtained by the process as anti-social check information, associated with the party ID information (S215). In this case, if the anti-social check process is executed based on the judgment logic, the processor 111 may also store the final classification obtained as anti-social check information. Furthermore, if the anti-social check process is executed using the first trained evaluation model, the processor 111 may also store the numerical value indicating the possibility of suspected ties with anti-social forces, output from the first trained evaluation model, as anti-social check information. Furthermore, if both processes are performed, the processor 111 may store the results of both processes as anti-social check information. In addition, the processor 111 may store information converted into other classifications or other numerical values ​​based on the results obtained by either process as anti-social check information.

[0075] Next, the processor 111 performs a credit check (S216). This credit check can be performed by any method, such as by the processor 111 performing it based on a predetermined second evaluation logic or by using a second trained evaluation model.

[0076] (A) Method of execution based on the second evaluation logic First, we will explain the method of execution based on the second evaluation logic. For example, the processor 111 accesses a database prepared externally via a communication interface and obtains party attribute information associated with the party name information and representative information from the party information stored in S212. Then, the processor 111 evaluates each piece of information based on predetermined evaluation criteria based on the obtained party attribute information. An example of such evaluation criteria is as follows.

[0077] - If sales have decreased for three consecutive periods in the last three fiscal years, 10 points will be added. - If the company has been operating at a loss for three consecutive periods in the last three fiscal years, 10 points will be added. - If there has been a history of payment delays in past transactions, 3 points will be added. - If the account balance is less than 1 million yen, 8 points will be added.

[0078] The processor 111 adds points based on the above evaluation criteria using the party attribute information. If the total points are equal to or greater than a certain number of points (for example, 13 points), it determines that there is "doubt about the ability to pay," and if the total points are lower than that number, it determines that there is "no doubt about the ability to pay."

[0079] (B) Method of execution using the second pre-trained evaluation model Next, a method of execution using the second pre-trained evaluation model will be described. For example, the processor 111 accesses a database prepared externally via a communication interface and, based on the party name information and representative information stored in S212, obtains party attribute information associated with the party name information and representative information. Then, the processor 111 inputs the obtained party attribute information into the second pre-trained evaluation model and obtains a numerical value indicating financial creditworthiness as an output value from the second pre-trained evaluation model.

[0080] Here, the second trained evaluation model is generated as follows, for example. First, the processor 111 acquires one or more party attribute information for training as training party attribute information. Examples of such training party attribute information include performance, financial status, transaction history, or account information. Then, the processor 111 assigns a correct label indicating financial creditworthiness to each training party attribute information. Once the labeling is complete, the processor 111 performs machine learning of financial creditworthiness evaluation patterns using the training party attribute information and the correct label information. This machine learning is performed, for example, by providing these sets of information to a neural network made up of neurons and repeating the learning process while adjusting the parameters of each neuron so that the output from the neural network is the same as the correct label information. Once the parameter adjustment is complete, the processor 111 acquires the trained evaluation model. The acquired second trained evaluation model may be stored in the memory 112 of the server device 100 or in another device connected to the server device 100 via a wired or wireless network.

[0081] Although a neural network is used as the learning mechanism in the above example, other learning mechanisms can also be used, similar to the first pre-trained evaluation model.

[0082] Furthermore, while the above describes a second pre-trained evaluation model generated by training a set of training party attribute information and correct labels, it is also possible to use a second pre-trained evaluation model that utilizes deep learning, such as a generative pre-trained model, similar to the first pre-trained evaluation model.

[0083] Furthermore, the second pre-trained evaluation model exemplified above may be stored as a program in the memory 112 of the server device 100 and processed by the processor 111 executing the program, or it may be stored as a program in the memory of another processing device that is communicatively connected to the server device 100 and processed by the processor in that processing device. In the latter case, the processor 111 of the server device 100 will send input information in the form of a question to the processing device and obtain answer information as output from the processing device.

[0084] Furthermore, the second pre-trained evaluation model does not need to be formed by a single pre-trained evaluation model; it is also possible to use a combination of multiple pre-trained evaluation models. For example, it is possible to use pre-trained evaluation models with the same learner attribute information but different learner structures, or to use a general-purpose large-scale language model for one pre-trained evaluation model and a pre-trained evaluation model trained based on the learner attribute information for the other pre-trained evaluation model. When multiple pre-trained evaluation models are used in this way, it is possible to obtain an output by ensembling the response information from each pre-trained evaluation model. In addition, the learner attribute information input to the second pre-trained evaluation model may be converted into a numerical representation (e.g., a vector value) that is easy for the second pre-trained evaluation model to process by appropriate transformation processes such as embedding.

