Before You Leave Legal Software: A Complete Data Export Checklist

A ZIP file is not proof of a complete export. A useful migration copy contains the records the firm needs, the files attached to them, and enough identifiers to reconstruct how everything fits together.

Export capabilities vary, and even a vendor’s “full backup” may require separate steps. For example, the current MyCase export instructions say its full-data backup does not include the document files or invoices themselves, which must be downloaded separately. Clio’s current migration guidance describes multiple CSV exports and separate reports, as well as a cutover period when new entries in the former system will not be captured.

That is not a criticism of either product. It illustrates why firms should inspect the contents rather than rely on the export’s name.

Inventory before you export

List every place the firm stores operational or client information:

• contacts and companies;
• matters, statuses, practice areas, and responsible staff;
• custom fields and matter templates;
• notes, tasks, calendar events, and reminders;
• emails, portal messages, text messages, and call notes;
• documents, document versions, folders, and signatures;
• time entries, expenses, flat fees, invoices, credits, and payments;
• operating and trust transactions;
• intake forms, leads, referral sources, and conflict-search data;
• user accounts, roles, permissions, and audit history;
• automation rules, templates, integrations, and saved reports.

Mark which items are authoritative, which are duplicated elsewhere, and which have retention obligations.

Export the relationships, not just the rows

A contacts spreadsheet and a matters spreadsheet may both be readable while losing the connection between a client and a matter. The same problem occurs with a task that no longer identifies its matter, a payment that cannot be connected to an invoice, or a document whose folder path disappears.

For each exported dataset, look for stable identifiers such as:

• contact ID;
• matter ID or number;
• parent matter or related matter ID;
• user ID;
• invoice and payment IDs;
• document path or matter reference;
• creation and modification timestamps; and
• links between custom-field definitions and their values.

Names alone are unreliable identifiers. Two clients can share a name, and names change.

Preserve custom information explicitly

Custom fields often contain the information that makes a firm’s practice distinctive: immigration receipt numbers, limitations dates, injury details, property identifiers, insurance limits, deal terms, or court-specific tracking data.

Confirm that the export includes:

1. the field’s name;
2. its data type;
3. the record to which it belongs;
4. the stored value;
5. allowed choices for lists; and
6. any practice-area or template assignment.

A flattened PDF may preserve what a person can read but destroy what new software needs to search, filter, validate, or automate.

Treat documents as a separate migration project

Verify that the exported files are the actual originals rather than links back to the old service. Preserve filenames, extensions, folder paths, matter associations, version history where required, and relevant timestamps.

Count the documents in the source and destination. Compare total size. Open a sample from old, active, closed, large, unusual, and restricted matters. Encrypted, signed, very large, or oddly named files deserve deliberate testing.

Reconcile financial information

Before cutover, generate and preserve reports for:

• accounts receivable;
• work in progress;
• unbilled time and expenses;
• invoice balances;
• credits and write-offs;
• operating-account activity;
• trust ledgers by client and matter; and
• trust-bank reconciliation.

Financial history may not import into the new system in exactly the same form. Decide which data must remain operational, which can remain in a read-only archive, and which totals must reconcile on the transition date.

Plan the cutover

Choose a clear time after which staff stop entering data into the old system. If work must continue, maintain a controlled delta log of every new or changed item that will require a second import or manual entry.

Do not cancel the old service immediately after the first import. Complete reconciliation, user acceptance, document sampling, permissions review, and backup of the final source export first. Understand how long the old account and downloads will remain available after termination.

A migration is complete when lawyers can use it

The final test is not whether the import job says “success.” Ask working lawyers and staff to locate a matter, reconstruct its chronology, open its documents, identify upcoming obligations, review its communications, and understand its financial position.

Keep the original exports unchanged as evidence of what was received. Perform transformations on copies, record mapping decisions, and produce an exception report for anything omitted, combined, truncated, or converted.

Data portability is best evaluated before buying software, not when the firm is already trying to leave. Request a sample export during vendor selection and ask exactly which information requires separate downloads.

Current vendor references

• Clio: Understand Data Migration Processes in Clio Manage
• MyCase: How Do I Get My Data Out of MyCase?