Integris Launches New Practice Around Tech for Law Firms

National IT service provider Integris has expanded into providing MSP services for law firms, a move that demands additional efforts to protect client data.

The company announced the specialized practice in part due to Integris CEO Rashaad Bajwa's history with law firms. Bajwa had initially planned to attend law school but discovered his passion for providing tech services to companies doing legal work.

But what does it take to provide IT services to law firms? Integris VP of legal sales Greg Cooke sat down with Channel Futures to offer his perspective.

Integris' Greg Cooke

Channel Futures: What are the unique challenges facing those who provide IT services to legal companies?

Greg Cooke: The legal industry is a highly professional field that handles very sensitive and confidential information for their clients. This has made law firms a sought-after industry for cybercriminals. One of the unique challenges IT providers face is being able to constantly protect client data from sophisticated breaches and unauthorized access.

Also, most law firms bill differently than other businesses, so the phrase “time is money” is one they live by. Keeping law firms up and running continuously without any downtime is crucial.

Integris knows these unique challenges and is at the forefront to ensure our current and future law firm clients know they can trust and rely on us to keep them fully protected and continuously running.

CF: Are there any unique compliance issues that you may face with this law-focused IT group?

GC: For normal operations as an IT provider, there are no specific compliance regulations that we need to adhere to for servicing law firms.

Law firms must comply with federal law that applies to their area of practice, such as intellectual property, employment, taxes and health care. States may have regulations that apply to practices focused on business, licensing, employment and consumer protection. The [American Bar Association] has ethical guidelines that cover different aspects of the practice including handling conflicts of interest, confidentiality, professional conduct and client communication. [Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts] regulations pertain to how law firms handle client funds held in trust. If law firms take credit card payments for services, they must comply with PCI-DSS regarding the secure handling of credit card information.

There are plenty of potential requirements that a law firm has to consider but there are no industry specific regulations that apply across the board. However, if we are serving as a service provider for them, we likely have to take into account some of those same considerations if we are the ones providing infrastructure directly.

CF: What advice would you offer to those MSPs who want to offer services to legal companies?

GC: In order to be the best vendor or service provider you can be, the No. 1 thing to do would be to know your ideal client really well so you can speak to their business needs. At Integris, we pride ourselves in knowing the unique needs of clients in the industries we serve— this ultimately allows us to cater our services to them and provide the best level of managed services possible.

Integris is ranked No. 64 in Channel Futures' 2024 MSP 501.

This will be the second specialized division launched by Integris. The company launched its financial institution division in 2023.