IT Challenges Facing UK Law Firms in 2026

Home » Content Hub » IT Challenges Facing UK Law Firms in 2026

Written By

Vicki Horn

Publish Date

04/06/2026

Why law firm IT needs a sector-specific approach

Law firms handle a huge amount of sensitive information: contracts, ID documents, financial details and case files. Legal teams also work in high-pressure environments, where deadlines are fixed, documents are sensitive and access to data and devices needs to be secure but flexible.

Most fee earners also work across locations. Office, home, courts, often switching between them in a single day.

The cyber risks because of this are high, meaning a generic IT approach will not protect a law firm in the same way it may protect a small grocery shop.

Law firms need a specific type of cyber security that’s aligned to how they actually work, and is compliant to the many regulatory bodies that govern them, like the SRA (Solicitors Regulation Authority)

Challenge 1: Protecting confidential client data

For law firms, protecting client data isn’t just a security concern – it’s the foundation of trust.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: most risks don’t come from a single major breach. They build quietly through day-to-day habits – an email sent to the wrong person, a document shared without the right controls, or SharePoint permissions that haven’t been reviewed in months.

On their own, these feel minor. Together, they create exactly the kind of gaps attackers look for.

Access management is where we see this break down most. People move teams, matters close, and permissions are rarely cleaned up properly. Over time, sensitive data ends up far more exposed than anyone realises. For example, someone leaves a firm and still has access to files weeks later – that’s not unusual, and it’s a real risk – and a scenario we’ve seen before.

Basic controls like email security and multi-factor authentication (MFA) go a long way here, where phishing-resistant MFA, blocks attackers even if credentials are stolen (for example, through push approval fatigue or fake login pages).

But it’s not just about logging in securely. You also need clear ownership around how data is shared – internally and externally – and controls that stop information from getting into the wrong hands. This is where data labelling can make a huge difference.

For most firms, this all sits inside Microsoft 365 – which is powerful, but doesn’t manage itself. In our experience, this is where things start to drift. Settings get switched on but not properly configured, permissions evolve without oversight, and security tools exist but aren’t used consistently. That’s why many firms are turning to Microsoft 365 managed services – not for more technology, but for ongoing control and accountability.

And then there’s recovery. Under UK GDPR (Articles 32–34), you’re expected to be able to restore data if it’s lost. Too many firms assume backups are in place without ever testing them, or rely on Microsoft to cover everything. That’s a common misconception – and a risk in itself. In their services agreement, Microsoft actually recommends the organisation to have third-party backup.

A few crucial security processes to implement for your firm:

Enforce secure access with phishing-resistant MFA and conditional access
Take control of data sharing, with clear ownership and data loss prevention policies
Regularly review and remove unnecessary identity access/permissions

This is where effective legal IT support make a real difference – not by adding complexity, but by tightening the basics that are often overlooked. It can feel like a lot to get right, but with the right structure and ownership in place (internal or outsourced), it becomes far more manageable.

Challenge 2: Reducing cyber risk in a high-value target sector

Law firms are a natural target for attackers. Conveyancing, financial transfers, and sensitive client communications all carry real value which cyber attackers love to target – which means when something goes wrong, it’s rarely small.

Phishing is still the most common way in. One well-timed email is often enough – whether that’s stealing credentials or leading to business email compromise (BEC), where attackers pose as a colleague, client, or supplier to redirect payments or request sensitive information.

This then quickly becomes a financial risk, not just a technical one. In conveyancing especially, attackers sit quietly inside inboxes, watch conversations unfold, then step in at the right moment to change bank details. By the time it’s picked up, the money has already moved.

Ransomware is the other side of the risk. Once an attacker is in your system, they could encrypt files, lock your systems and in some cases, exfiltrate data before shutting everything down. At that point, it’s not just downtime – it’s operational disruption, regulatory pressure, and reputational damage all at once.

These attacks rarely rely on a single failure. It’s usually a chain of smaller gaps – and human behaviour is often one of them. Not through carelessness, but because people are busy, under pressure, have trust, and make quick decisions.

