Once you have finished your discussions with the lead and have converted the lead into a client, you can convert the lead entry into a matter entry.

To mark a lead as a converted lead:

3. Click on the Convert to matter button (or click on Convert to matter in the Quick Actions panel). Lawcus displays the Convert to matter screen.

To convert a lead to a matter, you need to first enter the details of the matter and then enter details of the lead/client. Some items will already be filled in (taken from the Lead entry). Fill in the remaining items (especially the items marked with an asterisk (*) as these are mandatory items).

A. The Client's name.

B. The Name of the Matter. This is a mandatory item. By default, it will be the same as the client's name, but you can change it to whatever you want.

C. Enter a Description of the matter.

D. Enter or change the Estimated Matter Value.

E. Select the Billing Type from this drop-down list. Billing type can be: Non-billable, Hourly, Flat rate, or Contingency fee.

If you select Hourly, or Flat rate, you have to also specify your Billing Rate as a dollar amount.

If you select Contingency fee, you can specify the Billing Attorney, the Billing Rate as a percentage, and the Settlement Amount.

If you want to work on the matter without charging any fees, you can select Non-billable.

F. Specify whether to use an Evergreen Retainer. If you select this checkbox, you can then enter a Minimum Evergreen Retainer Amount. Lawcus will then notify you whenever the matter balance dips below the amount specified here.

G. Enter the Open Date, Close Date (if any), and the Statute of Limitations Date for the matter.

Note: You can either type the date (in mm/dd/yyyy format), or select the date by clicking on the calendar icon.

H. If required, select the Pipeline to which to add this matter.

I. Select the Stage of the matter (such as, Case Assessment, Discovery, Trial, etc.)

J. Select the Practice Area of the matter (such as, Corporate, Bankruptcy, Copyright, etc.). You can either select the Practice Area from the drop-down list or type a new value and press the Enter key to add it to the list.

K. If required, select or change the Originating Attorney and the Responsible Attorney for the matter. You can either select from the drop-down list or you can type the name of a person and press the Enter key to add it to the list.

L. Click on the Tags button, at the right, to enter tags or keywords for this matter. You can later use these tags to search for this matter.

M. Select the names of the Members who are responsible for, or managing, this lead. As you select the names, the member's picture will appear in the Members: area above the buttons.

N. If custom fields have been defined for matters, you can select the custom fields by clicking on the Custom fields button at the right.

See docs for more information on custom fields.

O. Select a Color code for this matter.

The color will be displayed as a top-border in the Matter Card.

Tip: If you know the Hex codes of colors, you can assign any color you want to the matter. Just type the required hexadecimal color code in the # box above.

P. If the client is related to some other contact, you can click Add related contact to add the relative's name and relation to the client.

Lawcus will add the relation details above the client's name.
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Q. Click the Next button to enter the details of the client.

Note: The Next button will be grayed out if you have forgotten to enter any of the mandatory values.

4. We now need to enter the details of the client. Most of the details will already be filled as Lawcus takes these details from the Lead Details screen. But, you can add more details or modify the existing details, if required.

See Adding New Leads for more details on entering these details.

5. Finally, click on the Convert button to convert the entry.

Lawcus converts the lead entry into a contact entry, creates a new matter entry, adds a matter number, and displays the Matter Details screen.

You will now find the lead in your Contacts list and the matter in your Matters list.