If you run a law office in the Downriver area, your IT setup has to protect client confidentiality. That’s not optional. Michigan’s Rules of Professional Conduct require lawyers to take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorized access to client information, and those steps increasingly involve technology.
Groves Technology works with law firms in Gibraltar and throughout Downriver to make sure their IT supports those obligations instead of creating risk.
Michigan Rule 1.6 requires lawyers to protect client confidences and secrets. Rule 5.3 extends that to anyone the lawyer supervises or uses to provide services, which includes your IT provider. The practical impact is that your technology has to be set up to protect client data at every level.
Here’s what that looks like:
Encrypted email. Client communications containing confidential information need to be encrypted. Standard email without encryption is a risk most firms don’t think about until something goes wrong.
Access controls. Staff should only have access to the client files they need. A paralegal working on estate planning shouldn’t have open access to your criminal defense files.
Secure file storage. Client documents need to be stored securely, whether that’s on a local server or in the cloud. The storage has to be encrypted and access has to be logged.
Secure remote access. If attorneys or staff work remotely or access files from home, that connection needs to be secured. An unsecured home Wi-Fi connection accessing your case management system is a confidentiality risk.
Backup and disaster recovery. Client files need to be backed up and recoverable. A ransomware attack or a server failure that destroys active case files isn’t just an IT problem. It’s a malpractice exposure.
Vendor responsibility. Your IT provider handles your most sensitive data. They need to understand the confidentiality obligations you’re under and operate accordingly.
Most law offices with 3 to 15 employees have IT setups that grew organically. Somebody set up the network years ago, the case management software runs on a server nobody really manages, and the backup probably works but nobody’s tested it.
Groves Technology starts by assessing where things actually stand, then builds a managed plan around closing the gaps. Encrypted email, proper access controls, monitored backups, and regular patching happen as part of the monthly plan instead of getting forgotten until something breaks.
Based in Gibraltar, Michigan, serving law offices throughout Downriver and Southeast Michigan. That’s IT support law office Downriver Michigan firms can rely on.
Want to talk about your firm’s IT? Schedule a call or reach out at (734) 230-2360.
Michigan Rule 1.6 extends that duty to anyone your firm supervises or uses to provide services, which includes your IT provider. The practical impact is that your technology has to be set up to protect client data at every level, encrypted email, access controls, secure file storage, and secure remote access.
The storage has to be encrypted, and access has to be logged, whether that’s on a local server or in the cloud. If a vendor handles PHI or client files on your behalf, you need to understand the confidentiality obligations you’re under and operate accordingly.
Yes, as long as the connection is secured. An unsecured home WiFi connection accessing your case management system is a confidentiality risk, so remote access needs to be set up right, not just left to whatever network someone happens to be on.
A ransomware attack or a server failure that destroys active case files isn’t just an IT problem, it’s a malpractice exposure. Your IT provider handles your most sensitive data, and they need to understand the confidentiality obligations you’re under and operate accordingly. That’s why we build backups and recovery into every managed plan from day one.
Serving law offices throughout Downriver Michigan, including Trenton, Rockwood, Brownstown Township, Woodhaven, and Flat Rock.
