2. The Grand Plan
1. Introductions
2. Why Care About Document Automation?
3. Diving Right In – Using DA
4. Creating a Template in Word
5. Generating and Using the Document
6. Problems to Avoid
7. Document Automation for Pros
8. Q&A!
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4. Chris Yeh & Zach Pope
@chrisyeeeh @ZGPope
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5. Why Care About Document
Automation?
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6. “Document assembly is and will remain forever a fundamental
technology. If one looks at the heart of legal work, it’s about the
production of documents and document assembly is an enabling tool
that automates and streamlines that process”
-- Professor Richard Susskind
President, Society for Computers and Law
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11. Alternative Billing
• Fixed or Flat Fee
• Contingent or Percentage Fee
• Capped Fee
• Value Billing
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12. Minimizes Errors
• Drafting document from scratch
• Search-and-replace for client Info
• Copy and pasting clauses
• Quality control
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13. “Failure to properly coordinate all ingredients [of drafting documents]
can be catastrophic. If the attorney is lucky, mistakes will merely be
an embarrassment instead of outright malpractice”
-- Daryl Teshima
Editor-in-Chief of Legal Assistant Today and Law Office Computing
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14. Use Cases
Emerging Companies
• Formation Docs
• LLC Agreements
• Seed Financial Docs
• Stock Options
Family Law
• Petition for Divorce
• Certificate of Readiness
• Notice of Custody
Application
• Separation Agreements
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16. Use Cases
A lot more…included in your package.
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17. Use Cases
Emerging Companies Employee Benef i ts Licensing, Joint Ventures & Al l iances
Format ion Docs
LLC Agreements
Seed Financial Docs
Stock Opt ions
401k Plans
Severance Agreements
Employee Agreements
Non Disclosures
Retent ion Agreements
Sof tware License Agreement
Sof tware Maintenance Agreement
Sof tware Support Agreement
Private Equi ty & Venture Capi tal Intel lectual Property Real Estate
NVCA
Series A
Asset Purchase Agreement
Distribut ion Agreement
License Agreement
Trademark License Agreement
Commercial Lease
Commercial Sublease
Of f ice Space Lease
Mortgage
Construct ion Agreements
Transact ional & Securi ties Fami ly Law Estates & Trusts
Format ion
Asset Purchase Agreement
Debt Set t lement Agreement
Stock Purchase Agreement
Stock Repurchase Agreement
Pet i t ion for Divorce
Cert i f icate of Readiness
Not ice of Custody Appl icat ion
Separat ion Agreements
Wills
Revocable Trust
Irrevocable Trust
Heal th Proxies
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52. Summary
1 Introductions
Who we are,
why we’re here,
why we’re
awesome.
2 Value
Document
Automation
saves you a ton
of time.
3 Example
Quick example
of generating
an Engagement
Letter.
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53. Summary
4 Templates
One-time cost
to get set up.
How to create
templates and
use custom
fields.
5 Using
Using the
template,
generating docs
in different
formats,
sharing docs,
and more.
6 Avoid
Some common
hiccups to look
out for.
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55. Ask Me Anything (AMA)
Thank you for listening!
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Editor's Notes
Numbering and time
Chris
Pops
Bring on talent
5k, 65
Zach
Veteran
Technical Escalations
ClioCon last year
Day-to-day
4k> tickets
http://www.lacba.org/lalawyer/tech/comp11-98.html
Which is most valuable in the cases where you would want to bill based on the result as opposed to the process
Allows you to bill a client for work they want to pay
e.g Family Law with a la carte style billing for documents
Capped fees: The client pays an hourly fee for hours worked up to a maximum number of hours
Blended rates: The client pays a single blended rate for each hour worked, no matter which level of timekeeper is doing the work.
Value-based fees: The client agrees to pay the law firm for the value provided, as perceived by the client and agreed upon by the law firm - reference Conduit Law.
Fixed / flat fees: This arrangement fixes the cost of the legal action for the client.
Portfolio-based fees: A client negotiates a fixed fee for a law firm to handle all of its legal needs for a specified time period–– e.g., one year.
