Legal documents should be carefully stored and protected, while also being able to be accessed easily in the event a legal document is needed immediately. We’ve found that the most common ways people store legal documents are in a filing cabinet, a safe at home, a safety deposit box, and in cloud storage. Below, we’ll look at each of these options and pros and cons of each.

Most people already have a filing cabinet at home making this a convenient option for storing your legal documents. Unfortunately, it can also be one of the least secure options for these important documents, unless you have a filing cabinet that is fire and waterproof. You also should consider a filing cabinet that can lock, to ensure no one can access your private information. The upside to using a filing cabinet is that your documents are easily accessed when you need them.

A fire-proof safe that can be locked with a key or a combination, is another popular option for keeping personal legal documents safe in the home. A safe should be able to protect your vital documents from fire or water damage. It should also be hidden or bolted down to ensure a thief cannot easily find it.

Similar to a filing cabinet, you’ll have easy access to your documents when you need them which makes this a great option for many people.

A safety deposit box is a fireproof metal box that you rent from your bank. The box remains at the bank who ensures that only people are on the box’s rental agreement and have a key can access it. This ensures a high level of security which is ideal for these important documents.

The downside of using a safety deposit box to store these documents is that you have limited access to its contents. You’ll be restricted to the bank’s operating hours, which can be limiting, and may prevent you from accessing these documents quickly when you need them. Additionally, if you are unable to physically go to the bank, and no one else is on your safety deposit box, it be very difficult to retrieve anything from the box.

Online storage allows you to store digital versions of your legal documents in cloud-based storage. This means your documents will be accessible from any computer, at any time. Online document storage is actually a great and secure way to store your legal documents – although it’s very important you create a strong, hard to guess password.

Your documents can only be accessed by you or those you have shared your documents with and access your documents from which is extremely convenient. For this reason, it’s important to note that in the event you become incapacitated, anyone with whom you have shared your legal documents can access your living will, health care directive, power of attorney, and other important documents

**Disclaimer: The content used in the article is not to be used as legal advice and is for illustration and general informational purposes only. If you have questions about your particular situation, please contact us to schedule a consultation with one of our experienced attorneys.