For many in-house legal departments, document and email management is a persistent challenge. Unlike law firms, which often have dedicated and sophisticated legal document management systems, most in-house teams rely on enterprise-wide tools such as SharePoint, network drives, or email folders to organise their legal work.
While these systems are functional for general business use, they are not designed for the specific needs of legal teams — leading to inefficiencies and access control challenges.
The Limitations of Enterprise Document Storage
Enterprise systems such as SharePoint, Google Drive, or traditional shared folders are widely used for corporate document storage. However, legal teams manage highly sensitive materials—contracts, litigation files, regulatory documents, and privileged communications—that require stricter access controls and structured workflows. Generic document storage tools often do not prioritise the level of granular control and clear audit trails that legal teams need.
Some key challenges legal teams face with enterprise storage solutions include:
- Access control complexity – Ensuring the right level of access for different stakeholders (legal, compliance, commercial teams) can be difficult and relies on IT support
- Visibility and confidentiality concerns – Enterprise systems are designed for broad access and collaboration, making it difficult to ensure legal-related documents are only visible to the right people at the right time
- Lack of structured workflows – Legal matters follow a specific lifecycle, yet generic storage solutions do not provide appropriate version control, matter-based organisation, or approval workflows
- Search and retrieval inefficiencies – Finding the right document in a vast, unstructured system is time-consuming and often relies on manual processes
When these challenges are not addressed, legal teams may struggle with inefficiencies, difficulty managing important documents, and unnecessary complexity in maintaining appropriate levels of access control.
A Legal-Specific Approach to Document Management
Legal teams need a document management solution designed for their specific needs — one that balances security, usability, and efficiency. A legal-focused document management system should:
- Provide a structured, matter-based organisation for both documents and emails
- Allow control over access permissions, ensuring confidential information stays protected
- Offer seamless integration between emails, documents, and workflow processes
- Enable version control and audit trails to maintain compliance and accountability
By using a system designed with legal workflows in mind, in-house teams can ensure that documents are easily accessible to those who need them — without the risk of accidental sharing of sensitive information or cumbersome access controls.
The Role of Search in Document Management
Even with a well-organised document management system, legal teams still need an efficient way to locate information quickly. Basic search functions in enterprise storage tools often rely on file names or manually added metadata, which is insufficient when searching across thousands of documents and emails.
Advanced search functionality makes a significant difference by enabling legal teams to:
- Search within the content of legal documents and emails, not just file names
- Identify clauses, key terms, and organisation details buried in contracts or correspondence
- Quickly retrieve relevant information without relying on IT or manual organisation efforts
- With legal matters often requiring fast responses, the ability to locate specific information instantly can improve efficiency and decision-making.
Moving Beyond Generic Storage Solutions
For in-house legal teams, document management is not just about storage but security, control, and efficiency. Enterprise-wide systems serve a purpose but lack the functionality that legal professionals require to manage their work effectively and securely. Without the right system, legal teams face ongoing risks related to access control, compliance, and time-consuming document retrieval.
Conclusion
By implementing a document management system designed for legal, teams can confidently take control of their files and emails, knowing that sensitive information is secure, accessible, and structured in a way that aligns with their work.
To explore how a legal-specific document management approach could enhance your team’s efficiency and security, visit our Advanced Search page.
This article was originally published on our sister site lawcadia.com.
