Mastering Document Management: From Scattered Files to a Single Source of Truth

If you asked most in-house legal teams where their documents reside, the honest answer would likely be: everywhere. 

Documents are scattered across shared drives, emails, Teams chats, and personal folders. This includes contracts, instructions, matter files, key advice emails, and older legal documents. Nothing is technically “lost,” but finding the right information can take significant time. 

This is where document management becomes a significant challenge. 

When documents play hide and seek 

On a calm day, scattered documents may be manageable. On a busy day or, more critically, during an escalation, they can pose a serious risk. 

Consider a common scenario. A business team raises an urgent dispute. The initial request arrives via email. Draft advice is saved to a personal drive. Feedback is shared in a Teams chat. A final version is emailed back to the business. 

A few weeks later, the matter escalates. 

The legal team must quickly establish: 

• What advice was provided 

• Who reviewed it 

• What assumptions were made at the time 

Rather than having one clear record, the team is left piecing together context from inboxes, chats, and folders. Valuable time is lost, and confidence diminishes precisely when clarity is most critical. 

This is not a reflection of expertise; it is a reflection of insufficient structure. 

The inbox problem no one discusses 

Imagine a supplier contract where renewal depends on a confirmation email from the business. That email arrives and sits safely in one lawyer’s inbox. 

Months later, that lawyer is on leave. The renewal window is approaching. No one else can see the email, confirm what was agreed, or even know it exists. The team scrambles, the business gets nervous, and a simple renewal suddenly feels risky. 

When critical emails live in individual inboxes, knowledge becomes fragile. Decisions depend on who’s available rather than what’s known. 

Why legal teams need a single source of truth 

A “single source of truth” isn’t about rigid systems or changing workflows. It ensures all documents, emails, and context are in one reliable location, making information easier to find, handovers smoother, and deadlines less likely to be missed. It also improves engagement with the business, reducing repeated questions and status inquiries. 

Equally important is adoption. The most effective solutions integrate seamlessly into the tools and workflows that lawyers already use, keeping information connected, reducing duplication, and avoiding unnecessary disruption. 

What this looks like in practice 

Cubed by Law Squared helps legal teams move from scattered files to a true single source of truth. It centralises all matter and contract documents in secure SharePoint folders and automatically captures related emails and files. Context is preserved through Timeline and Audit History, and related matters or contracts can be linked to avoid missed obligations. 

Seamless integration with Teams, Outlook, and DocuSign makes adoption simple, while features like search, status tracking, ownership assignment, and “at-risk” alerts reduce time spent hunting for information and improve workflow. 

This results in: 

• No more searching through inboxes 

• No more critical context residing solely in one person’s mind 

• Faster handovers and reduced risk of lost or overlooked information 

For legal leaders, this provides visibility and confidence. 
For legal teams, it replaces “where is that?” with “I have it.” 

Ready to master document management and create a single source of truth for your legal team? 
Book a demo with Cubed by Law Squared today and see how we can help you centralise documents, streamline workflows, and reduce risk. 
👉 Book Your Demo Now : https://www.cubedlegal.com/book-a-demo