What should a law firm ask before choosing an IT provider?

Three things beyond the usual: whether they have supported legal practices before, how they handle work that is deadline-driven, and what specifically happens when something breaks at eight in the evening before a filing. The generic questions matter too; these are the ones that separate providers for a firm.

Legal experience is worth asking about because the context genuinely differs. A provider who has supported practices knows the practice management platforms, understands why an outage on a particular afternoon is not just inconvenient, and does not need the confidentiality obligations explained. A provider without that background can still be excellent, and the test is whether they ask about your deadlines and your obligations unprompted or wait to be told.

Then the practical questions that reveal how a relationship will actually feel. What is the response arrangement for something urgent, and what does urgent mean in their definition rather than yours. Who answers, and are they local. What does onboarding involve and how long does it take. What is included in the monthly fee and what is billed separately, since project work billed by the hour on top of a managed fee is where budgets surprise people.

Two more that firms often skip. Ask for two references from practices your size and ring them, because in a market this size that is easy and unusually candid. And ask who owns your tenant, your domain and your data, and whether you would hold administrative access, since the answer determines how difficult leaving would be and a good provider will hand it over without hesitation. If you would like to ask us those questions, call 1800 456 567.