[0085] Furthermore, although the above description explains the case where each process is performed by the processor 111 of the server device 100, the process may also be generated by a model generation device connected to the server device 100 via a wired or wireless network.

[0086] Furthermore, the server device 100 may also be configured to prompt the user to make an evaluation, such as by issuing an alert if there is party-related information that indicates a potential doubt about creditworthiness.

[0087] As described above, when the credit check process is executed, the processor 111 stores the result of the credit check obtained by the process as credit check information, associated with the party ID information (S217). At this time, if the credit check process is executed based on the judgment logic, the processor 111 may also store the final classification obtained as credit check information. Furthermore, if the credit check process is executed using the second trained evaluation model, the processor 111 may also store the numerical value indicating the financial creditworthiness output from the second trained evaluation model as credit check information. Furthermore, if both processes are performed, the processor 111 may store the results of both processes as credit check information. In addition, the processor 111 may store information converted into other classifications or other numerical values ​​based on the results obtained by either process as credit check information.

[0088] Next, once the anti-social group check process and the credit check process are completed, the processor 111 reads out the anti-social group check information and the credit check information, which are the results of each process. Based on the anti-social group check information and the credit check information, the processor 111 then determines whether or not to perform a confirmation procedure on a legal document that includes the party in question, if such a document has been obtained (S218). As an example of this process, if the anti-social group check information indicates a high suspicion of being an anti-social force, or if the credit check information indicates a low level of financial creditworthiness, the processor 111 determines that it is "not possible to perform the procedure". If neither of these applies, the processor 111 determines that it is "possible to perform the procedure".

[0089] The processor 111 stores the result of the determination as result information associated with the party ID information, and outputs it to the terminal device 200 that sent the party registration request via the communication interface 113.

[0090] The processing flow is now terminated.

[0091] As shown in Figure 5A, the creditworthiness of the parties is evaluated based on the party information entered using the request form, making the evaluation more efficient. Furthermore, since the creditworthiness of the parties and the feasibility of carrying out the legal document confirmation procedure are determined before the confirmation procedure is carried out, it is possible to prevent the procedure from proceeding without these processes being performed.

[0092] Although not specifically shown in the diagram, the processor of the terminal device 200 may also output the received result information via the output interface after receiving it via the communication interface.

[0093] <Details of the Review Process (Contract Review Process)> Figure 5B is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of this disclosure. Specifically, Figure 5B is a diagram showing the detailed processing flow of the processes executed in the review process (contract review process) of Figure 4. This processing flow is mainly carried out by the processor 111 of the server device 100 reading and executing a program stored in the memory 112. In the following, each process will be explained using a contract as an example of a legal document, but it is not limited to this.

[0094] According to Figure 5B, the processor 111 receives legal document information related to the content of a legal document containing information of one or more parties from the terminal device 200 via the communication interface 113.

[0095] Here, Figure 7 shows an example of a legal document input screen 10 output by a terminal device 200 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, Figure 7 shows an example of a legal document input screen 10 output by a terminal device 200 via an output interface. The processor of the terminal device 200 receives user input via the input interface, reads a legal document, and starts an application program to perform examination and risk assessment processing of the legal document. When the application is started, the processor of the terminal device 200 outputs a legal document examination request screen. The examination request screen includes a registration area for registering the legal document to be examined. The processor receives user input on the data of the legal document to be examined via the input interface (for example, dragging and dropping from the folder where the data is stored to the registration area) and stores the data of the legal document. The processor may also allow the user to select various parameters on the examination request screen, such as the party that created the legal document (whether it is oneself or the other party), the type of legal document, or the perspective from which to examine the legal document (whether it is advantageous to oneself or advantageous to the other party). When a legal document to be reviewed is registered on the review request screen, the processor outputs the legal document input screen 10 via the output interface. The data of the legal document is acquired either as image data of the legal document via a scanner unit that functions as the input interface of the terminal device 200, or as document data of the legal document sent as an attachment via email or other means by one of the parties.

