3 Resolutions All Law Firms Should Make in 2019

Another New Year is upon us! ‘Tis the season for law firms to take stock of the past year’s successes and shortcomings and make goals for the upcoming year.

It used to be that preparing a law firm for a new year mainly meant staying the course and constructing growth goals. While growth is something that most law firms want to happen in 2019, there’s now more that goes into making a robust and agile law firm.

Get up-to-date on technology

If your law firm is still going about the business of law the old-fashioned way, it is going to be left behind. Technology has helped to even the playing field for law firms. Now, with technology’s help, smaller firms can take on more complex clients. And, larger firms can provide more efficient, more accurate service.

Automation and management

With a wide array of legal applications, law firms can streamline management and administration. For example, practice management software, such as Amicus Attorney® or Time Matters®, allows administrators to track and manage schedules and records. Document management software, such as Worldox®, takes organization and productivity a step further.

Time and billing software simplifies the invoicing process, increases accuracy, and frees up valuable attorney time. And, legal document generation automation software, such as Hot Docs® and ProDoc®, prevents attorneys from re-inventing the wheel every time they create a transactional document.

Using this kind of technology releases legal minds from the tyranny of busy work. It also allows management to manage instead of worrying about the little things.

Flexibility and reliability

By now, most law firm management has heard about using the advantages of using a cloud environment. One benefit is that attorneys and employees can access their workspaces from their Smartphones, tablets, laptops – practically any device that can connect to the internet. And, downtime is a thing of the past: Cloud environments like Legal Workspace use top notch technology and talent to provide clients with reliable, seamless service.

And, all of the above mentioned legal applications are compatible with Legal Workspace – which means that you can either do a complete technological overhaul when you make the switch to the cloud, or, you can work with Legal Workspace to integrate your current software with its environment.

Secure your data

Hackers have New Year’s resolutions, too: to work continuously and find new ways to penetrate defenses and steal data. Clients are becoming increasingly aware of the dangers and have higher expectations for data protection. And, of course, large clients and clients in certain industries (such as those associated with medical records) have high security standards (such as HIPAA) that need to be met.

Legal Workspace was created solely for law firms, so security is paramount. The Legal Workspace cloud environment utilizes military-grade security, which means that your clients’ data is much safer than it would be if you were to attempt to build your own secure environment. Not only that, but if a client does have a particular security request, Legal Workspace can adapt its environment to meet its needs.

Prep for disaster

No one likes to think that a natural disaster might occur that could wipe out their law firm’s records. Fire, flood, and tornadoes are just a few examples of challenges that could interrupt business and cause irreparable damage to a law firm.

When you have your data and workspace housed in a cloud environment (and that data is stored redundantly in multiple geographic locations and regularly backed up), that’s it: You’re prepared for disaster. Your data will still be accessible in the cloud no matter what might happen on the ground.

These three ways to prepare your law firm for 2019 can be accomplished easily by making one decision: to move to a cloud environment. Make this year the year that technology and data stop causing challenges in your law firm.

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Future-Proof Your Law Firm

Use the Cloud to Keep Up with the Pace of Technology

It’s no secret; technology has accelerated the pace of change – in work and in life. There are a few ways that your law firm can go about adapting to these changes.

You could:

1. Bury your head in the sand and insist on the traditional ways of doing things.

2. Throw money at the problem, amassing all the new software and gadgets available and hiring experts to teach you how to use everything.

3. Make a simple change to the way you do work and handle your data.

Of course, the third option is making the change over to using a cloud environment, such as Legal Workspace. Using the cloud is an easy way to set up your firm for any future tech innovations, in addition to the other advantages it promises, like security and flexibility.

Why the cloud allows for rapid change

When a law firm operates from on-site servers, it lacks the kind of agility that using a cloud environment can provide. For example, what would happen if your biggest client suddenly placed regulations on your firm? How would you go about making sure you could meet those requirements? How much time, effort, and money would it take to give them what they wanted?

And if you were able to pull it off, would the client still be there, waiting for you to bring your security to their level?

Taking advantage of law firm cloud services removes that worry. Legal Workspace, because it was created specifically for law firms, utilizes military-grade security for all of its clients and can accommodate special requests from firms who use its services. HIPAA compliance obligations and any other high-level security requirements can be quickly applied to ensure that your clients’ data is protected.

