Data Migration for Law Firms

 Some data migrations are more complex than others and it’s also probably safe to say that a law firm migration will usually lean towards being at least moderately hefty, (if not a full-on King Kong scenario) If this isn’t sounding familiar to you yet, your lawyerly work is probably more immediately related to the clients your firm serves. BUT with a little hard work and diligence, you’ll eventually be graduated to the fine task of reorganizing data, cleaning up lists, and finding new systems that work for the business. “Sounds like a cake-walk,” you say? “Think I’ll go for a bit of a walk that day” you guess?? 

BUT WAIT...there’s MORE! 

Well, I hope I can make your job a little easier with today’s tips on how to have a successful migration. 

Tip#1 Get the particulars of your data. 

When searching for a better legal management system, you’ll want to know what/who you’re working with on, large scale. For starters, there will be contacts, matter files, vendors, possibly a new Chart of Accounts, Advanced Client Costs, specific workflows, and events. This will keep you from being blindsided when the time comes to categorize even further, into sub-groups. “Why would I want sub-groups”? Do you say? There are all sorts of reasons, including analytics, (key performance indicators (KPI), referral sources, case life cycles, and follow-up marketing to a specific client demographic.   We start with the end game in mind as we set up your new data for success.

Tip#2 Learn the pattern of your data 

You and your partners can be aware of any required flow that needs to remain consistent. It could be a bit of a shock if, over the weekend you’re suddenly down some clients because the new person wasn’t made aware of a few per diems, like, special client check-ins, etc. Part of this analysis comes from a meeting at the law firm of our staff and the client’s staff. We ask for job descriptions and ask for the input of how the law firm employee thinks things could be done more smoothly. We look for redundancy and gaps.

Tip#3 Choose a migration start date and end date of old systems

What are the steps you’ll need to take to fully learn your new software, train others and be fully functional as a business? (Don’t forget that often in migrations, you’ll need to convert your data to another format in order to even use the new application.) Do you want a historical rebuild?  Do you want detailed or summary data?

Tip#4 Have a clean move

Review all lists, names, vendors, and figures before totally scrubbing the old system. Get rid of typos and duplicates. Secure your data from any accidental losses or errors while in the middle of a move. Even if you are able and decide to have a backup of the old system, it’s worth noting that implosions do happen from time to time and a total loss is the result.