When optimizing office floor space for law firms, it is beneficial for legal professionals to consider commercial document scanning.
The benefits of switching to an electronic records management system include fewer lost files, easier access to information and documents, less wear-and-tear of archival documents, and an increase in office space for revenue-generating products. Commercial document scanning can also eliminate storage and courier costs, while also increasing the turnaround times on sourcing legal records.
Often, legal professionals find themselves surrounded by paper documents, be it client information or various contracts. Due to legal acts and bylaws focused on record retention, lawyers must keep these documents on hand for several years. For example, the Limitations Act (2002) requires lawyers to keep files for up to 15 years from the date the case is closed. The Law Society of Upper Canada’s Bylaw 9; Section 23(1) and Section 23(2) requires documents to be kept for a minimum of six and 10 years respectively. Further, the Income Tax Act states that income tax documents and other related material must be kept for at least six years.
Legal professionals have many options for their document management needs. Firms can choose to keep their documents on-site; however, such space can be saved for other revenue-generating products, employees, or other needs. Documents can also be left at an off-site storage facility. A storage facility can help law firms adhere to defensible policies that meet regulatory, privacy, and security requirements set out by the Law Society of Ontario. It can also cut costs as they allow firms to avoid discovery and litigations costs of legal and regulatory violations. Though off-site storage has many benefits, it is also inconvenient and difficult to access and retrieve documents, which is why professionals should seriouslyt consider commercial document scanning.
Legal teams have direct access to case details when they choose commercial document scanning, which is important when reviewing current cases and comparing data between current/closed cases. Additionally, law enforcement teams can easily cross-reference case data with the legal team in order to collaborate effectively. The ability to collaborate across geographic locations is useful when determining if any evidence from the past case matches their investigatory work, or when working and managing the caseload with other stakeholders in the legal process. Commercial document scanning guarantees that a document will still exist when it is needed, and it is much more likely that the document will be found.
As stated previously, law firms can also save a significant amount of space within their offices while storing documents on a secure network. By using the latest technology to streamline and access information, law firms can significantly reduce their costs long-term. According to Law Technology Today, the cost of maintaining paper documents for a typical 75-attorney firm can be as much as $362,760; potentiallty more when taking in employee time and storage costs.
Law firms that are stuck with a paper document management system are less efficient and less profitable, which is why it is makes sense to choose commercial document scanning and shred as many documents as possible. By digitizing records, law firms increase efficiency by focusing on core business processes and improving the leverage of their technology investments.
Salumatics provides data transformation solutions and expertise and can help your business make the desired shift. We can convert more than 10 million documents per month using high-speed scanners and customized workflow process technology.
To learn more about Salumatics and our commercial document scanning services, click here.