That kind of behind-the-scenes agility is important because it also allows you to make changes to the way you do business. For example, if you’re not already taking advantage of legal document generation automation to streamline your attorneys’ workloads, you can select one of the applications that is compatible with Legal Workspace, work with its team of experts to customize the program to your preferences, and increase your efficiency.

Beyond that, the simple fact is that workplace culture is changing. Many attorneys are putting in the same number – or even more – hours than they ever did before, but they’re not necessarily doing it from the office. A cloud work environment, like Legal Workspace, allows attorneys to access their workspace from anywhere, on any device, at any time. If an attorney has a big realization while watching their kid’s soccer game, they can grab their smartphone and get moving.

The future is in the cloud

When you migrate to the cloud, a big chunk of worry falls away. No fretting about your data security’s adequacy. No concern about making the right software and application choices. No restrictions for your attorneys with regard to when and where they choose to work.

Now, which of these three options sounds like the best strategy:

1. Stick to tradition and hope your firm remains viable?

2. Throw money at the problem and try to do it yourself?

3. Or, lean on experts to take care of your technology issues by using a cloud environment?

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Security With Zero Effort

Security With Zero Effort

Do you know that October is cybersecurity awareness month? More importantly, do you know what you need to do in order to keep your data secure? Or, are you aware of what you need to do…except sometimes tasks (like regular back-ups) fall through the cracks?

Maybe your IT person or department is responsible for security, but you’re not really sure what that entails – which could mean that you’re not really sure if the efforts your law firm makes toward securing its data are effective.

It makes sense that managing partners of law firms would want to concentrate on the business of law rather than spend precious time attempting to grasp the intricacies of cybersecurity. But, managing partners also understand how important it is to secure their firms’ data.

So, how does a savvy law firm strike a balance: not wasting time (and money) on something better left to experts, but ensuring that its data is completely secure?

There is a way for law firms to benefit from military-grade cybersecurity without the hassles that accompany elite in-house security. No personnel management. No constant upgrades, patches, or maintenance. No unexpected expenses, such as the sky-high cost of replacing a server. No downtime. No cumbersome back-ups. Just peace of mind.

When a law firm opts to work with a cloud environment, such as Legal Workspace, security stops being an issue that anyone in the firm needs to consider.

No more worries, just security

Law firms can be lucrative targets because they store privileged information that hackers can use in unintended ways. If your law firm’s cybersecurity isn’t up to snuff, it could mean that you are at risk. Having holes in your cybersecurity could be considered the equivalent of leaving privileged information out in the open for anyone to take and use.

And, if a law firm’s technology isn’t up-to-date and fully operational, that means a different sort of problem. What would happen if your server failed? How much time – and how much data – would you lose?

When you work within a cloud environment specially designed for law firms, you don’t have to worry about any of those issues any longer. With geographically redundant data centers, such as those used by Legal Workspace, your data is safer in the cloud than it could ever be in an on-site server. Access to those data center servers is limited, and staff is always on-hand to monitor for and prevent problems – and to react should anything unexpected occur.

Advanced data encryption, firewalls with a sophisticated detection system, and automatic back-ups secure your data so well that passing compliance standards, such as HIPAA and PCI, is just a regular part of what Legal Workspace does.

What to do instead

If you make the switch to the cloud and your security worries disappear, your attorneys and employees can spend more time on revenue-generating activities. And, if you have an IT person on staff, he or she doesn’t need to spend the day running from place to place, troubleshooting and patching up problems. Instead, that person can concentrate on strategy: discovering and implementing new technology that will save your law firm time and money.

As for law firm management? Well, you can just sleep better at night, knowing that your data is secure, and your clients are happy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Win Outside Counsel for an Insurance Giant

Winning Large Clients

When your firm handles insurance defense, you receive, send, and store highly sensitive materials. Wise law firms understand that security and compliance are critical because of the growing threat to cybersecurity. Without the proper safeguards in place, you put clients’ information at risk and jeopardize your reputation. And large insurance companies simply won’t hire you if you don’t apply the right controls and protocols to keep their data safe.

