IT governance that understands the obligations on a law firm
Solicitors and law firms operate under a distinct set of IT and cyber obligations that generic IT providers rarely understand fully. The Solicitors Regulation Authority expects firms to take demonstrable steps to protect client data and money, and the consequences of getting it wrong — a ransomware incident affecting client files, a Friday afternoon fraud diverting completion funds, a data breach reported to the ICO — are career-defining events for the partners responsible.
Northstar provides independent fractional IT Director services to law firms that need senior IT oversight without the cost of a full-time hire. We carry no vendor relationships and no products to sell — our only interest is in giving your firm the right advice.
SRA cybersecurity obligations and IT risk
The SRA's Warning Notices on cybercrime and its broader obligations under the Code of Conduct place a clear duty on firms to have adequate systems and controls in place. That means more than an antivirus subscription and a firewall. It means understanding your threat surface, having tested incident response procedures, and being able to demonstrate to the SRA — and to your professional indemnity insurer — that IT risk is being actively managed at board level.
We work with managing partners and practice managers to translate IT risk into governance language that satisfies regulatory scrutiny and gives the equity partners the visibility they need to make informed decisions.
"Client confidentiality is the foundation of legal practice. A cyber incident that exposes matter files or diverts client funds is not just an IT problem — it is an existential risk to the firm's reputation and its SRA authorisation."
Conveyancing fraud and Friday afternoon risk
Conveyancing departments remain one of the most targeted areas in UK legal cyber crime. The pattern is well-established: attackers compromise email, monitor transactions, and substitute bank details at the point of exchange or completion. The loss falls on the firm or its client, and the reputational damage is immediate.
We assess the technical and procedural controls around your conveyancing communications — email security, domain protection, staff awareness, and the verification procedures your fee earners follow when bank details change. We help you build a defensible position that holds up both to a client dispute and to a Law Society inspection.
What we cover for legal sector clients
- SRA compliance and IT risk oversight — mapping your IT controls against SRA Warning Notices, Code of Conduct obligations, and Lexcel requirements where applicable
- Conveyancing and transaction fraud prevention — technical and procedural review of email security, DKIM/DMARC configuration, and payment verification processes
- Client account and financial data protection — ensuring controls around client account access, accounting system security, and the segregation of client and office funds meet regulatory and insurer expectations
- Matter management system oversight — independent review of your LEAP, Clio, Actionstep, or Osprey implementation: access controls, data residency, backup, and integration security
- Cyber insurance alignment — reviewing your coverage, helping you demonstrate to insurers that controls are in place, and advising on what a realistic claim scenario looks like for a firm of your size
- LAA and legal aid IT requirements — supporting firms with Legal Aid Agency portal access controls, data handling obligations, and audit readiness
- Corporate client supplier questionnaires — helping you respond credibly to the IT security due diligence questionnaires that larger corporate clients increasingly send before instructing a firm
- Board-level IT reporting — translating technical risk into partner-level reporting that gives equity partners meaningful oversight without requiring a technology background
Matter management systems: LEAP, Clio, Actionstep and beyond
Your practice management system holds your entire matter history, your client data, your financial records, and in many cases your document management too. The security of that system — who has access, how it is backed up, how it connects to the rest of your IT infrastructure — is not something to leave entirely to the vendor's default settings.
We provide independent review of your matter management configuration, looking at user access controls, integration points, cloud data residency, backup and recovery testing, and the procedures your staff follow when someone leaves the firm. We are not affiliated with any system vendor, so our assessment is based entirely on your firm's risk profile.
Cyber insurance and professional indemnity
Cyber insurance for law firms has become significantly more rigorous in recent years. Insurers ask detailed questions about multi-factor authentication, email security, backup procedures, and staff training — and the answers you give have a direct bearing on your premium and on whether a claim will be paid. We help firms prepare accurate and credible responses to insurer questionnaires and ensure the controls they describe are actually in place.
This matters equally for professional indemnity. An incident that results in client loss will be examined by your PI insurer with considerable scrutiny. Having documented evidence that IT risk was being actively managed at board level, with independent oversight, is a materially different position to being unable to demonstrate that anyone was responsible for IT governance.
Working with Northstar
We work on a retainer or project basis — there is no minimum commitment and no obligation to use us for services we are not the right fit for. Most legal sector engagements begin with a board-level IT risk review, which gives the partners a clear picture of where the firm stands and what needs attention. From there, we can provide ongoing fractional IT Director oversight at whatever cadence makes sense for the firm's size and risk appetite.
We are independent, we carry no vendor relationships, and everything we tell you reflects what we believe is right for your firm.
Get in touch
If you would like to discuss IT governance, cyber risk, or SRA compliance for your firm, use the form below or contact us directly. We aim to respond to all enquiries within one business day.