40 WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM | JUL 2022 The legal sector’s move to cloud-based computing has been a long time coming, but in our post-pandemic world, there are fewer and fewer reasons for law firms not to already be in the cloud, let alone to just be considering it. Though on-premises systems might still have their place for a small minority of cases, the cloud brings a wealth of benefits for legal firms. So, what exactly are these benefits and how can legal firms overcome some of the challenges that they might face when moving onto the cloud? Why Move to the Cloud? In the past, legal firms might have been concerned about the cybersecurity implications of placing confidential data online, but the reality is that the cloud will often be a more secure option than on-premises IT infrastructure. Providers typically have a larger budget, plus more robust security controls and governance than most legal firms, who quite often sail close to the wind in terms of their management of risk from an IT perspective. This is where cloud providers help, as they cover many areas of cybersecurity, which can dovetail with a firm’s own security systems and governance structures. In fact, legal firms are notorious for building up technical debt within their IT environments. This brings risk and typically hampers transformation strategies. Cloud providers often take a very different approach, ensuring their IT platforms are always up to date with streamlined processes that smooth the upgrade cycle significantly and remove the need for forklift upgrades. Additionally, cloud environments in the main are significantly more resilient to failure when compared to on-premises solutions, protected by the scale and architecture of platforms that cloud providers usually run. Law firms as a rule are resistant to swift changes in the way they work, but the value added by more efficient technologies is too great for most to ignore. This is especially true for upgrading data management through the cloud. In this special feature, QuoStar CEO Robert Rutherford outlines the process involved in switching systems to the cloud and how law firms can ensure the best possible transition. Moving to the Cloud: Opportunities and Pitfalls Robert Rutherford CEO, Quostar Waverley House, 115-119 Holdenhurst Road, Bournemouth, BH8 8DY Tel: +44 01202 055400 E: hello@quostar.com www.quostar.com MOVING TO THE CLOUD: OPPORTUNITIES AND PITFALLS
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