They’re right to be cautious: 80% of the largest 100 law firms have been hacked since 2011, according to the American Bar Association in 2015. Law firms are a prime target for hackers because they store large amounts of high-value, confidential data. In “The Security Vulnerabilities Law Firm Hacks Create for Corporations,” which appeared in Inside Counsel in June of this year, Amanda Ciccatelli writes, “IT capability is often viewed as an administrative function, not an integrated business capability, and as a result, information security has suffered.”

The rewards of working with large corporate clients are sizeable. To get your foot in the door, you need to be aware of vulnerabilities, be able to bolster security, and meet insurance companies’ compliance requirements.

What You Can Do to Win Outside Counsel

There are ways to determine what holes you have in your security controls and how to patch them. You should, for example:

Protect and back up data and plan for recovery.

Data encryption, dual-authentication, administrative policies, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems can help protect data. Secure off-site back-ups are another key component to data security. If a breach still occurs, know how you’ll respond—and how quickly you can be back up and running. The American Bar Association article, “Facing the Cybersecurity Threat to Your Firm,” experts say that “[a]dvance planning is critical for effectively responding to a data breach, and that includes an incident response plan.”

Perform a tech review and assessment.

Since new cyberthreats emerge regularly, you should routinely assess and patch your vulnerabilities. Pay attention to audit logs, so you know who accesses what files and can see if something unusual happens.

Understand what devices attorneys and other staff use to work.

Are they using their personal Smartphones and laptops to work outside the office? Are they carrying client information on flash drives? What kinds of safeguards are in place on those devices?

Control access to information.

If an attorney isn’t working on a particular case, there’s no reason for him/her to have access to it. This precaution isn’t about attorney ethics—client confidentiality is paramount to lawyers. Rather, it’s about decreasing the number of ways that hackers can access information. Train employees and attorneys to follow security protocols. As Chris Pogue, CISO of Nuix Solutions writes, “Protecting your information is a battle that is fought by every member of your organization, from the most senior partner to the newest intern, who has access to any data of value.”

These recommendations can be used by law firms looking to increase security in order to be more attractive to any large corporation, but there are also “insurance-specific uses of technology, internal and external research capabilities, and client support databases that should be a part of a law firm’s technology resources,” according to an article written by Bob Dolinsky, CIO of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan.

Crafting a strategy and executing its steps may seem like expensive, time-consuming, and technical work. But it all depends on the avenue you take. Working with an IT firm on a project like this can end up costing tens of thousands of dollars, and the process can last months.

Faster and Less Expensive Solution

Legal Workspace can take a project like this off your hands and deliver it more quickly than you might expect. Depending on the size of your firm, it could take only a week for Legal Workspace to perform a cybersecurity audit and apply the appropriate controls for compliance with large insurance companies’ standards and with government regulations.

And, if you’re considering getting into the insurance defense game, but you’re concerned about the upfront costs of upgrading your IT to handle compliance requirements, Legal Workspace’s fees are only a fraction of the cost of working with an IT firm.

The other upshot of selecting Legal Workspace to help you get compliant is that as new threats emerge and security standards evolve, you don’t need to worry about shelling out more money: Maintenance and updates are automatically included.

There are usually a lot of hurdles a law firm has to jump in order to win the business of a large insurance company. The security and compliance hurdle doesn’t have to be the most difficult and expensive one to clear.

 

 

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Data Breaches Cost More Than You Think

Recently 11.5 million documents containing confidential data were stolen from Mossack Fonseca, the world’s fourth-largest offshore law firm, and published online. Hackers gained access to one of the firm’s servers which allowed the hackers to steal valuable data and emails. All law firms collect and store a myriad of client and financial data making them attractive targets for cyber attackers.

High-value data including trade secrets, acquisitions and mergers and personal health information (PHI) can be leaked to the public or used maliciously. For example, a large law firm handling a merger might be targeted by someone who wants insider information in order to buy or sell stock. Not all cyber attacks target complex data — even basic client data can be targeted. For example, a small law firm might be handling a divorce and the other party works in IT and has the skills to discover what the representing attorney has planned.

While the hacking motives vary the consequences are consistently catastrophic for law firms. Data breaches erode the foundation of attorney-client privilege by exposing sensitive data solely entrusted to law firms. Therefore, securing and protecting privileged information is of the utmost importance.

