Law Firm Compliance Checklist

Pull 10 matters opened in the last 90 days from Clio / MyCase / iManage. For each, confirm the intake form captured client identity (government ID), matter type, opposing parties, related entities, and witnesses. Missing opposing-party data is the top reason conflicts get missed downstream.

Re-run each sampled matter through the conflicts database against current clients, former clients, adverse parties, and witnesses. Document any hits the original intake missed — these become the basis for a Rule 1.7 / 1.10 remediation conversation with the responsible attorney.

Imputation under Rule 1.10 means a missed conflict can disqualify the firm. The managing partner decides whether to seek a written waiver, screen the affected attorney, or withdraw. Document the decision in the matter file and the conflicts log.

For each open matter, the DMS should hold a countersigned engagement letter with scope, fee structure, retainer terms, and dispute-resolution clause. An unsigned letter is the most common factual basis for a fee dispute or bar grievance.

Reconcile book balance, bank balance, and the sum of individual client ledgers — all three must match to the penny. Discrepancies even of a few dollars indicate a posting error or, worse, commingling. Use Clio Trust, CosmoLex Trust, or Tabs3 Trust depending on the firm's stack.

Trace every transaction in the variance period. Common causes: bank fees posted to IOLTA (a Rule 1.15 violation in most states), retainer disbursed before funds cleared, or a client ledger posting to the wrong matter. Resolve before the next month closes.

Any client ledger below zero is a Rule 1.15 violation. Most state bars are notified by the bank automatically on IOLTA overdraft, triggering a disciplinary referral. Pay particular attention to matters where retainers were disbursed on the same day funds were deposited.

Pull the NetDocuments / iManage / SharePoint access list and cross-check against HR's active-employee roster. Any lingering credentials for departed attorneys, paralegals, or contract reviewers must be revoked the same day. Lateral departures are the highest-risk category.

Model Rule 1.6(c) requires reasonable safeguards on client information. MFA on email, DMS, PMS, and trust-accounting platforms is table stakes. Pull the admin report from Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace and identify any account without MFA enrolled.

For each open matter under hold, confirm custodians are still receiving hold notices and that auto-deletion policies in Outlook and OneDrive are suppressed for those custodians. A missed custodian is the textbook spoliation sanction scenario.

Restore a sample matter file from the most recent backup to a sandbox environment. Backups that have never been tested often fail when needed. Document the restore time and any data loss observed.

Most state bars set a 5–7 year minimum after matter close, with longer schedules for trust-account records (often 7+) and certain matter types (estate planning, real estate). Filter the closed-matter report by close date plus the applicable retention period.

Estate-planning files often retained for the life of the testator plus a tail; real estate closing files typically held 10+ years; matters involving minors retained until the minor reaches age of majority plus the SOL tail. These cannot be destroyed on the standard schedule.

Pull the prior-month pre-bill report from Clio / Tabs3 / LeanLaw. Every pre-bill should show responsible-attorney edits before issuance. Unedited pre-bills with verbose junior-associate narrative are the leading driver of fee disputes and write-downs.

Each transfer from IOLTA to operating must correspond to an issued, client-approved invoice. Transfers ahead of invoice issuance are a Rule 1.15 violation regardless of whether the work was performed. Sample 10 transfers from the prior month.

Aged AR over 90 days is both a cash-flow problem and a relationship-quality signal. Coordinate with responsible attorneys before sending collections letters — fee suits often draw a malpractice counterclaim.

Annual hours vary by state (commonly 12–15), with separate ethics hours and, in some states, mandatory diversity or mental-health hours. Confirm transcripts against the state's compliance period — calendar year, birth-month cycle, or admission-anniversary cycle.

Book affected attorneys into Lawline, Practising Law Institute (PLI), or state-bar on-demand programming. Suspension for non-compliance is typically automatic at the deadline — there is no grace period in most jurisdictions.

Most states require malpractice coverage to practice in firm form, and some require client disclosure of non-coverage. Begin the renewal application 60 days before policy expiration — late submissions can leave the firm with a coverage gap or a tail-coverage problem.