Keeping Your Law Firm's Filing Organized

Law firms will have to manage large amounts of paperwork and other documents. To this end, the filing cabinets for a law firm can be some of its most important pieces of equipment. Yet, lawyers often struggle with keeping their filing organized.

Invest In High-Quality File Jackets And Case Folders

One of the first steps you can take for improving the effectiveness of your filing system will be to invest in high-quality file jackets and case folders. These files and documents might need to be removed from the filing cabinet on a regular basis. Lower-quality file jackets and case folders may be more likely to tear or rip when they are being removed from the filing cabinets. Once this happens, papers and other important items might fall out of the file case. While high-quality filing materials may cost slightly more, keeping your important documents safe is an important goal to meet.

Discourage Workers From Placing Files On Top Of Cabinets

Individuals can develop the habit of simply placing files on top of the cabinets rather than putting them back into them. This can quickly lead to a large number of files and folders being strewn on top of the cabinets, which can make finding particular file far more difficult. This can also increase the risk of damaging these files as they will be more exposed. If your employees currently have this habit, it will take a diligent effort, but it is possible to establish a new culture when it comes to returning files to their appropriate locations.

Leave Some Room In Each Drawer

To maximize space efficiency, you might want to keep as many files in each drawer as possible. However, you should always leave a little space in each drawer when you are organizing these cabinets. This will allow you to more easily insert new files into the cabinets in the future. Making this change can force you to buy an additional cabinet, but it will keep your filing organized and easy to use.

Have A Set Day Of The Month For Reordering The Filing

Whether it is due to being distracted, carelessness or simply apathy, some employees may not put files and folders back in the filing cabinets in the exact alphabetical order. Unfortunately, this can have the result of making it far more difficult for employees to locate these files when they need them. At least once a month, one or more of your employees should inspect all of the files so that any that are out of place can be put back into alphabetical order.

For more information, contact a company like American Legal Forms today.

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