How can you prevent a data breach?

Intrusion prevention and protection systems

Your network should have an intrusion prevention and detection system in place to monitor unusual server traffic. This system helps to identify and shut down hackers, who constantly search IP addresses looking for weaknesses. Two-factor authentication provides an extra layer of intrusion protection by requiring users to enter two forms of identification during the login process. This approach eliminates the chances that a hacker or computer program can log into a system remotely and randomly create passwords.

Firewalls

Law firms should look for enterprise grade firewalls to protect against malicious software and hackers. Some law firms use multiple firewalls to ensure that if one firewall fails, a backup is already in place.

Email Encryption

Hackers don’t observe attorney-client privilege, and the highest value target is a law firm’s email. Email is the easiest way for clients to send crucial documents and even medical records to attorneys. Email encryption protects data so only the sender and recipient can view email contents.

Internal and External Security Scans

Hackers are constantly evolving their techniques to circumnavigate existing security protocols to find vulnerabilities. Routine security scans are required to ensure data is constantly protected. Law firms that require ultra-security, for HIPAA or governmental compliance, must conduct internal and external security scans on an annual basis.

Data Backups

Off-site data storage is crucial in case all of the other security techniques fail or a natural disaster, theft or fire occurs. Data from ransomware attacks can be fully recovered using backup records, without paying a ransom fee to recover encrypted data.

Encryption, secure data centers, authentication protocols, intrusion monitoring: Complex IT considerations can make your head spin. Even if you have an IT department or person dedicated to managing those issues, it’s tough to stay on top of the latest threats when you’re focused on building your practice. Thankfully, you have options. Legal Workspace has extensive experience securing law firms from physical and cyber threats. We worry about security. You worry about practicing law.

 

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Legal Workspace Increases Client Base, Support Personnel and Partner Reach in 2014

Legal Workspace, a leading provider of cloud-based work environments designed specifically for law firms, today announced that it increased its 2014 customer base by 37 percent when compared to 2013. Additionally, the company welcomed new clients and a new partner in 2014.

The company attributes this success to its unique, legal-specific virtual work environment coupled with law firms’ rising acceptance of cloud-based technology.

Legal Workspace’s accomplishments in 2014 included:

• The finalization of a partner agreement with LawBase as well as the first installation of LawBase in the Legal Workspace environment.
• A renewed Worldox certification.
• A new Time Matters certification.
• The addition of legal systems engineering and marketing staff with first-hand knowledge of law firm operations and processes.

“The cloud is truly freeing attorneys from location and accessibility constraints. We take this a step further by transforming firms into cloud-based operations which give lawyers and paralegals mobile access while eliminating the complexities and costs of managing IT on-site. Legal Workspace, which was first introduced in 2008, can tackle complicated systems and tasks in a short period of time such as large scan and print jobs, integrating applications with email, hosting practice and document management databases and linking to indexed data,” said Joe Kelly, CEO and founder of Legal Workspace.

Legal Workspace, created for lawyers by professionals well-versed in the special demands and requirements of law firm practices, hosts software applications such as Microsoft Windows, Office and Exchange and anti-virus and anti-spam protection to create a virtual law firm platform. Through partnerships, Legal Workspace also offers cloud-based access the following practice management, document management, time billing and legal document generation automation software:

• Amicus Attorney®
• Needles®
• Practice Master®
• Thomson Reuters ProLaw®
• Worldox®
• Microsoft SharePoint®
• Timeslips®
• Tabs3® Billing Software
• QuickBooks®
• Hot Docs®
• ProDoc®

Visit Legal Workspace at LegalTech New York (booth 434) for demonstrations and more information.

You can learn more by visiting Legal Workspace or watch our video.

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Resolve to Simplify your IT Budget

law-firm-IT-resolutions-in-2015As we say goodbye to 2014, we say hello to a new year. The New Year is all about changing old ways and starting fresh. Some of the first items to reevaluate are your law firm’s IT operations and budget.

For instance:

What did you spend on IT support in 2014?
Will you need to replace hardware to keep things running smoothly?
What software are you going to be required to upgrade?
Have you considered moving your law firm to the cloud?

