Secure file exchange (SFE) has been certified by the national cyber security centre (NCSC). It allows providers to submit large files digitally rather than by post or email. SFE is currently supplied by Galaxkey, an online platform and you do not need to download any software to access it.
Registration process
Once you have been added to a workspace, you will receive an email containing a link to register with Galaxkey. You must not use your CJSM email address (if you have one) to register and must use your company domain email address.
If you do not register straight away, you will receive reminders from: notifications@galaxkey.com.
To ensure you receive these emails, contact your firms IT administrator to ‘whitelist’ the Galaxkey domain name.
If you have registered with Galaxkey previously, you can continue to use your existing login details to connect to the LAA workspaces you have requested.
Once you have registered, you can access SFE from the Galaxkey Login Page. (copy and paste this link into a recommended browser).
We recommend that you access Galaxkey using Google Chrome as your internet browser, but the following internet browsers are also compatible:
| Chrome | Firefox | Opera | Edge | IE* | Safari | IOS | Android |
| 63+ | 58+ | 50+ | 13+ | 11+ | 9+ | 9+ | 4.4+ |
Adding users to your workspace
If you are the administrator for your firm, you will be able to add and remove members to your workspace. You can only add members who work at the same firm as you.
If you want to add a member who does not work at the same firm as you, such as a costs draftsman, you will need to contact SFESupport@justice.gov.uk to request that they have access.
You will have one Galaxkey account which will show all the workspaces that you have access to. You can find a step by step guide to adding members from your firm to your workspace on this website.
Submitting documents
We have created a step-by-step guide to assist you with submitting documents available on this website. Please take the time to read this prior to uploading documents to your workspace.
When uploading files to SFE, it is important to try and replicate the structure of a paper file to make it easier for the reviewer to navigate.
Criminal legal aid processing: applications and digital systems – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Ensure that files and folders are named appropriately so they can be matched up with the relevant case.
- The following special characters can be accepted in file names: ! @ # $ ^ & * ( ) _ + – = , . ¬ {} [] ; £ € ö ä ©
- Files will be deleted from SFE once reviewed.
The following file types can be submitted:
- .docx, .doc, .pptx, .xlsx, .ppt, .xls, .pdf, .txt, .htm, .html, .zip, .png, .jpg, .jpeg, .bmp, .gif, .mp4, .avi, .csv, .json, .eml, .thumb, .vcf, .mov, .gcache, .m4v, .tts, .m49, .caf, .mp3, .opus, .gz, .log, .m4p, .dylib, .exe, .ufdr, .ini, .msg, .xry, .rtl, .xml
Important: There is no limit to the size of the file you can submit but the larger the file the longer it will take. If you have more than 50 files / folders to upload, it is recommended you compress them and upload as single .zip files. If possible, avoid having subfolders within the folders, as this results in a long file path.
Submitting full files of papers
It is important to try and replicate the structure of a paper file. You should number or upload files in chronological order and give them meaningful titles.
You should use sub folders to organise files. For example:
- Correspondence and communications with client
- Correspondence and communications with third parties
- Court documents
- Legal aid papers
You can upload a single PDF document containing hyperlinks to different sections of the file.
If you are uploading a full file of papers for Peer Review purposes, you do not need to upload any video or audio files.
Technical support
If you have any technical issues, please email SFESupport@justice.gov.uk.
If you have forgotten your Galaxkey password, please follow the link on the login page to create a new one.