Exporting Data from Abacus Follow

To Export Data from Abacus, Follow the Instructions Below:

For users of Abacus legal case management software, Law Ruler recommends the following process to backup your firm's data from Abacus to prepare it for Law Ruler's data migration team.  This is necessary for the Law Ruler data migration team to begin work, or ask your dedicated Law Ruler Account Manager to discuss a plan to assist your firm with data migration.

💡 Please note that the success of any data migration depends primarily on the quality of the data set provided to Law Ruler. Before attempting to migrate your information, you should ensure that your data is consistently formatted, well organized, sufficiently backed up, and stored securely. If you are not certain how to proceed then we recommend that you consult with your dedicated Law Ruler Account Manager or Law Ruler Support before proceeding.

• Only administrators are able to export client data.
• A file named "law9.dbf" needs to be sent to Law Ruler to review for data migration planning and scope of work analysis.

Aside from Law Ruler, all other trademarks, trade names, screenshots, or company names referenced herein are used for identification purposes only and are the property of their respective owners.

What Data Could I Export Out of Abacus and Have Imported Into Law Ruler?

In most instances, the following data is able to be exported from Abacus and imported into Law Ruler: 

• Cases/Matters
• Contacts
• Case Notes (Law Notes and Law Facts)
• Documents
• Tasks
• Calendar
• Emails

These items may not be imported into Law Ruler from Abacus:

• Law Exhibits
• Msgs
• Abacus Accounting Module/Billing Data
• All Other Data Types Not Listed

Documents (requires a custom scope of work):

1. To perform document migration, prior to being provided with a scope of work, Law Ruler will need to know where/how your documents are stored and what folder naming system is used.  As a rule, your document folders must be named in a consistent way to allow for data migration.  For example, all document folders should be consistently named with the same identical name as the matter name, matter ID, or the primary contact (client name).   
   • For example, the client name on a matter is: John Test, thus the folder with that client's documents must be named, "John Test" or "Test, John" or with the matter ID number, for example, "123456" otherwise it is not possible to migrate the data without doing so manually on the firm's side.
2. Any folders that are not related to a specific client/matter cannot be imported and will need to be uploaded manually after the data migration is performed.  Any document folders that are named in an inconsistent way will also require manual document migration by the firm after the data migration is performed.
3. Some firms have documents stored in a place other than their case management.  That is acceptable if the folders are named in a standardized way as mentioned above.

Exporting Data out of Abacus 

Note: We recommend doing the export after business hours at night.  It is important to make sure that that all users are logged out of AbacusLaw, Abacus Accounting, MessageSlips, and Microsoft Outlook (if they are using the Abacus Outlook Add-In).

This needs to be done when backing up data.

💡 You may also review the support article from Abacus about how to export data and run reports that covers their export process.

If you wish to force all users out, go to to File > Setup > Scheduled Shutdown.
Under the Immediate shutdown section, click Shutdown Now (this will shutdown Abacus and any unsaved work in progress could be lost so please check with your firm staff before doing this step).

1. Log into Abacus
2. Click File
3. Then, click Reports
4. Select one of the following: Names, Calendar, Matters, Matter Notes, or Name Notes
5. On the window that opens select New Report
6. Enter a new name for the report (eg: Law Ruler Abacus Export) and click OK
7. In the upper left part of the screen, click Add
8. Click Run
9. Click Comma Delimited (make sure you select this format)
10. Click OK
11. Save file
12. Search for law9.adt in the Abacus folder on your computer
    • if this file does not exist, search for law9.dbf

💡 It is also recommended to make a full backup of your Abacus database.  To do this, please visit this support article on how to backup and restore your data with Abacus.

Support/Assistance

If you need further assistance with your Law Ruler system, then please contact Law Ruler Support.

Aside from Law Ruler, all other trademarks, trade names, screenshots, or company names referenced herein are used for identification purposes only and are the property of their respective owners.

🤗 Thank you very much for choosing Law Ruler!