With so many questions to consider, your IT challenges can be overwhelming.

That’s why we’ve put together this infographic to show how cloud services for law firms stack up against a traditional on-site IT solution. (Spoiler: The cloud can offer increased flexibility, security and legal industry support.)

resolve-to-simplify-it-budget-infographic

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Technology That Can Increase Profit for Busy Solos

eliminate-law-firm-growing-pains-with-technologyAs solos ramp up their billable hours, a one-laptop solution can still work. However, busier solos have additional needs. Time becomes precious when solo firms bill more than 1,000 hours a year. Active solo attorneys have to take advantage of technology to increase efficiency and optimize their time.

Step One: Save Time with Document Generation

A lot of time can be lost in repetitive document generation. If attorneys take advantage of technology, that time can be put to better use.

Anymore, most attorneys aren’t writing each new contract (or other frequently used document) from scratch. Many lawyers attempt to save document creation time by using templates within Microsoft Word, as well as taking advantage of Word features, such as Quick Parts, which allows users to store and insert commonly used text blocks. That can work up to a point.

Document generation application options, such as market leaders HotDocs and ProDoc, are a more robust solution. HotDocs allows attorneys to automate documents they use repeatedly, regardless of complexity. By inserting what they call “business logic” into templates, users can customize documents in a wide variety of ways. ProDoc is a document assembly program that offers document generation packs for specific practice areas, such as family law and administrative law. It provides national systems, as well as those specific to California, Florida, and Texas.

Joe Kelly, CEO for Legal Workspace, says that the use of automated document generators is especially prevalent in real estate and personal injury practices. “In some cases, it’s possible for nearly all documents to be totally automated,” he says. That’s a lot of saved time.

Step Two: Save Time by Tracking Time

Busy attorneys need to make sure they have a process in place to accurately capture time and bill clients promptly. Lawyers that have a lighter work load might be able to log time in Excel or on a legal pad, but capturing time more effectively becomes a priority for any solo ramping up its billable hours. That’s where timekeeping software comes in.

Tabs3 and Sage Timeslips are good options for accurate, efficient timekeeping. Tabs3 integrates with QuickBooks and PracticeMaster, a practice management software that is included as a bonus with its license, and it tracks time and accounts receivables. Timeslips integrates with a number of different software options, such as QuickBooks, Outlook, Excel, and Amicus Attorney, and it allows users to track time and accounts receivables, as well as syncing to a user’s calendar.

Step Three: Save Time by Protecting Data

You’ll be able to run whatever document-generation application or time-tracking software you choose on your laptop, thereby upping your practice’s efficiency. But another time-waster for busy attorneys is back-up—something that needs to be done regularly.

Kelly says that a laptop’s two greatest enemies are “gravity and Diet Coke.” His joke emphasizes that anything can happen to a laptop, and if an attorney’s whole practice is primarily run on one device, he/she needs to have back-up in place just in case something happens.

That’s where a solution like Legal Workspace helps out busy solo attorneys. Not only does Legal Workspace automatically back up data on a daily basis, but it keeps that data secure. It also offers hosting for the top legal applications, including those time-saving document generation and time and billing application options mentioned above. Legal Workspace can accommodate a practice’s changing needs as it grows.

Busy solo attorneys need to optimize their time. Taking advantage of technology will streamline administrative work and increase accuracy and protection, creating the time they need for the more rewarding aspects of the practice of law.

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Legal Software 101

legal-software-101Whether you’re getting ready to hang your own shingle or managing an established law firm, implementing a suite of legal software can seem like a daunting task. You might have been intimidated by the cost, the time to put the new procedures and tools in place and possibly the change from familiar processes. However, even with those hurdles, it pays (literally – it saves money) to improve your practice by adopting technologies that work best for you and your firm.

Software Categories

The four categories of applications commonly used by law firms include:

  • Practice Management Software
  • Document Management Software
  • Time and Billing Software
  • Legal Document Generation Automation Software

Practice Management

Practice management applications allow attorneys to streamline their workflow and business processes, thereby enabling them to spend more time generating revenue and less time doing tedious, unproductive tasks. These applications, at their core, offer fundamental matter-centric organization of contacts, calendaring, and management.

