Setting Up An Effective Filing System

Organizing and maintaining an effective filing system is important for law practices. There are two main approaches: alphabetic or numeric/alpha-numeric systems. For small practices, an alphabetic system is most straightforward as client files can be easily located without referencing numbers. However, for multi-attorney offices or clients with many matters, a numeric or combination system works better to distinguish different case types. Other considerations include using letter-size folders instead of legal folders to save costs and space, and potentially color-coding files for easy identification of case categories. Providing clients with their own folder promotes good client relations.