[0096] According to Figure 7, the legal document input screen 10 includes a legal document display area 16 and a party information display area 13. Of these, the legal document display area 16 is the area that displays the acquired legal document information when the legal document to be reviewed, registered via the review request screen, is converted into an arbitrary data format and the legal document information is acquired. The processor then displays the acquired legal document information in the legal document display area 16 of the legal document input screen 10. In the example in Figure 7, the legal document information displayed is image data of a business outsourcing contract that includes Company X and Company Y as parties. The business outsourcing contract includes each contract clause from Article 1 onwards, as well as party information 11 of Company X, which is a party to the contract, and party information 12 of Company Y, which is a party to the contract, including its address, name, and representative.

[0097] Furthermore, the party information display area 13 is an area that displays party information of one or more parties included in the legal document, excluding the user themselves. As will be explained in detail later, the party information displayed in the party information display area 13 is information obtained when image data is transmitted to the server device 100 as legal document information, and the server device 100 receives the party information extracted through processing such as language analysis. In this case, the party information of Company X, which is a party excluding Company Y, which is the user themselves, is displayed as text data.

[0098] Here, the party information display area 13 includes a modify button 14 and a send button 15. The modify button 14 is a button for modifying the party information displayed in the party information display area 13. That is, when the processor of the terminal device 200 receives user input for the modify button 14 via the input interface, it overlays a screen similar to the request form shown in Figure 6, for example, and modifies the party information such as address, party name, and representative by providing input on this screen. When the modified content is confirmed, the processor displays the modified content in the party information display area 13. The send button 15 is a button for sending at least one of the legal document information displayed in the legal document display area 16 and the party information displayed in the party information display area 13 to the server device 100. That is, when the processor receives user input for the send button 15 via the input interface, it sends at least one of the legal document information displayed in the legal document display area 16 and the party information displayed in the party information display area 13 to the server device 100 via the communication interface.

[0099] As shown in Figure 7, by displaying legal document information obtained from legal documents and party information extracted from said legal document information side by side, it is possible to efficiently verify the party information.

[0100] Returning to Figure 5B, the processor 111 acquires legal document information displayed on the legal document input screen 10 in Figure 7 via the communication interface 113. By performing linguistic analysis on the received legal document information, it extracts document attribute information, including representative information and address information, as well as content information, in addition to the party name information of the parties other than the user themselves (S311). If the processor 111 is unable to extract the party name information and representative information necessary for evaluating the creditworthiness through this process (S312), it sends a request for input of party information via the communication interface 113 (S313). Although not specifically shown in the figures, when the terminal device 200 receives the input request, it accepts input of party information via the party information display area 13 of the legal document input screen 10 shown in Figure 7. The processor 111 then resumes processing from S311 based on the input party information.

[0101] On the other hand, if the party name information and representative information can be extracted, the processor 111, if the legal document information received based on the extracted information is new, generates new document ID information and stores the party name information, document attribute information, and content information in the document management table in association with the said document ID information. The processor 111 also refers to the party management table based on the extracted party name information, representative information, and address information and determines whether the party is already stored (S314). If the party is already stored, the processor 111 refers to the party management table based on the party name information, etc., and reads out the anti-social group check information and credit check information (S315).

[0102] Here, when the processor 111 refers to the anti-social check information and credit check information in the party management table in S314 and S315, it is also possible to refer to a party management table prepared for another user (i.e., the second user, etc.) rather than the user executing the process (i.e., the first user). As an example of this process, the processor 111 registers in advance whether or not it is permitted for the first user to refer to a party management table prepared for other users, including the second user who is different from the first user. Similarly, the processor 111 registers in advance whether or not it is permitted for the second user to refer to the party management table for itself (i.e., the second user). Then, when the processor 111 receives party information from a request from the first user (i.e., legal document information from the terminal device 200 owned by the first user), if "permitted" is registered in both cases above, it refers to the first user's party management table and the second user's party management table to determine whether or not the party is already stored. Then, if the information is not stored in the first user's party management table but is stored in the second user's party management table, the processor 111 refers to the second user's party management table and reads out the anti-social group check information and credit check information.

[0103] This will enable the efficient use of anti-social group check information and credit check information. It is desirable that each user's individual party management table only allows access to, for example, anti-social group check information and credit check information. For instance, result information, such as the determination of whether or not to proceed with a confirmation procedure based on this information, may have different criteria for each user, or the criteria may include confidential information. Therefore, it is preferable to restrict access to such result information by other users.

