Migrate from Filevine to Zoho CRM

Filevine's Project is a matter-centric container with nested sections and phase chains. Zoho CRM has no native Projects object. We offer two strategies: (1) Project → Zoho Deal with project metadata in custom fields on the Deal; (2) Project → Zoho Custom Module record, preserving 1:1 identity. Your team chooses before migration; both strategies preserve custom field values, phase history, and document links.

Filevine contacts (people associated with a project) map directly to Zoho Contacts. Email, phone, address, title, and company linkage migrate as direct field mappings. Contacts without an associated company land on a default 'Unassigned' Account in Zoho. This default Account prevents orphaned contact records and ensures Contact.AccountId lookup fields resolve without import errors. The contact's original Filevine creation date is preserved as a custom field for audit purposes.

Filevine stores contact-to-company linkage directly on the contact record. Zoho requires an Account record to exist first before Contact.AccountId lookup resolves. We sequence Account migration before Contact migration so foreign keys resolve correctly. During the pre-flight phase, FlitStack validates that all referenced Account records exist in Zoho before importing linked Contacts. Any missing Account references are flagged for pre-creation to prevent failed imports and orphaned Contact records.

Filevine company records (legal entities linked to projects) map to Zoho Accounts. Name, domain, industry, employee count, annual revenue, and billing address migrate as direct field mappings. Filevine parent-company hierarchies map to Zoho's Parent Account field. Parent Account lookups require that the parent company already exists in Zoho, so we prioritize Account migration before Projects migration to ensure hierarchy integrity and prevent orphaned child accounts.

Filevine phase chains define a sequence of statuses a matter progresses through. Each distinct phase name in Filevine becomes a Zoho Deal Stage value within a named Sales Process. Probability and forecast category are re-applied from Zoho's stage-definition model after migration. Stage-entry timestamps are preserved as custom datetime fields on the Deal.

Filevine deadline chains auto-populate a series of calendar deadlines based on a root date. Zoho has no native deadline-chain equivalent. We migrate the computed deadline dates as custom datetime fields on the Deal and optionally create Zoho Tasks with due dates. The automation logic must be rebuilt in Zoho Blueprint.

Filevine custom sections (text, dropdown, date, yes/no, numeric, etc.) have no Zoho native equivalents. We create Zoho custom fields of matching data type on the target module (Deal or Projects custom module). Pick-list values in Filevine dropdown fields are exported as explicit Zoho pick-list options during custom-field creation. Multi-select fields are mapped to Zoho multi-select pick-lists where supported.

Filevine time entries store hours, rate, attorney name, and description. Zoho has no native time-tracking module in CRM. We migrate time entries as Zoho Line Items on the parent Deal using a 'Services' product, preserving hours, rate, and total amount. Alternatively, a custom Billing subform captures the full time-entry schema.

Filevine expense items include description, amount, and attribution. Mapped as Zoho Line Items on the parent Deal using an 'Expense' product, or to a custom Expenses subform on the Deal or Projects module. Payment attribution logic from Filevine is preserved as a custom field.

Filevine flat-fee billing items map directly to Zoho Deal Line Items with the flat amount as the line total. Item type and status fields migrate as custom fields on the Line Item. The flat-fee amount populates the Line Item Total field, and we create a custom Billing_Type__c pick-list field to distinguish flat-fee items from time entries and expenses. Attribution data migrates to a custom field for billing audit trails.

Filevine document attachments on projects re-upload to Zoho as file attachments on the corresponding Deal or Projects module record. Zoho's attachment size limit (50 MB per file by default) applies; Files exceeding this are flagged for chunked upload or alternative storage. Bates Stamping and Doc Combiner metadata do not transfer — documents land as raw PDFs in Zoho.

Filevine's Vinesign e-signature integration has no direct Zoho CRM equivalent. Completed signature audit trails (signer, timestamp, IP) are preserved as PDF attachments. New signature workflows must be rebuilt in Zoho Sign, a separate Zoho application. FlitStack exports Vinesign request metadata as a reference custom field for manual re-creation.

Filevine phase tasks assigned to team members map to Zoho Tasks linked to the parent Deal or Projects record. Due date, assignee (resolved by email to Zoho user), and task status migrate. Phase-assignment logic (which phase a task belongs to) is preserved as a custom field.

Filevine notes on projects migrate as Zoho Notes linked to the parent Deal or Projects record. Original timestamps and author resolved by email match to Zoho users. Rich-text formatting is preserved where Zoho Notes supports it. Any embedded file references in the note body are converted to plain-text links pointing to the migrated file attachments on the Deal or Projects record.

Filevine user IDs are resolved against Zoho user email addresses during migration. Unmatched owners are flagged before migration runs — your team either creates Zoho user accounts or assigns those records to a fallback Zoho user. No record lands without an assigned Zoho owner.