Even people who have never been inside the premises of a law firm will know that it involves a lot of paperwork and documentation. Just think about it — there are documents for everything, including contracts, documentation regarding all cases the company has ever handled or even ones that it may only be considering taking up, and more. The point is that a law firm has to deal with a tremendous amount of paperwork and process far too many documents and that also daily. Moreover, to do just that, they need highly capable tools that can seamlessly deal with the sheer quantity of materials, organize them, and store them in a manner that ensures they can be easily accessed as well. To cut a long story short, law firms need a document management system.

However, a document management software can do so much more for a legal firm than directly bringing some order in what can prove to be a very chaotic endeavor. With the right solution, a law firm can also ensure smooth collaboration, high level of security, and more. However, this is contingent on the fact that you choose the right document management software for your law firm. Now that is anything but a simple effort owing to the nearly endless list of details, features, and more involved. So, allow us to make that a bit easy with this list of questions that will help you select the right option from the sea of choices at your disposal.

1. Is it a document management software in the most real sense? This one may seem a tad absurd, but one that needs to be asked nonetheless since there is far too many software for law firms in the market masquerading as the document management software. While all those solutions may indeed serve a purpose, they will not be able to do what a proper document management solution can do, including the ability to offer valuable insights.
2. Is the solution matter-centric? The need for document management solutions isn’t unique to law firms, which means a lot of such solutions in the market aren’t made exclusively for law firms, i.e. they are general solutions. It will become evident when you see features and functionalities that will serve no purpose in a law firm. Also, this is why you need a matter-centric DMS; wherein all documents are stored and categorized based on their matter. Moreover, each topic has novel characteristics, such as staff assigned, type of case, and more to make it easier to find the documents.
3. How simple is the software to use? Nothing obstructs adoption quite like the inability to use the software. One mustn’t forget that the technology available and employed by the company so far is likely to have been very different from using when compared to the DMS. So, ensure that it is intuitive and straightforward to use.

A legal files document management system is vital to the steady and frictionless operations of a law firm. What’s even more important is that you choose the right solution. So use the questions listed above, and factor in your requirements and the choice will become apparent.