[0104] On the other hand, if the party is not yet remembered, the processor 111 generates new party ID information and stores the address information (party attribute information), party name information, and representative information in the party management table in association with the said party ID information. Then, the processor 111 executes processing related to the evaluation of creditworthiness.

[0105] Specifically, the processor 111 performs an anti-social group check using the stored party name information and representative information (S316), and stores the result of the anti-social group check obtained through this process as anti-social group check information associated with the party ID information (S317). The processor 111 also performs a credit check using the stored party name information and representative information (S318), and stores the result of the credit check obtained through this process as credit check information associated with the party ID information (S319). Note that each of the processes S316 to S319 may be processed in the same way as S214 to S217 in Figure 5A.

[0106] Next, when the anti-social group check process and the credit check process are completed, the processor 111 reads out the anti-social group check information and the credit check information, which are the results of each process. Then, based on the anti-social group check information and the credit check information read out after S315 or S319, the processor 111 determines whether or not to perform a confirmation procedure on the legal document related to the legal document information obtained in S311 (S320).

[0107] As an example of this process, processor 111 determines "execution impossible" if the anti-social check information indicates a high suspicion of involvement with anti-social forces, or if the credit check information indicates low financial creditworthiness. Processor 111 determines "execution possible" if neither of the above applies. Alternatively, processor 111 can make a determination using other methods. For example, it may read transaction amount information from document attribute information and make a determination according to the transaction amount, for example, using the judgment criteria shown below.

[0108] - If the transaction amount is less than the first threshold, the transaction is deemed "executable" only if the anti-social group check information is "medium" or "low" and the credit check information is "high," "medium," or "low." - If the first threshold is less than the transaction amount, the transaction is deemed "executable" only if the anti-social group check information is "low" and the credit check information is "high" or "medium." - If the second threshold is less than the transaction amount, the transaction is deemed "executable" only if the anti-social group check information is "low" and the credit check information is "high."

[0109] Thus, the processor 111 can make decisions flexibly according to document attribute information, rather than uniformly determining based on anti-social group check information and credit check information. Furthermore, the processor 111 can make decisions using different criteria than those used in other processes such as preparation processing and conclusion processing.

[0110] The processor 111 stores the result of the determination as result information associated with the party ID information, and outputs it to the terminal device 200 that sent the party registration request via the communication interface 113.

[0111] The processing flow is now terminated.

[0112] As shown in Figure 5B, legal document information is obtained from the legal document input by the terminal device 200, and the creditworthiness of the parties is evaluated based on the party information extracted from the obtained legal document information, making it possible to perform the evaluation more efficiently. Furthermore, since the creditworthiness of the parties and the feasibility of carrying out the legal document confirmation procedure are determined before the confirmation procedure is carried out, it is possible to prevent the procedure from proceeding without these processes being performed.

[0113] Although not specifically shown in the diagram, the processor of the terminal device 200 may also output the received result information via the output interface after receiving it via the communication interface.

[0114] Furthermore, while Figure 5B only describes the portion of the processing performed by the processor 111 as part of the review process (contract review process) that relates to the evaluation of creditworthiness, various other processes related to the review of legal documents such as contracts may also be performed, including risk assessment processing of the legal document, internal approval processing by the user party, and processing related to additions or modifications to the legal document.

[0115] Specifically, when the processor 111 of the server device 100 receives a request from the processor of the terminal device 200 to execute a risk assessment process for legal documents, it inputs the legal document information registered prior to S311 into, for example, a trained model for risk assessment. This trained model can be, for example, a trained model generated by learning a set of training contract document information (such as clause-by-clause or document-by-document) and the correct labels assigned to that training contract document information, or a so-called generative trained model. The processor 111 obtains the risk assessment result for the input legal document information from the trained model as output.

[0116] When the processor 111 obtains a risk assessment result, it transmits the risk assessment result to the terminal device 200 via the communication interface 113. The processor in the terminal device 200 receives user input via the input interface, performs editing and modification of legal document information, and transmits the processed legal document to a pre-designated party via the communication interface. Subsequently, the series of processes described in Figure 5B are repeated each time an exchange takes place with the other party, and when both parties agree on the contents of the legal document, the process proceeds to the conclusion process shown in Figure 5C.

