Peer to Peer Magazine

20 PEER TO PEER: THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF ILTA | WINTER 2017 BEST PRACTICES Managing Maer Mobility: Reducing the Burden of Departing Client Files Managing Matter Mobility: Reducing the Burden of Departing Client Files Lateral movement between firms is increasing, requiring the transfer of massive amounts of records, emails, client files and the like, all of which should be screened to ensure that the wrong information does not leave the firm with the departing lawyer. Hence the increasing focus on maer mobility issues at many firms. "Maer mobility" refers to the process of transferring maers and related information out of or into a firm. Lateral movement is the main force pushing maer mobility issues, but they also arise in a host of other contexts such as departing clients, law firm mergers and aorney retirement. When an attorney leaves a firm, who gets to keep their documents? This question is not as straightforward as it may seem. The law is largely a written practice, and an attorney's files may include a jumble of attorney work product, client information, firm intellectual property and personal documents. Separating one from another is no easy task. CASEY C. SULLIVAN Casey C. Sullivan is an attorney in San Francisco, where he leads education and awareness efforts at Logikcull, the leading provider of discovery automation solutions. Maer mobility is rarely simple. Firms want to make sure that a lawyer's departure does not result in the loss of valuable intellectual property such as the files of non departing clients, forms and templates or practice management materials. This can require significant data collection and review as thousands of documents are gathered and screened to ensure that no improper information escapes the firm. Though this process can be complicated, its burdens can be significantly reduced by adopting technological solutions to simplify collection, review and production. The Matter Mobility Process: An Overview When a maer transfers between firms, significant ethical and professional responsibilities come into play. During the transition process both the firm and the transferring aorney must ensure that a client's right to competent representation is not adversely impacted and that both remain bound to protect client information. Thus the maer mobility process requires a careful balancing of business considerations and ethical concerns. With the stakes so high, transferring client information out of the firm cannot be approached in an ad hoc manner. Having a consistent procedure is key. The Maer Mobility Task Force of the Law Firm Information Governance Symposium, an information governance platform for the legal industry established in 2012, recommends adopting a policy "to define the firm's position regarding the transfer of records into and out of firm repositories." That policy will need to be tailored to the culture and information governance procedures of the firm, but it should address three main areas: » Acceptance of records from inbound laterals » Release of records for outbound clients and aorneys » Lawyer and staff departure procedures The successful implementation of such a policy will require collaboration across departments, including the office of the General Counsel, human services, by Casey C. Sullivan

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