Lawyers and legal teams are paid to solve legal problems, support clients and progress matters. Yet a significant part of the working day can be consumed by the administration around the matter rather than the legal work itself.
The work around the work
Tasks such as filing emails, creating standard documents, chasing updates, re-entering client information, checking what is due next, updating spreadsheets, moving between systems to find one piece of information, and so forth. None of these tasks may feel significant in isolation, but together they create a great deal of friction.
This is often accepted as part of the job. People learn where to look, what to copy, who to chase, and which spreadsheet needs updating. But when these patterns become normal, firms can stop seeing them as problems.
That is where workflow improvement can make a meaningful difference. The goal is not to remove professional judgement or force every matter into the same rigid process. It is to reduce the unnecessary steps that prevent people from working efficiently.
Also, improving matter management does not always need to start with a major transformation programme. For many firms, the best starting point is much smaller: the everyday tasks that slow people down, interrupt legal work and quietly drain time across hundreds or thousands of matters.
Look for the repeatable moments
Every matter has moments that are predictable, even when the legal work itself is complex.
A matter needs to be opened, key information captured, documents created, emails filed, tasks assigned, deadlines tracked, updates shared, risk checks completed, progress reported, and the list goes on.
These moments are often where small workflow improvements create the greatest value.
For example, if a standard client care letter can be generated using matter data already captured, the team saves time and reduces the risk of error. If emails can be filed to the right matter more easily, fee earners spend less time on admin, and the matter record becomes more complete. If tasks and deadlines are visible in one place, teams spend less time chasing and more time progressing work.
Small changes can have a compounding effect.
Avoid automation for automation’s sake
Workflow improvement should be practical, not performative. Automating a poor process does not necessarily make it better. It may simply make the wrong process happen faster.
The strongest approach starts with the user experience. Where are people losing time? Which steps are repeated manually? Which prompts are ignored? Which documents are recreated from scratch? Which updates are chased by email because no one has a clear matter view?
Once those friction points are understood, firms can decide whether a step should be automated, simplified, standardised or removed altogether.
This is especially important in legal environments, where over-prescriptive workflows can frustrate users. A good matter management approach should make the right action easier, not make legal teams feel boxed in by the system.
Better workflows support better service
Workflow friction does not only affect internal efficiency. It affects the client experience.
When teams struggle to find information, updates are slower. When tasks are unclear, matters can drift. When documents are produced manually, errors become more likely. When deadlines are held in too many places, risk increases.
Better workflows help firms deliver with more consistency. They also support better collaboration, especially where matters involve multiple people, teams or locations.
This matters for both high-volume and complex work. In high-volume environments, small inefficiencies can multiply quickly. In complex matters, poor visibility can make it harder to coordinate activity, manage dependencies, and keep clients informed.
Start small, build momentum
To improve matter management, firms don’t need to redesign every matter process at once. A more realistic approach is to identify three to four areas of repeated friction and start there. Some low-hanging opportunity areas:
- Where are emails still being filed manually?
- Which standard documents take too long to produce?
- Which matter updates are still chased by email?
- Which data is repeatedly copied from one place to another?
- Which deadlines or tasks are difficult to see at a glance?
These practical starting points can help build momentum, demonstrate value and create better habits around matter management. The strongest efficiency gains often come from removing the friction people have learned to tolerate.
LexisNexis Enterprise Solutions helps law firms improve matter workflows, reduce unnecessary administration and build stronger foundations for efficient legal service delivery.