[0117] <Details of the Contract Conclusion Process> Figure 5C is a diagram showing the processing flow executed in a server device 100 according to one embodiment of this disclosure. Specifically, Figure 5C is a diagram showing the detailed processing flow of the processes executed in the contract conclusion process shown in Figure 4. This processing flow is mainly performed by the processor 111 of the server device 100 reading and executing a program stored in the memory 112. In the following, each process will be explained using a contract as an example of a legal document, but it is not limited to this.

[0118] Here, the process related to the finalization of legal documents, such as the procedure for concluding a contract, can be carried out by physical means such as affixing a seal, but it can also be carried out by electronic means such as so-called electronic contracts. Therefore, the processor 111 starts the processing flow by receiving a request to send an electronic contract from the terminal device 200 via the communication interface 113 (S411).

[0119] Here, the outgoing request is generated when the processor of the terminal device 200 starts an electronic contract application program to execute processing related to the electronic contract. Specifically, when the processor of the terminal device 200 starts the electronic contract application program, it receives user input via the input interface and inputs contact information such as the email address to which the other party to the electronic contract will be sent, as well as legal document information. The processor then sends an outgoing request to the server device 100 via the communication interface, along with the input contact information and legal document information, to request the sending of the electronic contract to the said party.

[0120] When the processor 111 of the server device 100 receives a call request sent from the terminal device 200 as described above, it extracts the contact information contained in the call request (S412). Based on the extracted contact information, the processor 111 refers to the party management table and determines whether or not the contact information has already been stored in association with the party ID information (S413). If the contact information has already been stored, the processor 111 refers to the party management table based on the contact information and reads out the anti-social group check information and the credit check information (S414).

[0121] Here, when the processor 111 refers to the anti-social group check information and credit check information in the party management table in S413 and S414, it is also possible to refer to a party management table prepared for another user (i.e., the second user, etc.) rather than the user executing the process (i.e., the first user itself), similar to S314 and S315 in Figure 5B. When the processor 111 receives contact information from a request from the first user, if both the first user and the second user have registered "acceptable", it refers to the party management table of the first user and the party management table of the second user to determine whether the contact information is already stored. Then, if the information is not stored in the party management table of the first user but is stored in the party management table of the second user, the processor 111 refers to the party management table of the second user and reads out the anti-social group check information and credit check information.

[0122] This will enable the efficient use of anti-social group check information and credit check information. It is desirable that each user's individual party management table only allows access to, for example, anti-social group check information and credit check information. For instance, result information, such as the determination of whether or not to proceed with a confirmation procedure based on this information, may have different criteria for each user, or the criteria may include confidential information. Therefore, it is preferable to restrict access to such result information by other users.

[0123] On the other hand, if contact information is not stored in the party management table, the processor 111 generates new party ID information, extracts address information (party attribute information), party name information, and representative information from the legal document information, and stores this party information in the party management table. Then, the processor 111 executes processing related to the evaluation of creditworthiness.

[0124] Specifically, the processor 111 performs an anti-social group check using the stored party name information and representative information (S415), and stores the result of the anti-social group check obtained through this process as anti-social group check information associated with the party ID information (S416). The processor 111 also performs a credit check using the stored party name information and representative information (S417), and stores the result of the credit check obtained through this process as credit check information associated with the party ID information (S418). Note that each of the processes S415 to S418 may be processed in the same way as S214 to S217 in Figure 5A.

[0125] Next, when the anti-social group check process and the credit check process are completed, the processor 111 reads out the anti-social group check information and the credit check information, which are the results of each process. Then, based on the anti-social group check information and the credit check information read out after S414 or S418, the processor 111 determines whether or not to perform a confirmation procedure on the legal document related to the legal document information included in the outgoing request (S419). As an example of this process, if the anti-social group check information results in a high suspicion of being associated with anti-social forces, or if the credit check information results in a low level of financial creditworthiness, the processor 111 determines that it is "not possible to execute". If neither of these applies, the processor 111 determines that it is "possible to execute".

[0126] Next, the processor 111 determines whether the sending conditions are met. Specifically, the processor 111 is determined to be "executable" in S419. If it is determined to be "executable," the processor 111 sends a conclusion request via the communication interface 113 to the email address identified by the contact information included in the sending request, requesting the execution of a confirmation procedure for the legal document information included in the sending request and the legal document related to said legal document information (S422). On the other hand, if the sending conditions are not met, i.e., if it is determined to be "not executable," the processor 111 sends a notification via the communication interface 113 to the terminal device 200 that sent the sending request, indicating that the conclusion request could not be sent (S421).

