Document-Secure IT for Law Firms
Charlotte attorneys trust us with confidential matter management.
Netsafe Solutions delivers secure IT for Charlotte law firms — document security, privileged communications, e-discovery support, and ABA Model Rule 1.6(c) compliance. 22-year Microsoft Partner.
Netsafe Solutions provides IT services designed for Charlotte-area law firms — solo practitioners, boutique firms, and multi-attorney offices — from our office at 8510 McAlpine Park Drive, Suite 203. We harden Microsoft 365 tenants for privileged communications, deploy Black Point Cyber SOC on both endpoints (16-minute response) and the M365 tenant (7-minute response), integrate with document management systems (NetDocuments, iManage, Worldox) and practice management platforms (Clio, MyCase, PCLaw, TimeMatters), and configure environments to meet ABA Model Rule 1.6(c) competence obligations and North Carolina State Bar data protection expectations. Pricing is per-device monthly for support, with each security tool priced individually on a month-to-month basis -- tailored to what your business actually needs. No onboarding fee. We've supported legal clients across the Carolinas since November 21, 2003.
Why Law Firm IT Is Different
Law firms sit on a unique combination of sensitivity, regulation, and ethical obligation. Every email thread, discovery production, client engagement letter, settlement agreement, and privileged communication falls under attorney-client privilege. A single ransomware incident that exposes client files can trigger malpractice liability, state bar investigation, and permanent damage to a firm's reputation.
ABA Model Rule 1.6(c) requires attorneys to "make reasonable efforts to prevent the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of, or unauthorized access to, information relating to the representation of a client." The ABA's own guidance (Formal Opinion 483) clarifies that this includes cybersecurity — attorneys have an affirmative duty to understand and mitigate IT risk, not a passive expectation.
The threat landscape: The ABA's 2024 Legal Technology Survey reported that 29% of law firms experienced a security breach in the prior year. Solo and small firms were disproportionately represented — attackers target smaller firms because they handle high-value matters (M&A, estates, litigation) but often under-invest in IT security relative to the value of the data.
Netsafe Solutions configures law firm IT for the specific pressures attorneys face: preserving privilege, maintaining ethical walls, meeting retention obligations, responding to litigation holds, and surviving the due diligence that larger clients increasingly run on their outside counsel.
What Netsafe Solutions Provides for Law Firms
Privileged Communication & Email Security
Most legal breaches start in email — business email compromise of a partner's account, phishing that captures credentials, or a misdirected attachment exposing privileged material. Netsafe hardens every attorney mailbox:
- Multi-factor authentication enforced via Microsoft Entra ID with Conditional Access policies that block logins from untrusted geographies (common for attorneys who travel) and untrusted devices
- Checkpoint Harmony (formerly Avanan) — AI-based email threat protection catching phishing, BEC, and spoofed opposing-counsel emails that bypass Exchange Online Protection
- Microsoft Purview sensitivity labels — "Privileged/Confidential" and "Attorney Work Product" labels applied to matter-related correspondence, with DLP policies blocking external forwarding unless explicitly approved
- Microsoft 365 Message Encryption — recipients get a secure portal link for sensitive matter communications instead of the content traveling in plain email
- Black Point Cyber SOC on M365 tenant — 24/7 human SOC analysts monitoring for account takeovers, suspicious foreign logins, malicious OAuth app consent, and email forwarding rule abuse (a classic opposing-counsel espionage pattern). Average response time: 7 minutes.
