Law firms are both complex and fast-moving, requiring firm leaders to be

strategic with the creation and implementation of systems. As an attorney

with a small law firm, it’s easy to focus all your attention on your clients.
While clients are a critical part of your practice, your firm won’t run itself. 
Proper office law management = avoiding disaster. (Or, at least,
being very prepared for disaster.)  Whether you’re just starting your law firm
and want to have the right systems in place or whether your firm is growing
and you want to ensure your management strategies keep pace with it, you
should treat your law offices with care and attention through systems so that
you don’t leave money on the table and so that you can scale. 

Paperless Law Office and

File Management 
You gotta document. It’s critical.  You’ll need to store both client files as
well as internal documentation such as your law office management
procedures.
The most cost-effective and streamlined way to keep track of it all is to go
paperless.
Everything You Need to Go Paperless
Digital files destress your life. Truly. If you’re ready to go paperless, there
are a few key things you’ll need to make it happen:

 A document scanner
 Adobe Acrobat
 A tablet
 A shredder or shredding service
 Cloud storage
 Backup

Your Paperless Workflow

Besides equipment and tools, you’ll also need a dedicated paperless
workflow for scanning and filing documents. To start, scan existing files into
your digital filing system. Then make a process to scan every document or
file that comes your way before you do anything else with it.
You’ll also want to decide how to organize your files, whether by open client
files and closed client files or another method. Name each document in a way
that reflects the client, the type of document, and the date. Remember to add
this process into your office processes.
The What, Where & How of Client Files
As you manage your firm’s documents, it’s important to have a process that
includes what to save and what to shred, even in a paperless office. When it
comes to client files:

 Return documents you no longer need. At the end of a case, return

client documents to the client, unless you specify otherwise.
 Get rid of unnecessary documents. At the close of a case, make sure
you get rid of any non-pertinent documents that simply take up space. 
 Have a separate file location for closed files. Keep open cases and
closed cases separate inside your filing system. This prevents confusion
and overwhelm within your files.

 Track your destroyed documents. When you destroy files after the safe
time period passes, notate it in a separate destructed document record.
 Decide when and how you will shred documents that are now scanned. 
 Date boxes of paper or digital files so you know how much time has
passed since you last used them- this will help you figure out what to
keep. 

Finally, ensure the rest of your staff understands what to do with client files.
Communicate the process in your law office management procedure manual.