When implementing a new Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) system, organizations often focus on the future—how the new system will streamline contract management, improve compliance, and provide actionable insights. However, one critical step is frequently overlooked: migrating legacy contracts. Neglecting this essential phase can significantly undermine the effectiveness of your new CLM system from Day 1. It’s important to find a partner that understands the complexities involved in this crucial phase and ideally offer a cost-effective, GenAI-powered solution to ensure your transition is seamless and successful.

Why Migrating Legacy Contracts is Essential

Maximizing Immediate Impact:

The true value of a CLM system lies in its ability to manage and analyze all of your contracts. Without migrating these legacy contracts, your new CLM system can only manage a fraction of your contract data, leaving valuable information inaccessible. This immediately diminishes the return on your CLM investment. Additionally, a comprehensive migration ensures that your system can start generating actionable insights from day one, enhancing decision-making and strategic planning.

Ensuring Compliance and Governance:

Legacy contracts contain critical information like terms and conditions that must be managed for regulatory compliance. Overlooking these opens your organization up to unnecessary risks. Proper contract migration ensures that all your contracts are governed under the same compliance framework, reducing the risks considerably. Organizations must ensure each legacy contract is thoroughly reviewed and mapped to the new system’s compliance parameters, safeguarding your organization against potential legal and regulatory pitfalls.

Improving Efficiency and Usability:

A centralized system that houses all your contracts means better searchability and improves overall contract management. In turn, this leads to better decision-making and operational efficiency, making it easier for your team to find the information they need when they need it.


Failure to properly migrate legacy contracts will lead to a bad user experience, causing the CLM system to be underutilized, and then the frustration with your CLM sets in. When users struggle to find the information they need or encounter inconsistencies in data, the efficiency and effectiveness of the CLM system are greatly reduced.

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Common Misconceptions About Legacy Contract Migration

Fear of Increased Costs:

Some providers may downplay the importance of migrating legacy contracts to avoid scaring clients with higher costs. While this step does require an investment, the long-term benefits far outweigh the initial expense. By adding a GenAI-powered approach, you can receive a cost-effective solution tailored to your needs.

Overpromising Seamless Migration:

The migration of legacy contracts is often more complex than initially perceived. Some providers may oversell the ease of migration, leading clients to believe it will be a straightforward, effortless process. The reality is that successful migration requires expertise, a robust strategy, and the right technology to manage the complexities involved. With the evolution of Gen AI-powered solutions, there has never been a better time to make sure your migration process is working to its full potential.