Document Management & DMS Integration
Law firms run on documents. Netsafe integrates with the document management systems firms actually use:
- NetDocuments — cloud DMS integration with Entra ID SSO, workspace-level access controls, and DLP policy enforcement
- iManage Cloud — SSO integration, Work 10 desktop client deployment via Intune, mobile access through secure MDM profiles
- Worldox — on-premises DMS support including server patching, backup coordination, remote access via secure VPN
- SharePoint as DMS — for firms that use SharePoint Online as their document platform, we configure matter-specific sites with permissions mirroring engagement scope, retention labels aligned to NC State Bar record retention expectations, and audit logging for e-discovery readiness
- Ethical walls and matter-based segregation — Azure Information Protection labels and Entra ID security groups enforce ethical walls between attorneys working on conflicting matters
Practice Management System Support
Netsafe supports the IT infrastructure around every major legal practice management platform — we're not the PMS vendor, but we handle every integration point:
- Clio Manage and Clio Grow — SSO via Entra ID, billing integration with QuickBooks, calendar sync to Outlook
- MyCase — SSO, Outlook integration, document sync with M365
- On-prem PMS support — server infrastructure management, SQL Server maintenance, backup coordination, and vendor-assisted migration planning for any supported platform
- ProLaw — Thomson Reuters hosted and on-prem installations, user provisioning, database maintenance
- Smokeball, Rocket Matter, Centerbase — SSO configuration, data sync, user onboarding workflows
- Trust accounting integrations — IOLTA reconciliation workflows, three-way reconciliation documentation support
E-Discovery Readiness & Legal Hold
When a matter goes into discovery, the IT environment has to produce relevant custodian data quickly and defensibly. Netsafe configures M365 environments for e-discovery before you need it:
- Microsoft Purview eDiscovery (Standard) included in Business Premium; configured with appropriate custodian data sources at onboarding
- Microsoft Purview eDiscovery (Premium) available for firms handling larger matters — adds custodian communications management, case management, and advanced collection tools
- Legal Hold configuration — one-click litigation hold across Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams for named custodians
- Audit log retention — configured to 180 days minimum, extendable for specific custodians under hold
- Collection workflows documented — when outside counsel or litigation support requests custodian data, we know the collection path in advance
Endpoint Security for Legal Workstations
Every attorney workstation, paralegal device, laptop, and mobile endpoint runs the same managed security stack:
- SentinelOne EDR — behavioral AI catching ransomware, lateral movement, credential theft
- Black Point Cyber SOC endpoint monitoring — 16-minute average response when a threat is detected
- NinjaOne RMM — patch management, software deployment, remote remediation with audit trail
- DefensX DNS filtering — blocks malicious domains at the DNS layer; also blocks known "sextortion" and scam sites that increasingly target attorneys
- BitLocker full-disk encryption — enforced and verified via Intune; critical if a laptop with client data goes missing in an airport
Client Due Diligence Support
Larger clients and insurance carriers increasingly run cybersecurity due diligence on outside counsel before engagement. Netsafe helps firms pass:
- SOC 2 Type II reports from our tool vendors (Microsoft, SentinelOne, Black Point Cyber, NinjaOne, Checkpoint) assembled annually for your vendor risk file
- Completed client cybersecurity questionnaires — we fill out the IT portions on your behalf
- Written Information Security Policy (WISP) — Netsafe provides a template WISP aligned to your firm's environment that satisfies most client and insurance questionnaire requirements
- Evidence of controls — exported audit logs, Conditional Access policy documentation, Secure Score reports on demand
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How We Price Law Firms IT
Most MSPs force their entire tool stack on every client regardless of need. Netsafe Solutions builds your stack around what your business actually requires — transparent, itemized, month-to-month on every tool.
Per-Device Support
Monthly per endpoint · Quoted- Unlimited remote helpdesk during business hours
- On-site support available (pre-approved T&M)
- 1-year service agreement — standard MSP practice
Microsoft 365 Licensing
Monthly per mailbox · MSRP rates- Business Basic — $7.20/user/mo
- Business Standard — $15.00/user/mo
- Business Premium — $26.40/user/mo
- Enterprise (E3/E5) — quoted per tenant
- Licensing sourced through Pax8
Security & Management Tools
Each priced individually · Month-to-month · No forced bundles- NinjaOne RMM — monitoring, patch management, remote management, vulnerability scanning
- SentinelOne EDR — AI-powered endpoint detection and response
- Black Point Cyber SOC — 24/7 human-led endpoint + M365 tenant monitoring
- DefensX — DNS filtering and web protection
- Checkpoint Harmony — advanced email security (anti-phishing, anti-BEC)
All M365 pricing reflects current month-to-month Microsoft MSRP. Tool pricing is quoted per customer based on environment size and needs. No onboarding fee — migrations and security hardening are included in the first month’s management fee. Contact us for a custom quote →
Why Charlotte Law Firms Choose Netsafe
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Netsafe sign a confidentiality agreement or similar for law firm clients?
Yes — we sign mutual NDAs and confidentiality agreements as a standard part of engagement. For firms handling particularly sensitive matters, we also maintain workstation and admin access logs so the firm has a defensible audit trail of who touched what. Netsafe staff are background-checked, and admin access is granted on a least-privilege, time-limited basis via Entra ID Privileged Identity Management.
