The Access Group provides the latest legal compliance news for law firms and solicitors in the UK.
See all updates:
Register for the webinar series
- Topic:
- Legal
One of the growing priorities that law firms face when considering a legal technology provider is cyber and data security. As such, during our recent Legal IT Clinic webinar, we asked our customers (law firms) their top questions when it comes to choosing a legal cloud managed service provider (MSP) or legal technology provider and the majority were concerned with these three key areas: The responsibilities of an MSP or legal technology provider, Cyber incidents including mitigation and response strategies and Cyber essentials compliance and best practices.
- Topic:
- Legal
For any law firm making a decision on whether to host their legal case and practice management software on the cloud or on their own on-premise servers, Access Legal has produced this practical checklist.
Cloud Computing Defined: Cloud computing for Law Firms, in the context of this checklist, is simply outsourcing the hosting of your accounts, case and practice management software along with the other key integrated third-party software products, such as Microsoft Office and Exchange. Of course cloud computing as such i.e. the provision of computing services over the internet, is nothing new. Remote application hosting has been available for many years.
The question is – as a law firm should you host your software on your own in-house servers or do you entrust the hosting of your critical business systems to a cloud technology partner? Either way the software doesn’t change – the only differences are how you access the software and where it is hosted.
- Topic:
- Legal
The value of a law firm’s data should never be underestimated, and so it is important to find an experienced software supplier you and your partners can completely trust if you are considering switching from one legal case and practice management system to another and need to convert your law firm’s data.
In terms of a law firm’s assets, consideration for your data is as important as your people, their expertise and their time. Decision makers understandably can be wary about investing and switching to alternative legal software because of the prospect of migrating all of their precious data. Unfortunately some technology providers have made it difficult for firms to retrieve their data, compounding the concern over switching to a new provider.
- Topic:
- Legal
In today's rapidly evolving legal landscape, data is becoming increasingly vital for law firms to stay competitive, make informed decisions, and adapt to changing client preferences. Legal professionals are recognizing the importance of harnessing the power of data to gain valuable insights and align their strategies with firm objectives. In a recent webinar, Marcus Dacombe, Director of Product Marketing at Access Legal, and Paul Wynn discussed the significance of data in legal case management and how it can be used to drive a data-driven culture within law firms.
- Topic:
- Legal
Our latest update webinar focused on recent anti-money laundering (AML) developments, an update from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and some of the key AML questions answered by the SRA on its website.
- Topic:
- Legal
Legal case management can be complex and confusing for medium-sized law firms. The ever-changing legal landscape and increasing regulatory requirements make it challenging for law firms to manage cases efficiently. Pursuing legal cases without a detailed case management system can lead to missed deadlines, lost documents, and, ultimately, lost cases.
This blog addresses the challenges and offers insights into how medium-sized law firms can navigate legal case management effectively.
- Topic:
- Legal
Law firms are entrusted with vast amounts of sensitive information, such as bank accounts and personal details, and have a responsibility to protect it. With cybercrime on the rise and the potential for identity theft increasing, firms need to implement effective measures to safeguard their data and their client's data. Biometric identity checking is an innovative solution that many law firms are turning to as a reliable method of identity verification. Furthermore, it offers a convenience benefit that meets the needs of today's client who expects seamless digital experiences from their service providers.
In this blog post, we'll explore how biometric identity verification works, its benefits and drawbacks, and why it should be considered by law firms.
- Topic:
- Legal
Staying updated on the latest guidance and challenges in anti-money laundering (AML) compliance is crucial for legal institutions and professionals. In this blog post, we'll summarize important topics discussed in the July 2023 AML Update with Brian Rogers and Helen Rice.
- Topic:
- Legal
Since January 2022, there has been a hive of merger and acquisition activity in the legal sector. The SRA states that between June 2022 and May 2023, 404 law firms opened their doors, and between April 2022 and March 2023, 579 firms had closed. This flurry of activity demonstrates the intensity of M&A in the legal market, as firms have merged, divested, and changed status. Some firms, a surprising 54%, have closed their doors and a leading factor is likely market forces and the challenges with ensuring profitability in a modern legal practice.
This trend is only likely to continue as the economic uncertainty and high inflation rates persist. Economic factors may lead more law firms to consider mergers, resizing, or restructuring, as costs and profitability are top of mind for law firm leaders.
- Topic:
- Legal