Lea Remigio

Here is a list of specific questions I ask about the old case management system data when working through the data mapping process for a migration to a new LegalServer system. This is certainly not a comprehensive list; just the items that have most frequently tripped me up over the dozens of LegalServer migration projects I’ve worked.

* What is the main purpose of migration? Do you want your users to be able to seamlessly pick up and begin handling their open cases in LegalServer? Or are you only migrating case and client data for purposes of future conflict searches? Understanding the basic migration requirements can help you trim down the work by limiting the migration only to particular tables such as clients and adverse parties. It could also save you money on the migration costs.

* Are cases and client records stored in separate data tables? If so, how are those two tables related/connected to each other? Can a single client record have multiple case records?

* How do you want to determine the matter/case disposition in LegalServer? Some case management systems contain a Case Status or Disposition field that can simply be mapped to the Disposition field in LegalServer. Others do not and so the LegalServer matter disposition must be determined by script based on the existence of case opened and case closed dates.

*Does your old system track something that might be the equivalent of a LegalServer Prescreen or rejected matter? If these are stored in the same table as full case records, how will you differentiate between the two types of records?

* Roughly how many new cases or client records are entered on a monthly basis? Since you will go through two migrations – one to demo and one to your live site at go-live – it’s helpful to have a general expectation for the change in number of records from one migration to the next.

* Do you track adverse/opposing party information?

* Do you track household or client financial information (income, expenses, assets, etc)?

* Do you track household family members or other non-adverse parties?

* Does the old system store user profiles in a single table or set of related tables? How many users are there? In LegalServer, you can edit users in batch to update things like passwords, program, office, user role and advocate type. You may be able to skip mapping fields like these if you plan to perform the clean-up post migration in LegalServer.

* Are users connected or assigned to case or client records? Every case in LegalServer must have a primary assignment. If possible, you’ll want to migrate these assignments or create one via script somehow. When mapping assignments, include instructions on the Assignment Start Date, Office, and Program/Project.

* Is there a table or set of tables for tracking volunteer (aka Pro Bono) attorneys? If so, roughly how many records are there and what kind of related data is kept for them? (EG: contact information, case acceptance preferences, geographic areas where they’ll work, law firms/affiliated organizations.) If the attorneys are affiliated with firms, be sure to import or create an affiliation start date. If your pro bono panel is large and the information is significantly stale/outdated, consider importing the records as inactive users in LegalServer.

* If you do track law firms or organizations, are those kept in separate tables? If so, roughly how many records are there? You’ll want to add an Organization Type to each imported organization record, so specify this in the data mapping if possible.

* Are volunteer attorneys connected to case records? And if so, do you track start and end dates of the assignment or a referral date of some kind? If not, you may need to create one by script (EG: set the assignment start date = case open date). In general, you do not want to import assignment end dates on pro bono assignments because it can skew certain listviews and reports in LegalServer. If a pro bono attorney handled a case through to closure, you will probably want to leave the assignment end date field empty in LegalServer.

* Does the old system contain time/hours for volunteer attorneys? If so, is that tracked in a single field on the case record or in a separate table? A separate table could mean that a single volunteer attorney can have more than one timeslip per case, which would each logically be mapped to separate timeslip records in LegalServer. If you track pro bono time in a single Hours field on the case record, you may wish to write migration rules to convert that single field to a timeslip. To do so, you’ll want to devise the timeslip date, activity type, funding code and attorney in addition to the amount of time spent.

* If you do import pro bono attorney timeslips, ask to have the “Probono Time” field set to Yes. This is a different field than the “PAI Time” field. PAI Time may be set to Yes on staff timeslips. The Probono Time field is an easy filter in reports to quickly view whether or not the time was spent by a pro bono attorney instead of a staff attorney.

* Are there other types of contacts or organizations tracked in the system, either with or without a case or client relationship? (EG: shelters, social workers, jails/prisons, doctors, counselors, etc) Determine the appropriate contact or organization type for LegalServer.

* Do any of the case or client records contain links to uploaded documents or integrated document storage? If so, is this something you want to include in the migration to LegalServer case records? This could affect the cost of migration so it’s best to discuss this with the software vendor up-front.

* Are there any other significant entities tracked in the system which are not mentioned above? (EG: Outreach events, clinics, CLE credit workshops, attorney fees, etc?)

Send me an email if you’d like a more detailed list of post-migration cleanup tasks or LegalServer import verification report XML files you can upload to your site. I’m happy to share my work.