Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1596
www.iltanet.org E-Mail Life Cycle 13 structure. This requires someone — either the attorney or an assistant — to link the e-mail folder under the inbox with a particular electronic matter file. Beyond this, e-mail filing can be improved and, in essence, provide the same workflow ease as filing traditional physical correspondence. Instead of physically writing on a letter, the lawyer can type the client/matter number, name or description. The system will search for the matter and will find the appropriate match. This metaphor can be extended so that the system suggests to the users where to file the e-mail, or allows them to choose from a list of recent selections. Users can also decide whether the sent and received e-mail should be filed privately or some additional action is needed such as printing. E-mail filing can be done in bulk or one message at a time. These capabilities alleviate the traditional extra steps of lawyers copying themselves on sent e-mail and then filing it separately. This process mirrors the workflow for filing physical correspondence, but the software does the work traditionally done by the assistant. Many lawyers, especially associates, work on matters ad hoc and might have only a few e-mail messages that are applicable to a matter. Most people will not want to create a folder for individual matters in those cases. Instead, these e-mail messages will remain in the inbox or be thrown into a miscellaneous folder. The ability to quickly file these random e-mail messages to the appropriate matter increases the likelihood of the e-mail being correctly filed. Corporate lawyers sometimes use an e-mail group for each deal. These e-mail messages can be easily filed if attorneys have a matter folder with an e-mail address. That matter folder's e-mail address is included as part of the distribution group and any e-mail using the distribution group will be automatically filed. Most e-mail messages are addressed to multiple people within the firm. Who's responsible for filing the e-mail into an electronic matter file? While most systems offer duplication detection, if each recipient files the e-mail message, everyone but the first person to file the document has wasted his or her time. A better solution is to have all the recipients informed that the message has been filed by marking it as filed in every recipient's inbox. When you provide users a variety of options for filing e-mail, you increase the likelihood that all the messages will come together to create a complete matter file. Success is even more certain when only one person has to do the filing. Every law firm has a critical objective to get all e-mail filed into the appropriate matter file. However, to achieve success you must provide the right user experience — preferably one that mimics traditional processes as closely as possible. Lawyers need to have trust in the system, access to fast and efficient filing of e-mail, a variety of e-mail filing methods and equal access to their e-mail whether on the on the road or in the office. These factors will help ensure user adoption of electronic filing systems, and a complete electronic matter file. ILTa fILIng sysTEMs MaKE ThE dIffEREnCE E-mail systems define the end user's expectations for speed and performance. Filing e-mail in folders under the inbox is simple and can be set up in most applications. The user chooses a folder, places the e-mail in the folder, and it is filed instantaneously. Filing e-mail under the inbox happens so efficiently because an e-mail system makes a simple change to its database rather then moving the content on its server. This architecture makes it easer on the user, even from a remote location. Filing e-mail to an electronic-matter file has traditionally required the e-mail to travel from the e-mail server to the user's desktop and then be uploaded into the central repository. When this is happening, the e-mail client is locked and the user cannot take any other action. While this approach might work well for an e-mail or two, it becomes problematic when someone attempts to file many e-mail messages and quickly becomes impatient waiting for the filing action to complete. To dodge this problem, some software companies have implemented background filing. This allows e-mail to still be filed through the desktop client, while enabling the users to freely use their mail client during the filing process. Centralized implementations require the data to travel across the WAN to the desktop and then back to the datacenter, gobbling up valuable bandwidth. Users are generally unaware once the background filing has started. If their computer crashes 15 minutes later, the e-mail messages might not finish filing. Users might not realize this, and they could become frustrated when they can't locate e-mail messages. That results in a call to the help desk and — more critical — a lack of trust in the system. The best solution is server-side filing. With server- side filing, e-mail moves directly from the e-mail system to the electronic file repository, without traveling through the desktop. This means that the major data transfer happens in the data center, not across the WAN or LAN. Users can file hundreds of messages a few minutes before they leave the office and feel assured that their messages are being filed to the appropriate matter. fILIng My Way In the end, there is no "right" way for end users to file e-mail messages. Most people have developed their own filing habits and will be resistant to breaking them unless they feel that the new approach is easier. Ideally, systems need to provide end users a multitude of options that enable them to file e-mail in the way that works for them. Attorneys don't need to change their behavior much to synchronize a folder under the inbox with an electronic correspondence folder for a particular matter. This allows them to leverage their current client/matter e-mail folder