Akin Gump Adopts FileTrail for Information Governance Program

Leading international law firm to use FileTrail to manage records retention, apply client requirements across information repositories

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers globally, has adopted FileTrail to support its information governance program. Akin Gump will use FileTrail to control information across the firm’s data repositories in line with its information governance policies, as well as its clients outside counsel guidelines.

“Law firms today face tough scrutiny from clients when it comes to security and information management. Organizations that can demonstrate their commitment to protecting their clients’ information inspire confidence and trust,” said Darrell Mervau, CEO, FileTrail. “The IG team at Akin Gump is taking a comprehensive and methodical approach that addresses the policy, process, technology and cultural aspects of successful information governance.”

“In a digital environment, information is saved in so many different places, it is no longer practical or efficient to rely on individuals to manually track document classification, retention and disposition,” said Christopher Egan, Assistant General Counsel for Information Governance at Akin Gump. “FileTrail is a core part of our vision to automate controls on records retention and monitor compliance with firm policies and client requirements on an ongoing basis. We value the FileTrail approach in providing visibility across multiple systems, as well as the responsiveness and support of its development team.”

FileTrail will enable authorized users to view documents stored in Akin Gump’s document management system, as well as file shares and e-discovery archives.

The firm will store policies approved by the Office of the General Counsel in FileTrail and apply them to relevant information assets. In addition, Akin Gump is integrating FileTrail with other business systems to enforce client-specific retention and disposition requirements — from the inception of a new matter to the appropriate period of time after it closes.

Managing the Information Lifecycle

Actively managing the information lifecycle is essential to law firm risk management, as well as client service delivery. When documents are received or created by the firm, FileTrail automatically applies the correct policies to each item according to pre-defined rules.

Once retention periods have expired, FileTrail triggers workflows for the review, approval and disposition of specific records. FileTrail also automatically captures an audit trail of all activity and decisions related to client matter files.

InOutsource, a consulting firm with in-depth expertise in law firm information management, is working with Akin Gump on its FileTrail implementation, as well as data mapping and data cleansing.