[0127] Although not specifically illustrated, once a signature request is sent, the procedure for concluding a legal document (e.g., a contract) is completed (i.e., the confirmation procedure) by electronically signing the document on the terminal device from which the signature request was sent.

[0128] The processing flow is now terminated.

[0129] As shown in Figure 5C, anti-social group checks and credit checks are performed based on contact information before the legal document finalization procedure (i.e., the signing procedure) is carried out. In this way, the creditworthiness of the parties is evaluated based on party information such as contact information before the finalization procedure, making it possible to prevent the procedure from proceeding without such evaluation.

[0130] In this embodiment, it is possible to provide a processing device, a processing program, and a processing method that can process legal documents more efficiently.

[0131] 7. In Figures 1 to 7, the timing of the anti-social group check and credit check is shown as an example of the timing of the preparation process (contract preparation process), the review process (contract review process), and the conclusion process (contract conclusion process). However, the timing of the anti-social group check or credit check is not limited to these. For example, if a certain period of time has passed since the last anti-social group check or credit check and the information has become outdated, it is possible to perform the check again. Specifically, the processor 111 of the server device 100 stores time information indicating the time the anti-social group check was performed and time information indicating the time the previous credit check was performed in the party management table, associated with the party ID information, when an anti-social group check or credit check is performed. The processor 111 then checks this time information stored in the party management table at predetermined intervals, and if a predetermined time has elapsed since the time indicated by each time information, it performs the anti-social group check or credit check. When the check is performed, the processor 111 overwrites or separately stores the result of the determination in the anti-social group check information or credit check information in the party management table, and also stores time information indicating the time when each check was performed. Furthermore, if the result of the execution of the above process differs from the previously stored anti-social group check information or credit check information, or if there is a problem with anti-social group activities or creditworthiness, the processor 111 notifies the user to whom the legal documents related to the party in question are associated with the result of the check.

[0132] Furthermore, the predetermined arbitrary time mentioned above can be set to any time, such as one month, six months, or one year. It is also possible to set the predetermined arbitrary time according to the user's policy for conducting the check, or to set a different time each time. Additionally, it is possible to set different times for anti-social group checks and credit checks, or to set the same time for each. Furthermore, it is possible to set different times for each user or organization to which a user belongs, or to set the same time for each.

[0133] Furthermore, regardless of when each check is performed, it is possible to perform each check periodically, either collectively or individually, for all parties managed in the party management table. Specifically, the processor 111 of the server device 100 is pre-configured to perform checks periodically at arbitrary intervals such as one month, one year, or three years, and performs each check when the specified period is reached. When the check is performed, the processor 111 overwrites the anti-social group check information or credit check information in the party management table with the result of the determination, or stores it separately. In addition, if the result of the above processing differs from the previously stored anti-social group check information or credit check information, or if there is a problem with anti-social group activities or creditworthiness, the processor 111 notifies the user to whom the legal documents related to the party in question are associated with the result of the check.

[0134] Furthermore, the above period can be set differently for each user or organization to which the user belongs, or it can be set to the same period for each user. In addition, the above period can be set to any period based on the user's policy for conducting the check or the user's compliance policy.

[0135] Figures 1 to 7 illustrate the use of contracts as legal documents. However, legal documents are not limited to contracts; various legal documents as exemplified above can be used. For example, in the case of invoices and quotations, the names of the parties, their representatives, and their addresses listed as the recipients can be processed similarly as party information. Similarly, in the case of notices, the names of the parties, their representatives, and their addresses listed as the recipients can be processed similarly as party information. Thus, the processes explained in Figures 1 to 7 can be applied similarly to various legal documents.

[0136] Figures 1 to 7, and especially Figures 5A to 5C, illustrate the case where the processor 111 of the server device 100 performs the anti-social group check and credit check. However, for example, another processing device connected to the server device 100 via a communication network may perform the anti-social group check and credit check, respectively, and the server device 100 may receive the anti-social group check information and credit check information, which are the results of these processes, from that processing device. In such a case, the party attribute information stored in the party management table may be stored in the storage area of ​​the other processing device instead of the server device 100.

[0137] Figures 1 to 7 illustrate the case where both anti-social group checks and credit checks are performed as part of the credit assessment. However, either the anti-social group check or the credit check may be performed alone. Furthermore, other credit assessment processes may also be performed.