What happens to our data if the firm dissolves or Netsafe engagement ends?
Documented offboarding. All firm data stays inside the firm's M365 tenant — Netsafe doesn't store client data on our systems. At engagement termination, we hand off admin credentials via a documented transition, export any configuration documentation, and remove Netsafe admin access within the timeframe you specify. For firms winding down, we assist with data retention handling to meet your jurisdiction's wind-down obligations (typically 6-10 years in North Carolina and South Carolina for client files).
Can Netsafe handle a ransomware incident without disclosing it to opposing counsel?
Ransomware incidents often trigger disclosure obligations (client notification, insurance, potentially opposing counsel in pending matters). We don't make that legal determination — your firm's ethics counsel does. What Netsafe provides: fast containment (account disable, device isolation within 15 minutes of detection via Black Point Cyber SOC), documented forensic timeline, restoration from immutable backups, and complete evidence preservation for any regulatory or insurance investigation. The legal decision about disclosure is yours and your counsel's.
We run PCLaw/TimeMatters on-prem. Can you support that?
Yes. If you're running on-prem practice management software on Windows Server, we manage the underlying infrastructure — OS patching, SQL Server maintenance, backups, and user management. For firms considering a migration to a cloud-based PMS, we'll plan and manage the project end-to-end, working with the software vendor's migration support to make sure nothing falls through the cracks. We don't claim specialized expertise in any specific PMS platform, but we handle the IT side of any migration the vendor supports.
How does Netsafe handle document version control and matter history?
Document version control depends on your DMS. NetDocuments and iManage handle versioning natively with full audit trail. For firms using SharePoint as DMS, we configure version history retention (default 500 versions) and checkout/checkin workflows. For Worldox, versioning is handled by the platform with Netsafe managing the underlying server infrastructure. All configurations support e-discovery collection with defensible chain-of-custody documentation.
What about ethical walls between attorneys working on conflicting matters?
Ethical walls are configured in two layers: (1) DMS-level access controls (workspace permissions in NetDocuments/iManage, site permissions in SharePoint) that prevent attorneys on one side of a matter from accessing documents on the other. (2) Microsoft Purview Information Barriers at the M365 tenant level that prevent Teams messages, SharePoint searches, and email autocomplete from crossing the wall even inadvertently. We document the wall configuration so it's defensible if challenged.
Do you work with firms that handle federal government matters?
Yes, with caveats. Federal matters often require Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) handling that maps to NIST 800-171, which is the underlying framework for CMMC. For firms handling matters that touch CUI, we configure the environment to the appropriate CMMC level (typically Level 2 for federal contractor work) — this involves Microsoft 365 GCC or GCC High licensing, additional controls, and documented compliance. This is a conversation with your firm's managing attorney and our technical team to determine if your matter mix requires CUI-level controls.
Can attorneys access firm systems securely from home or travel?
Yes — multiple options depending on preference. Most common: Conditional Access policies in Entra ID allow access from any location with MFA, trusted device, and risk-based sign-in checks. For on-prem DMS or legacy PMS systems: site-to-site VPN or per-user remote access VPN (we deploy Meraki Client VPN or similar). For BYOD attorneys: Microsoft Intune app protection policies on personal devices let them work in Outlook, Teams, and M365 apps securely without managing the whole device. ---
Let’s Talk About Your Law Firms IT
Tell us about your environment and what you’re dealing with. We’ll get back within one business day with a straight assessment and a quote. No pressure, no sales pitch.
Or call us directly
(704) 333-0404
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Areas We Serve
Netsafe Solutions provides IT services for law firms across 27 cities in North Carolina and South Carolina.
North Carolina: Charlotte, Concord, Huntersville, Matthews, Cornelius, Waxhaw, Gastonia, Kannapolis, Monroe, Mooresville, Salisbury, Statesville, Hickory, Newton, Shelby, Albemarle, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Lexington
South Carolina: Rock Hill, Fort Mill, Columbia, Spartanburg, Lancaster, Chester, York, Gaffney
Netsafe Solutions — IT services for law firms in Charlotte since 2003.
8510 McAlpine Park Drive, Suite 203, Charlotte, NC 28211 | (704) 333-0404
Last Updated: April 2026