Adding a new matter in Lawcus is a straightforward process that allows you to manage your legal matters efficiently. There are several ways to add a New Matter in Lawcus. Let's understand them in detail.

Steps to Create a New Matter in Lawcus

Click on Matters on the left and select New Matter Button on the top right. Or, if you are in the Pipeline view, click on Add Matter button on the top of the respective Stage. Or, go to Contacts on the left and click on the Name of the Contact for which you want to add a matter and click on the Add Matter option on the right. You can also hover on the Contact Name and click on the Create Matter button. Alternatively, click on + New button on the top, from any page, and select New Matter under Matters.
The Matter Form Pop-up will appear on the page. Fill in all the required details in the form. Navigate through the Sections Menu options to quickly add in the details.
Client Details: Enter the Name of the Client. Lawcus will provide suggestions from your Contacts List as you type. You can either select a name from the dropdown list or type a new name and press the Enter key to add it to the list or you can also click on + Add new contact option on the dropdown.
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Once you create a new contact from here, another pop-up for contact creation will appear and you have to fill in the details of the contact to save the information.
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Matter Details:
1. Enter the Matter Name which is mandatory.
2. Enter other details like Open Date, Close Date, Statute of Limitations.
3. Click on the Pipeline and Stage dropdown to select the necessary value and note that both of these are mandatory.
4. Click on the following dropdowns and select the appropriate value; Practice Area, Location, Responsible Timekeeper, and Originating Timekeeper. Enter the Client Reference Number if required.
Description: Add the Matter Description using the text editor. You can format the text by using the toolbar options or the AI if required.
Related Contacts: Click on + Add Related Contact, and then add the Relation Type and Related Contact by selecting the appropriate value from the Dropdown to add anyone related to the matter. Note that you can select the Invoice Recipient Checkbox to designate the contact as Invoice Recipient for the matter and to send all matter invoices to the contact by default. Also note that you can always add New Relation Type and New Related Contact simply by Typing it and clicking on the Enter button.
Billing Preference:
1. Add the Estimated Matter Value if required.
2. Billing Type: Choose from options like;
  1. Non-billable - When you work on the matter without charging any fee.
  2. Hourly - To bill the client on an hourly rate. To add matter-specific custom rates, click on Add a Custom Rate button and Select User or User Group from the Dropdown and add Rate. Repeat to add multiple users or user groups with different rates.
  3. Flat rate - If you are doing a flat fee, select this option. Further, add the flat rate under Billing Rate.
  4. Contingency fee - Choose this option when the fee is based on the settlement amount of the case. For the Contingency fee, specify the Billing Attorney, the Billing Rate as a percentage, and the Settlement Amount. Note that the Billing Rate percentage will be calculated against the Settlement Amount to decide the fee.
  5. Evergreen Retainer: If you select this checkbox, you can then enter a Minimum Evergreen Retainer Amount. Lawcus will notify you whenever the balance dips below the amount specified here.
  6. Currency: Decide the currency for the matter.
  7. Invoice Template: If you want to have any specific invoice template to be used for this matter, click in this section and select the template from the Dropdown.
Custom Fields: If custom fields have been defined for matters, you can select them by clicking the + Start Typing to Search option.
Members: Under the Members, Tags and Settings section on the right, select team members responsible for or managing the matter by clicking on the Add Member Button and from the available options. Their names and pictures will appear in the Members area. For the bigger list, you can always start typing to narrow down results to select the appropriate efficiently.
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To remove members, use the same Add Member Button and click on 'X' next to the member name to remove the member from the matter. Do not forget to click on Update to save the changes.
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Tags: Click on the Tagsbutton, at the right, to enter tags or keywords for this matter. You can later use these tags to search for this matter.
Color: Choose a color code for the matter, which will be displayed as a top border on the Matter Card. Click on Color Dropdown and select the required color. If you know the Hex codes of colors, you can assign any color you want to the matter. Click on + Custom and type the required hexadecimal color code in the #FFFFFF box. Or, click on the color palate to select a preferred color. Copy the code to replicate it across. For custom color, click on Save and back to save the color selection.
Visibility: Set the visibility of the matter, indicating whether others can see it. Note that by default, all the matters are set as Public Matters which means all members of the organization get access to it. Toggle the Make Private option to limit the access to the associated members only.
Finally, click on the Create button to save your changes and create the Matter entry. Lawcus will generate the Matter entry and take you to the Matter Details screen.

Note: If you need to create multiple Matter entries, use the Save & Add New button instead of Create. Lawcus will save the current entry and provide a blank Matter screen for your next entry.

Note: If you want to bill immediately to the client, click on Save & Invoice option. It will take you to the billing page.

Steps to Edit a Matter

Go to Matters on the left and hover on the desired matter and click on the Edit Icon. Alternatively, click open the matter, click on the Edit Button next to the Matter Name or click on Edit matter under Quick Actions.
The Matter Form will appear. Make all necessary changes and click on Update to wrap up the process.

Steps to Delete a Matter

Go to Matters on the left, and click open the matter. Locate Delete matter option under Quick Actions and click on it.
Confirm Delete Action when prompted to wrap up the process.

Steps to Close a Matter

Closing a matter in Lawcus is straightforward. It allows you to archive completed cases and remove them from your pipeline.

Click on Matters in the left sidebar to access the Matters screen.
Locate the specific matter you want to close and click on its Matter Card or Matter Name or Matter Number to open it.
In the Quick Actions panel, click on Close matter option.
Confirm the matter closure by clicking on Yes when prompted. The matter will be archived and removed from the pipeline.
Alternatively, select the Checkbox on the Matters page and after the selection click on the Close Matter button. Confirm when prompted. Note that you can also bulk-close matters with this option.

Note: Archiving a matter in Lawcus doesn't delete any information related to the case; it simply moves it to a separate, easily retrievable location.

You can always quickly filter all the closed matters on the page simply by clicking on the Closed tab.

To Re-Open a Closed Matter

What happens when you happily close a matter you supposedly litigated and won, only to discover later that it’s going on appeal? Or what to do when a team member inadvertently closes a matter? All hope is not lost in any of these cases. You can always re-open a closed matter on Lawcus without hassle or delay with the following steps:

Click on the Matters Tab from the left side menu.
Click on the Closed Tab of the Matter window.
Click open the desired matter.
Under the Quick Actions section, click on Re-open matter to complete the process.

FAQ Section

FAQ1: How can I automatically close a matter in Lawcus?

Answer: Currently, we don’t have the functionality to close matters from workflows in Lawcus directly.

FAQ2: Will future emails on an assigned workflow still go out for a closed matter?

Answer: Yes, future emails regarding the workflow will be sent out without any issues, even if the matter is closed.

FAQ3: Does making a user who's a matter's lead attorney inactive, remove the matter from our system?

Answer: In Lawcus, making the lead attorney of a matter inactive doesn't necessarily remove the matter itself from the system. The matter usually remains in the system and is associated with the inactive attorney. You can add another member to that matter for further action.

FAQ4: Is there a reason why contact info isn't showing on the left side of the matter information?

Answer: It is shown solely on the right side within the Clients and Contacts section.

FAQ5: Can I assign multiple roles to the related contact of a matter?

Answer: Yes, you can add multiple relations to a related contact on the matter. You can't have multiple relations directly with one contact; instead, you must add that contact multiple times with different relations.

FAQ6: How can we change the visibility of existing matters?

Answer: While editing an existing matter, you can use the Toggle to make it a Private Matter or Public Matter. Otherwise, just open the matter details page. Under Quick Actions, select either Set Visibility to Private or Set Visibility to Public based on your requirement. Confirm when prompted to complete the process.

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