Powers Law Group

Working with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires precise documentation. This includes applications that must be signed with physical signatures. While managing these documents can be cumbersome, the Powers Law Group uses the latest document management technology with their fleet of ScanSnap scanners to deal with the mountains of paperwork that’s required to service their client base.

"From the beginning, we wanted to be as paperless as possible," notes Ruby Powers. For the small but agile firm, that means digitizing intake forms, contracts, and payment records in addition to USCIS receipt notices, approval notices and denials. "Of course, some government agencies don't allow electronic signatures, so we need to digitize wet-signed documents."

When Powers set up her firm, she resisted purchasing a big copier and printer, not wanting to devote the space to a large device. She also was concerned about the cost and maintenance aspects of managing a large office machine. But initially, the firm had to deal with plenty of paperwork, and the office had a whole room devoted to maintaining paper files. 

Fortunately, Powers received some good advice from a fellow lawyer. "When I started my firm, another law firm owner told me: you've got to get a ScanSnap scanner!" she says.

Today, most employees at the firm have their own ScanSnap scanner. The scanners and state-of-the-art imaging software capture data with precision—so all the data is reliably captured the first time and isn’t misinterpreted or lost. They empower law firms like Powers Law Group to maintain a detailed record management system. This helps mitigate risk, streamline discovery, and keep costs down. Maintaining documentation digitally helps support remote working during travel (or pandemics) and minimizes the space needed for storing lots of paper. 

"We no longer need a file room," notes Powers. "After scanning and closing hundreds of files during the pandemic and ceasing to make new physical file folders since 2021, we have truly taken our paperless goal to another level. Today, we have about half of a large file cabinet of actual files, which is a pretty big deal." And the scanners work well with the firm's online storage provider, Dropbox Professional, and Cerenade, the preferred immigration and case management software.