Objective:

• Law firms in the UK dealing with cloud providers must be able to meet the requirements of SRA's Code of Conduct Handbook
• UK Firms
• SRA's Code of Conduct in the Outcome 7.10

Environment:

• Clio Manage

Additional Information:

For further information, please see: 

• Cloud Computing - The Law Society 
• Data Residency: Issues and Obligations for European Law Firms

Answer:

1. Business continuity has to be guaranteed - Clio Service Level Agreement guarantees 99.9% uptime 
2. As part of basic due diligence, it is advisable to take up references and research how long the vendor is operating in the market - Clio has been operating since 2008 and is used by more than 50 000 firms worldwide.
3. Is there a support contact available after working hours - law firms often find themselves operating out of usual business hours - Clio Support is available Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. GMT 
4. Is the software easy to use and how much time should every firm member spend before they can actually start using the software? - Clio is easy to use, and in addition provides unlimited free Support via Chat, Phone and Email. When customers first join, each firm also has the option to receive complimentary training with a dedicated Onboarding Specialist who will provide a bespoke training and onboarding plan depending on your firm's needs. 
5. How easy or difficult is it to import your old clients' data? - Clio has a team of dedicated Migrations Specialists who are able to import your CSV formatted data free of charge - https://support.clio.com/hc/en-us/articles/204467037
6. If your firm's client is based in the EU, the cloud system must comply with the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998 - Information on Clio’s privacy and data protection programs and how it complies with the GDPR can be found here: https://www.clio.com/gdpr/
7. Offer audited information security that at a minimum is compliant with ISO27001 - Clio has modelled its information security program on ISO27001 principles and controls. 
8. Make sure the cloud solution provider has taken all appropriate steps to ensure that clients’ confidential information will be protected and what are the levels of security provided? -  Please refer to https://www.clio.com/security/
9. It is advisable to ensure that law firms have the right to get data back in a usable format on demand and that they retain full ownership of the information stored. Vendors would claim that they do not own your data, but they don't give the opportunity to export the data yourselves, or ask for a high fee when exporting your data if you decide to leave. - Clio's menu has built-in Export feature, that allows you to export your created information at any time. 
10.  Given the importance of legal privilege and client confidentiality, the law firm should exclusively use established, known and well-regarded cloud providers. - Clio has a customer base of over 150 000 lawyers, well-developed partnerships with law bars and societies, educational programs with universities and law schools worldwide.