By Mohammed Singh | 21 February 2024
1. Sharing files and spreadsheets through email can be dangerous for sensitive information.
If your company uses a cloud-based tool to easily share large amounts of information with people you work with as well as other professionals, it will be easy to use and follow best practices. However, what would you do if your legal team needs to act quickly? What should you do if someone in your company finds out about a data breach? It's crucial for the General Counsel to have rules and plans ready to handle the problem right away, so it doesn't lead to more breaches. Be aware of the laws about keeping data safe in your area. For instance, Australian lawyers must tell the authorities about any qualifying incidents and be prepared with a plan to respond if there is a data breach. Acting quickly in the first 24 hours is really important to control the breach.
2. Create detailed analysis on how much money is being spent on legal expenses.
If you want to save money on legal costs for your business, it's important to have advanced analytics to show to your stakeholders. Use reputable legal software to manage cases and track legal expenses using advanced analysis tools. If you don't have a platform, it might be a good idea to make a plan to get one. Once you have a good tech solution, it will help you explain how your legal department is spending money and what it's for.
3. Use up to date legal software
Using technology to create legal contracts and documents is a big deal for people who already know about this new way of doing things. Even lawyers who use automated contracts and legal documents may need to update their systems. A special document system can be used by your legal team and the rest of the business. This decision can make it easier for you to deal with small legal issues and not put too much pressure on yourself and thee rest of your legal team so you can all focus on more important tasks.
4. Improve communication
As a lawyer who helps your law firm plan for the future, it's important to improve your communication with your fellow colleagues. If you are in charge of a legal team, you could help by creating a culture where everyone shares their knowledge and ideas. You can do this by joining private networking groups in your organisation and connect with others. Encouraging new and better ways of talking with your colleagues is also beneficial. For instance, if you have a legal problem that needs quick help from a lawyer working remotely, you want to be able to share files and quickly take care of your client's legal problem more efficiently. It's important to work with someone who has good ideas like you do.
5. Beware of phishing.
Phishing is when a scammer tries to trick you into giving them sensitive information, like your password or credit card number. We have seen false messages that pretend to be from IT or Court registry and software updates. They try to get your information or install harmful software. You should think about conducting training sessions to protect you and your staff from phishing scams. It's a good idea to remind everyone about the company rules for using personal computers, phones, tablets, and WiFi for work. Make sure to tell them that these rules still apply when working from home, and that security measures won't be changed unless there's a new policy. Don't send real emails to workers that seem like fake emails.
6. Remote capability
Test if a lot of employees can log in at the same time from a different place. Look into using safe online video meetings more. Expect that the IT help desk will have more work and make sure your employees have the right rules, training, and tools to deal with more requests for help from people working at home. This includes being able to check that employees are who they say they are by using things like phone number confirmation, challenge questions, and two-factor authentication.
7. Expect issues with working from home
If employees have trouble using their own computers at home, they might try to do work in a way that's not very safe, like sending important files to their personal email so they can print them at home. Companies need to predict and fix these problems before they happen. Figure out how many people are needed to protect the network. This includes updating systems, checking new systems for security, and investigating and fixing any cyber attacks. Think about having extra people in case some of them can't be there. Make sure that the contact information for important employees, like their mobile phone numbers, is current.
8. Keep medical information safe.
If employees get sick, it's important to share that information for good reasons. But it's also important to keep their medical information private as required by law. This includes the medical conditions and names of employees or their family members who have been diagnosed with a medical condition.
Working remotely as a lawyer or legal professional might seem like a nice idea, but it may not be realistic to go 100% remote, depending on your role or practice area and what a typical day looks like for you. However, with modern technology, it should be possible to complete some of your legal work remotely while still ensuring client and firm data is kept secure and confidential.
Muhammed Singh is currently studying a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Information Technology at the University of Wollongong (UOW).