And so reducing cyber risk isn’t just about tools. Yes, strong email security, identity controls, and protection against credential theft are critical. And yes, backup and recovery planning needs to be in place – and actually tested – so the business can recover quickly if the worst happens. But without user awareness, those controls only go so far.

What tends to work better in practice is ongoing, lightweight training – short prompts, real examples, and the kind of guidance people will actually remember when they’re in a hurry. Not once-a-year sessions that get forgotten the next day.

In our experience, effective law firm cyber security isn’t about locking everything down. It’s about reducing the likelihood of these everyday scenarios turning into something far more serious – and having a clear plan in place when the worst does happen.

Challenge 3: Keeping systems available for fee earners

If systems go down, whether that’s because of failed updates, old hardware, or an attack – your firm stops. It’s as simple as that.

Even short disruptions like intermittent Wi-Fi can eat into billable time – delaying work, interrupting client communication, and blocking access to key documents. The impact builds quickly, and it rarely stays “just an IT issue”.

From what we see, the real challenge for law firms isn’t fixing problems, but rather stopping them happening in the first place, which is where you need someone looking behind the scenes.

Proactive monitoring helps catch issues early, while regular patching keeps systems secure and stable (although in reality, it’s often put off to avoid disruption). When network reliability isn’t right, it shows up fast: slow systems, dropped connections, frustrated teams.

Then there’s support. When something does go wrong, responsiveness really does matter. Fee earners can’t afford to wait around for fixes or chase updates and so most firms turn to IT support for solicitors, where issues are picked up and resolved quickly, often before they escalate.

Hybrid working has made this more complex too. People are spread across locations, devices, and networks. Without consistent remote support and device management, gaps appear meaning the risk of downtime is even higher.

Ultimately, good IT support for law firms shouldn’t be something you notice. It should just work – keeping systems available, protecting billable time, and staying out of the way.

Challenge 4: Managing Microsoft 365 properly

Microsoft 365 sits at the centre for most law firms – while it’s easy to switch on and much harder to manage well.

Permissions are usually where it starts to drift. People move roles, matters close, files get shared, and over time access becomes messy across Teams and SharePoint. It doesn’t feel urgent, but it builds serious risk in the background. As Microsoft rolls out new updates and policies, many firms fall behind – not because they don’t care, but because they don’t have the time to keep up. The result is an environment that drifts away from best practice, often without anyone realising.

That creates a constant tension – people need to collaborate quickly, but without structure, that flexibility starts to work against you.

In practice, well-run environments focus on a few things:

Secure Teams and SharePoint collaboration – without clear rules, access spreads quickly
Device management – especially with hybrid working, everything needs to be secured and kept up to date
Licence optimisation – most firms are overspending or underusing what they already have
Secure external sharing – controlled, monitored, and easy to revoke
Retention and governance – data shouldn’t sit around indefinitely

There’s also a newer risk with AI. Tools like Copilot rely on existing permissions. If access is messy, they’ll surface information people shouldn’t realistically see. AI can add value – but only if the foundations have been setup corretcly.

Challenge 5: Preparing for AI and Copilot

Interest in Copilot is growing quickly across the legal sector. It makes sense – faster drafting, better summaries, and more efficient ways of working are all genuinely valuable.

But this is where things get uncomfortable.

Copilot doesn’t create risk on its own – it exposes what’s already there. If your data governance is weak, or permissions are messy, it will surface issues that may have been sitting unnoticed for years. You don’t want sensitive salary data, confidential notes, or internal conversations to become available to your employees.

AI can add value – but it also highlights gaps very quickly.

Before rolling any sort of AI out, firms need to be “AI ready”. That means taking a step back and reviewing a few key areas:

SharePoint and OneDrive permissions
Sensitivity labels and how data is classified
Retention policies and data lifecycle
User readiness – how people will actually use Copilot day to day

Taking a structured approach early on avoids introducing unnecessary risk – and makes sure Copilot delivers real value, rather than creating new problems.

Typically you should start with a Copilot Readiness Assessment, followed by more focused Microsoft Copilot consulting if needed to create a strategy roadmap. This is not to be seen as a box-ticking exercise, but to properly identify gaps, clean up access, and put the right foundations in place.

