Running a law firm on Free software news update

Neil Brown, founder of the boutique English law firm decoded.legal, published an operational retrospective detailing five continuous years of running an internet, telecoms, and technology law practice entirely on Free and open-source software, according to decoded.legal's report. The five-year update demonstrates how an active legal enterprise handles client engagement, compliance, document production, and communication without closed-source vendor subscriptions or proprietary cloud operating systems.

This retrospective serves independent attorneys, technology consultants, and infrastructure engineers evaluating sovereign, privacy-respecting software stacks for heavily regulated professional services. It provides a blueprint of the exact client-side workstations, self-hosted server deployments, terminal applications, and document workflows tested across five years of daily client-facing operations.

Running a law firm on Free software news: what actually changed

The most significant operational shift in the server stack was the complete retirement of Nextcloud. Brown replaced Nextcloud with Syncthing for file synchronization across devices, paired with Radicale to handle CalDAV calendar and CardDAV contact synchronization, citing far fewer maintenance problems under the split configuration. On the web publishing side, the practice moved away from the Hugo static generator to BSSG, a bash-based static site generator authored by developer Stefano, while building the main website via MkDocs on an Apache2 web server.

Internal communication infrastructure also saw notable reductions in server footprint. Brown deactivated a self-hosted Jitsi Meet server that ran for years, migrating direct video calls to Signal while joining external client calls through Firefox, because most external meetings are hosted on third-party platforms like Microsoft Teams or Zoom. Additionally, decoded.legal shut down both its self-hosted CryptPad collaborative editing platform and its dedicated Mastodon Fediverse instance, shifting personal Fediverse engagement to a glitch-soc Mastodon fork using the Toot terminal interface.

Running a law firm on Free software news: how it works

On the client side, daily casework runs on Debian with the GNOME desktop environment hosted on a ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 6 convertible laptop. Brown folds the laptop screen to mark up documents directly with an Active Pen, using Evince for viewing, Xournal++ for markup, and PDFarranger alongside pdftk for PDF file operations. When exchanging editable files with opposing counsel, Brown creates Word-compatible documents using LibreOffice Writer, while drafting client files in Vim before converting Markdown via Pandoc and Typst. Presentations are authored in Markdown and rendered via Reveal.js templates through custom bash scripts, while Espanso provides cross-system text expansion shortcuts.

Server operations rely primarily on self-hosted Intel NUC hardware alongside remaining Raspberry Pi units. Network security is enforced with WireGuard VPN configured via Trail of Bits Algo Ansible scripts on one node and PiVPN on another, while Pi-hole and Unbound handle local recursive DNS queries. Matter tracking runs through EspoCRM, time tracking operates on Kimai version 2, and invoice generation is managed through InvoicePlane. Encrypted Know Your Client pre-engagement questionnaires are gathered via LiberaForms, while server health, compliance, and backups are monitored through Uptime Kuma, Wazuh SIEM, Greenbone OpenVAS vulnerability scanning, and encrypted Restic repositories.

Running a law firm on Free software news: why it matters

Running professional services on Free software addresses severe data privacy and client sovereignty issues inherent in cloud-hosted legal platforms. By pairing full-disk LUKS encryption with Cryptomator client-side encryption prior to Syncthing transmission, client records remain encrypted before leaving physical local drives. Using LiberaForms ensures client onboarding responses are stored encrypted in the database before prompt administrative deletion, preventing third-party vendors from scraping confidential legal intake records.

The operational setup also proves that commercial legal practices do not require proprietary AI tools or subscription office platforms to maintain client turnaround times. Decoded.legal avoids artificial intelligence tools entirely, relying on predictable Unix utilities like Postfix, Dovecot, Vaultwarden, and local Vimwiki notebooks to maintain institutional know-how. Eliminating proprietary cloud suites isolates legal casework from upstream provider telemetry, license audits, forced product redesigns, and sudden platform pricing updates.

Running a law firm on Free software news: who is affected

Solo attorneys, specialized boutique practices, and small law firms seeking exemptions from Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or closed-source practice management suites are directly influenced by this deployment model. Brown notes that interacting with counterparties who rely on mainstream commercial tools presents zero friction during document review or multi-party discovery exchanges. The firm processes incoming files through LibreOffice Writer, signs and annotates documents in Xournal++, and outputs standard PDF files that opposing lawyers open without format conversion problems.

Client onboarding and document delivery remain transparent to corporate customers. External clients do not directly interact with internal software like InvoicePlane or EspoCRM; instead, they receive standard PDF billing statements and clean HTML documentation. Furthermore, visitors accessing decoded.legal through the Tor Browser are redirected automatically to an onion service address, while corporate clients needing voice or video consults connect over standard browser links in Firefox or direct Signal sessions.

Running a law firm on Free software news: what to watch

Hardware reliability on client workstations remains the immediate hurdle for the firm. Brown reports that the primary ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 6 is experiencing hardware failures on its Thunderbolt and USB-C ports, which still accept charging power but exhibit severe data instability. Finding a modern replacement convertible laptop that maintains complete out-of-the-box Linux compatibility, reliable stylus digitizer support, and robust display folding will determine the next workstation hardware selection.

On the server and email side, mail server modernization remains on the agenda as Brown explores Stalwart as a potential unified alternative to the current Postfix and Dovecot pairing. Minor software quirks require attention, such as Thunderbird recurring calendar invitation synchronization errors that terminal tool ikhal currently handles without issue. Mobile operations will continue on a Google Pixel handset running GrapheneOS and F-Droid, as alternative mobile operating systems like postmarketOS, Ubuntu Touch, and SailfishOS have not matched the stability required for legal field use.