The use of practice management applications helps attorneys and staff with organization and quick reference to vital information, no matter the practice. These tools often integrate with other applications that allow for easier manipulation of that data as well as increased mobility.

Common practice management applications include:

  1. Amicus Attorney®
  2. Needles®
  3. Practice Master®
  4. Thomson Reuters ProLaw®

Document Management

Document management software applications are powerful tools in any law firm’s workflow. These applications provide the firm with a centralized and searchable depository of documents, emails and other matter-related items. Law firms deal with volumes of data in a variety of forms and formats. With the billable hour in mind, the ability to quickly search and recall documents or emails is essential for optimizing the firm’s workflow.

With paper documents converted to electronic files, less physical storage space is needed. It becomes easier to take or access documents off-site and audit trails become easier to maintain.

Two popular document management solutions are:

  1. Worldox®
  2. Microsoft SharePoint®

Time and Billing

Two of the most common struggles with any law firm, regardless of the size, is capturing billable time and getting bills out in a timely fashion. The right time and billing application can assist a timekeeper with these tasks and can even help capture more of their billable time. Used correctly, time and billing applications easily pay for themselves with more hours billed and more efficient billing practices.

Your accounting software can also be linked to your time and billing solution in order to facilitate invoicing and tracking accounts receivable and trust account transactions.

Popular time and billing software for law firms includes:

  1. Timeslips®
  2. Tabs3®Billing Software
  3. QuickBooks®

Legal Document Generation Automation

With law firms often collecting data for cases from a variety of disparate sources, assembling a single document from that data can be a challenge. Document generation software allows firms to streamline and automate that process.

These applications use templates and interview questions to help assemble the documents for attorneys. Firms can quickly automate the generation of releases, letters, government forms and other frequently needed documents.

Some applications that help law firms quickly generate these documents are:

  1. Hot Docs®
  2. ProDoc®
  3. Amicus Attorney®

Benefits of Integrated Legal Software Applications

Correctly implemented, these integrated technology solutions can save you time and money in billings, document generation and effectiveness – all while reducing risk.

  1. Increase profitability – capture billable time
  2. Increase productivity – automate documents
  3. Increase effectiveness – build templates
  4. Reduce risk – identify malpractice and disciplinary milestones

These benefits are reached not only through the efficiency of using each individual application, but also through reduced redundancy as the various products share information with each other.

The Legal Workspace Solution

Legal Workspace provides a cloud-based legal work environment with licensing options for all the software applications mentioned in this article. The platform was created just for lawyers and law firms. Our base package includes the complete Microsoft®Office suite, as well as the latest anti-virus and anti-spam protection and nightly backups of your data.

You can also customize your environment to add any specific legal applications your firm already uses or wants to offer, including the unique e-filing software used to submit documents to your local court. We allow you to move existing licenses to the cloud or take advantage of our SaaS (Software as a Service) licensing model for many legal software applications.

Our solution can be implemented in less than a week, often with most of the process happening over the course of a weekend, meaning little disruption to your workflow.

No matter how new or well-established your firm is, you can discover time savings and return on investment by implementing the right legal software solution.

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Thank You To Our Loyal Customers

Giving Thanks

What a wonderful concept Thanksgiving Day is – an official day set aside to reflect on all we’re thankful for in our lives. Gathering together with family and friends – pausing to reflect before the holiday rush and onslaught of the New Year – can only be healthy for all of us. This is true for companies as well as individuals.

In that spirit, Legal Workspace would like to take this opportunity to say “Thank You” to our loyal customers. We are not only grateful for the business our clients bring us, but also simply for the opportunity to do what we love. Most importantly, we are thankful for the relationships we’ve built. After all, while we may deal with remote servers, bits of data and virtual applications, what it all boils down to is each person who we’re privileged to work with every day.

We’re especially thankful that so many of our clients have shown an ongoing loyalty to Legal Workspace, which makes these relationships even more rewarding. Whether you’ve been with us for years, months or only weeks, we appreciate the fact that you chose Legal Workspace to manage your technology needs.

We hope the holiday season and the New Year are joyful and prosperous for you and your firm. We’re looking forward to continuing to do what we’re passionate about, and building our much-valued relationship.

Thank you,

Your Legal Workspace Team

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