AI shouldn’t be something you just switch on. And in our experience, organisation’s that treat it that way are the ones that run into issues first.

Challenge 6: Compliance, evidence and client assurance

It’s one thing putting security in place. It’s another being able to prove it.

In the legal sector, that’s the expectation. Clients are asking harder questions, supplier questionnaires are now standard, and due diligence goes much deeper than it used to. Frameworks like Cyber Essentials aren’t a nice-to-have anymore – they’re a baseline. And for law firms with legal aid agency contacts, CE is now a requirement to have.

Here’s where a lot of firms get caught out. The controls might exist, but the evidence doesn’t. Or it’s inconsistent, hard to access, or owned by different parts of the business, creating risk of failure when it comes to ISO audits or regulatory body checks.

In practice, firms need to be able to clearly demonstrate a few things:

MFA and cloud service coverage – not just enabled, but enforced consistently across systems
Audit trails – who accessed what, when, and what they did with it
Data processing and retention – showing information is stored, handled, and deleted appropriately
Supplier risk management – being able to answer questionnaires confidently and evidence third-party controls
Client due diligence readiness – having clear, accessible responses when clients ask how their data is protected

To help, we have an audit evidence pack for the legal industry here that you can download.

IT support for law firms proves value form not just putting controls in place, but making sure they’re visible, understood, and ready to stand up to scrutiny.

What should law firms expect from a managed IT provider?

Here’s a recommended checklist:

✅ Legal-sector understanding
✅ Microsoft 365 management and security expertise
✅ Proactive monitoring with a responsive 24/7 support desk
✅ Backup and disaster recovery support
✅ User awareness training
✅ Clear escalation routes
✅ Strategic IT roadmap
✅ Support for in-house teams where needed

Practical IT priorities for law firms in 2026:

Review your MFA and conditional access
Audit Microsoft 365 permissions
Test backup recovery (and check for failures)
Run phishing awareness training on your staff
Review email security
Ensure you patch devices and critical systems
Document and have in place an incident response plan
Build a 12-month IT roadmap

FAQs

IT support for law firms is about striking the right balance between keeping fee earners productive and keeping the firm secure. Systems need to be fast, reliable, and available at all times, but they also have to be carefully protected.

There’s a stronger emphasis on confidentiality too. That means secure document handling, tight control over who can access sensitive information, and robust data protection throughout.

In practice, it goes beyond simply fixing issues or a basic security setup. The goal is to help people work efficiently without creating unnecessary risk, so productivity and security move hand in hand.

Whether law firms should outsource IT support or keep it in-house often depends on their size and structure, but many find a hybrid approach works best.

An in-house team understands the day-to-day needs of the firm and how people actually work. At the same time, outsourced support can bring broader expertise, handle system updates and management, and provide 24/7 proactive monitoring once your team signs off for the day.

Ultimately, the focus should be on having support that’s responsive, reliable, and closely aligned with how the firm operates in practice.

The biggest risks often come from everyday activity, so the focus should be on practical, high-impact controls:

Strong identity security, including phishing-resistant MFA
Protection against credential theft and account compromise
Email security to reduce phishing and business email compromise (BEC)
Data loss prevention and secure sharing controls
Regular backups and a clear recovery plan
24/7 monitoring

Alongside this, reducing human risk through ongoing awareness is just as important.

Microsoft 365 needs the right structure behind it to stay secure.

That means keeping permissions and sensitivity labels clean and manageable across all Microsoft applications like Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive to control how data is shared externally. Device management, patching, and conditional access also play a key role.

With Microsoft, it’s about balancing easy collaboration and security with clear governance, and ensuring you have the right in house or outsourced Microsoft knowledge for this.

Firms with Legal Aid Agency contracts need to have Cyber Essentials certification in place by October 2025, making it essential for meeting compliance standards and protecting sensitive client data.

But, it’s increasingly expected by insurers and clients, treated as a baseline for securing cyber insurance and working with larger commercial clients or the public sector.

The first step is to understand how “ready” you already are. Take the Microsoft Copilot readiness self-assessment to get a clear score, along with practical recommendations on where you can improve and what to prioritise next.