LEGAL DOCUMENTATION AND CASE MANAGEMENT: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF DIGITIZATION TRENDS AND CYBERSECURITY CHALLENGES IN LEGAL SUPPORT ROLES

Abstract

This systematic review investigates the evolving landscape of legal documentation and case management in the digital era, with a particular focus on how emerging technologies and cybersecurity challenges are reshaping institutional practices and legal support roles. Anchored in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 framework, this study systematically analyzed 87 peer-reviewed publications from 2001 to 2023. The sources were selected from a cross-disciplinary set of databases, including Scopus, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore, and ProQuest, ensuring comprehensive coverage of scholarship in law, information systems, public policy, and legal informatics. The review identifies several interrelated themes that define contemporary legal digitization. Chief among them is the widespread implementation of electronic case management systems (CMS) and integrated court management systems (ICMS), which streamline litigation workflows through functionalities such as digital docketing, evidence uploads, calendaring, and audit trail generation. Concurrently, the review highlights the increasing adoption of cloud computing infrastructures—such as Clio, Practice Panther, and MyCase—which facilitate remote access, real-time collaboration, and scalable data storage for legal practices of varying sizes. These tools have contributed significantly to improving case throughput, procedural transparency, and access to justice in digitally mature jurisdictions. A central contribution of this review is its in-depth exploration of the shifting role of legal support staff—including paralegals, clerks, and administrative assistants—in the context of digital transformation. These roles, once narrowly defined by clerical functions, now encompass a range of techno-legal responsibilities such as metadata tagging, compliance auditing, secure document exchange, and system interface management. The findings emphasize that this evolution in professional responsibilities necessitates new forms of interdisciplinary training, digital certifications, and institutional support mechanisms, particularly in jurisdictions where legal digitization is outpacing human capacity development. Furthermore, the review highlights persistent disparities in data governance frameworks and compliance standards, particularly concerning the implementation of regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and ISO/IEC 27001. These disparities are shaped by jurisdictional inconsistencies, institutional maturity, cross-border data handling complexities, and varied interpretations of regulatory obligations. The resulting governance gaps raise critical concerns about digital accountability, client confidentiality, and the admissibility of electronic evidence in transnational legal contexts.