Performance-based / contingency fees: The client agrees to pay the law firm based on their performance or the result of their legal action.
http://www.lacba.org/lalawyer/tech/comp11-98.html
Show document to be converted (Motion for Continuance)
“Document Automation requires a bit of work at the start, when creating the template, to save you time later. I’m going to walk you through how to create a template, and various options you have along the way”
Show document to be converted (Motion for Continuance - Iron Key Inc)
Show Merge Fields area
Walk through how to get to Merge Fields area
Explain columns, and example Matter
What Merge Fields are - basically, placeholders with some funny formatting
Point out a few examples on Merge Fields page
Matter Number
Client Name
Firm Address
When to use them
Any field you change frequently between Matters
And is recorded in Clio
Example of good field to replace - Client Name
Demonstrate all three methods of copy/paste
Select and right click
Ctrl commands
Copy to clipboard button + plaintext format + recommendation
Explain Custom Fields
What they are (user defined fields, instead of Clio defined fields)
How they relate (fields you want in Doc Auto that are not in Clio)
Show Custom Fields area and how to get there
Show Custom Fields tags in Merge Fields area
Keeping this brief, want more, stick around!
Show how to upload Document via Documents tab (Use completed Motion for Continuance - Template)
Go to generation modal
Select the Motion for ContinuanceTemplate
Point out different formats it can be generated in (Word and PDF)
Select Matter for generation
PDF is a file format used to present documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. Great for the ‘final’ version of a document.
“and if that sounds like it came from Wikipedia..’
Rename Document to be generated (initially will use template name)
Generate Document in Word format
Note that you can generate from Documents page or Matter page (if Matter, auto-fills that)
As generating, mention why Word. Specifically use example of user with Letter with no content but all format (Client info, Firm info, Matter info)
Show where it is uploaded to in Clio (note it is auto uploaded, if using 3rd party esp)
Click Edit on the Document
Change description of document (not linked to file name)
Change latest version date
Change Matter
Change Category
We will come back to Add New File
Close Edit modal
Click on Document Preview quick link
Provided by Box, where the Document is stored so that it can be viewed immediately without downloading
Download the Document
Make edits to the Document in Word
Save Document as PDF
Open Edit modal, click on Add New File
Show ‘Create new version’ and ‘Replace version’ options
Upload Document as new version
Click on Clio Connect to open modal
More details on this in the Clio Connect session tomorrow and Smart Bar
Click on Add Time
Chance to not only save time working on your Documents, but saves time Billing for the work you did
Auto assigns Matter and User
Change date to reflect when work was done (defaults to today)
Set Activity Description
Discuss UTBMS Task Codes
Discuss Rate Hierarchy/Rate
Set duration of time spent working on this
Add Notes
Show example Powerpoint Template
Works basically the same as Word, just add Merge Fields
Why? Presentations internally to Firm on specific Matters, or to Clients
Anyone here use it or have ideas?
Show example Matter Summary Report in Excel
Works slightly differently than Word
Click on a field that uses a Merge Field
Point out ‘named Ranges’ field where Merge Field appears
Ideal for calculations, graphs, or even just adding clear labels before you fill out a table
How do you use Excel in your office? How might that work with Document Automation?
Show XML template (LEDES 2000)
Same thing as Word, just add Merge Fields and generate
Example use here is for the LEDES 2000 format, no activities info, just basics
We have no idea why else it’s used, but N templates are uploaded to Clio
Anyone here?
PDF not supported, but many courts have PDF formatted forms
One clever workaround we’ve heard of is to:
Take a screenshot of the PDF (or at least a page of it)
Paste that in to Word as a background image
Put your Merge Fields and text OVER the image, in the correct spots
Show example Word Document (citation needed!)
Lastly, we want to show you how fast it can be to generate Documents after all the front-loaded Template building work is done
Start a Timer in Clio
Go to Matter
Speed-run through generating a Document via Doc Auto, straight to PDF, use Preview feature to view
Stop Timer
Flat fee and value based billing; figuring out how to make it efficiently is important for this type of legal service
See if joshua wants to mention it – transactional documents; lawyers competing with likes of rocket lawyer legal zoom; efficient and cost efficient service with some additional advice
Terminology slide – what merge fields; templates, alligator brackets
Sell the next session!
Framing the move – invest the time in building the template, and don’t bill but amortize that over first few clients and then the rest when you flat fee is all profit