[0138] Figures 1 to 7 illustrate the case where a legal document is finalized by two parties: the user themselves and the other party to the contract. However, the number of parties is not limited to two; it can be one or three or more. The processor 111 can process the documents in the same way as in Figures 1 to 7 by repeating the process according to the number of parties.

[0139] In the embodiments described above, creditworthiness was exemplified by anti-social group checks or credit checks, but other factors that would make a transaction inappropriate, such as reputation or disciplinary record, may also be checked. The party attribute information required for such creditworthiness checks may be the same as or different from that used for anti-social group checks or credit checks.

[0140] In this disclosure, the credit status check process (in the above embodiment, the anti-social group check process or credit check process) may acquire party attribute information relevant to the evaluation from the party information (for example, arrest record, history of affiliation with anti-social forces, litigation record, administrative sanctions, reputation, public position, or registration history on sanctions lists), and display the party attribute information or information related to the attribute information (for example, news articles showing an arrest record) to the user. The user may then evaluate the credit status based on this information and input it into a database, etc.

[0141] In this disclosure, we have used anti-social group checks or credit checks as examples, but as stated above, the same methods can be applied to checks on reputation and disciplinary records. Furthermore, in any case, these checks may be performed as part of services provided by systems that support legal work, such as legal document management systems, legal document review systems, legal document risk assessment systems, legal document creation support systems, or legal work process support systems.

[0142] The embodiments and variations of this disclosure are presented as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. These embodiments and variations can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of this disclosure. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims and their equivalents.

[0143] The processes and procedures described in this disclosure can be implemented not only by those expressly described in the embodiments, but also by software, hardware, or a combination thereof. Specifically, the processes and procedures described in this disclosure can be implemented by implementing logic corresponding to the processes on media such as integrated circuits, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, magnetic disks, and optical storage. Furthermore, the processes and procedures described in this disclosure can be implemented as computer programs and executed by various computers, including processing units and server devices.

[0144] Even if the processes and procedures described in this disclosure are described as being performed by a single device, software, component, or module, such processes or procedures may be performed by multiple devices, multiple software, multiple components, and / or multiple modules. Similarly, even if the various types of information described in this disclosure are described as being stored in a single memory or storage unit, such information may be distributed and stored in multiple memories on a single device or in multiple memories distributed across multiple devices. Furthermore, the software and hardware elements described in this disclosure may be implemented by integrating them into fewer components or by decomposing them into more components.

[0145] 1 Processing system 100 Server device 200 Terminal device

Claims

1. A processing device comprising at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to perform a process for acquiring legal document information relating to the contents of a legal document including one or more parties, evaluating the creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties included in the legal document before a determination procedure is performed on the legal document, and determining whether or not the determination procedure can be performed based on the evaluated creditworthiness.

2. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the legal document is a contract, and at least one of the one or more parties is the other party to the contract under the contract.

3. The processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the confirmation procedure is the procedure for concluding the contract.

4. The processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the conclusion procedure is performed electronically.

5. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the credit status is the transactional risk status of at least one of the one or more parties.

6. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the credit status includes at least one of the following: information relating to whether or not at least one of the one or more parties belongs to an anti-social force, and information relating to the financial creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties.

7. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information relating to at least one of the one or more parties includes at least one of the acquired legal document information, information entered into a request form for requesting the registration of the party, and information extracted based on a request to send an electronic contract.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one processor is configured to evaluate the credit status in response to a request from a first user and to perform processing for using the evaluated credit status when determining whether the confirmation procedure can be performed in response to a request from a second user different from the first user.

9. The processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the credit status is used when determining whether the confirmation procedure can be performed in response to a request from the second user, provided that at least one of the first user and the second user has given prior permission.

10. A processing program that causes at least one processor to function such as to obtain legal document information relating to the contents of a legal document including one or more parties, to evaluate the creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties included in the legal document before any determination procedure is performed on the legal document, and to determine whether or not the determination procedure can be performed based on the evaluated creditworthiness.

11. A processing method performed by at least one processor, comprising: acquiring legal document information relating to the contents of a legal document including one or more parties; evaluating the creditworthiness of at least one of the one or more parties included in the legal document before a determination procedure is performed on the legal document; and determining whether or not the determination procedure can be performed based on the evaluated creditworthiness.

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