4 Reasons Why Cloud Services and Law Firms Belong Together

Cloud environments provide a lot of advantages no matter what industry is served. But, law firms especially benefit from specific features and services that cloud hosting can supply. These four big reasons make it clear that law firms and cloud services belong together:

1)      Email hosting

What would happen if your email host experienced an outage? How much would that affect your ability to work with clients? Beyond that, do you know for sure that your email encryption is strong enough?

The cloud eliminates both of those worries in one fell swoop: It makes email hosting reliable and secure. Attorneys and other employees will be able to access email anytime away from the office, and it is as safe and as dependable as it would be if they were sitting at their desks in the middle of the business day.

Cloud hosting also means that your firm is not storing files on any device, which is a key provision to the Health Care Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In fact, if your law firm services clients that need HIPAA compliance, a cloud environment like Legal Workspace can make that ordinarily cumbersome process easy.

Finally, you have no need to worry about losing email data. Even if a natural disaster or a theft occurs at your law firm’s physical space, your information is safe.

2)      File storage and virtual servers

All of the advantages of email hosting in the cloud apply to file storage in the cloud. Nothing is hosted on your law firm’s devices, so compliance with regulatory oversight is a snap. The storage is reliable and secure.

Cloud providers use virtual servers. That means law firm management can stop thinking about server maintenance, worrying about technology upgrades, and stressing over potential down time. When you take advantage of cloud services, you will always be using the latest and greatest technology.

It also means attorneys and employees have access to the same files, software, and other data any time and anywhere. They may be in court or mediation. They may be traveling or working odd hours. With a cloud environment like Legal Workspace, attorneys can have the exact same work experience in court that they would in their own offices, for example. It saves time, increases productivity, and makes work more convenient.

3)      Back-ups

You can’t predict the future. And, no matter how well you prepare or work to mitigate risk, it is still possible that your workspace will be struck by natural disaster or burglary. Maybe you’ve thought of that and are already doing regular data back-ups…or maybe you’ve let that fall by the wayside.

When you use a cloud environment, back-ups happen automatically. Instead of natural disaster or theft causing business interruption, you have zero downtime. Legal Workspace keeps two weeks’ worth of back-ups, and they store data in two geographically diverse locations – so even if something happens that affects one of those facilities, the other has you covered.

4)      Simplified routine office tasks

You can think of the cloud as your all-around IT solution because most cloud services ensure that your office technology is working, too. That means phones, networks, printers, and scanners stay up and running, and if something goes south, you know who to call.

Law firms that use a cloud environment can concentrate on what they do best: practicing law. When you make the decision to go with the cloud, email services, file storage, security, reliable back-ups, and a simplified office routine are all yours.

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Not All Clouds Are Equal: Select the Best

By now, you’ve heard all about the cloud, how it can keep your data secure, and how using a cloud environment is a more convenient way to work. You’re convinced that working in a cloud environment is the way to go. What’s the next step? How do you get the cloud and make it work for you? Will any cloud do?

As with any other technology, you must be selective. Choose the cloud environment that provides security and support.

Legal Workspace goes way beyond providing just cloud storage for lawyers. Its cloud environment was designed with the particular needs of the legal profession at its forefront. Because of that, Legal Workspace’s cloud environment – and its set-up and support team – provide special features that make it the best choice.

A dedicated team

When you work with Legal Workspace, you aren’t just buying space and an interface. You get to work with a dedicated team that is there to help you with your technology needs. This team is made up of people with legal industry experience.

That legal industry experience allows the team to immediately comprehend and meet your firm’s needs. The team takes an unbiased approach to hosting, and they understand a law firm’s daily workflow in addition to all of the facets of technology. For example, they can help you customize programs and applications for greater efficiency. Beyond that, if you ever need advice as you make technology decisions, the team can contribute CIO-level guidance.

And, certain aspects of tech maintenance become invisible. Just think: You will never need to worry about updating software again – because it will happen automatically.

 

A secure environment

You have your dedicated technology team to set up and maintain your own distinct cloud environment when you work with Legal Workspace. But that’s not all your team can do for you. You can consult with your team about security, too. Because Legal Workspace is designed specifically for use by those in the legal profession, it has developed and locked in place a multi-layer defense system to protect your – and your clients’ – data from exposure.

Legal Workspace uses two-factor authentication, advanced intrusion detection and prevention systems, state-of-the-art antivirus software, and anti-spam solutions as tools in its mission to keep your data safe. The security teams at Legal Workspace are always working to keep your data secure with proactive monitoring, redundancy, and airtight training and policies.

 

A compliant mindset

Legal Workspace takes security and compliance seriously. It knows how important compliance is to you and to your clients. That’s why on-staff security and compliance experts are easy to reach and at the ready to help you make compliance decisions and meet the demands of standards required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS).

And, data storage isn’t a mystery with Legal Workspace. Your data is stored in the United States – in Dallas, TX, and Denver, CO – and it will never leave those locations.

When you work with a cloud solution that understands the challenges the legal profession faces, you have the opportunity to take advantage of its expertise. You can work in a cloud environment designed especially for law firms, and you can work with teams with legal industry experience and technology expertise. That makes it so much easier to set up a cloud environment that does what you need it to do.

 

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