Deadlines and events

A matter deadline identifies the type of obligation, its due date and the team member who owns it. When work is complete, the completion date and court receipt provide the checkable outcome. The deadline points back to the matter, so the owner can review its subject and current state before acting.

Matter events record the dated history around a case: a hearing, filing, review, decision or communication. An event may carry a due date, an occurrence date, an external receipt and a document revision. These details help the team tell planned activity from something that occurred. A filing event with a due date is not the same as a completed filing with a receipt.

• Assigned obligation. Give the deadline a type, due date, matter and owner.
• Completion evidence. Record completion and the receipt when the external action produces one.
• Dated history. Add events for the milestones and communications that explain the work.

Agree who enters deadlines, who verifies their completion and what kind of receipt is sufficient for each obligation. Define the handoff when an owner is unavailable. A due date should remain visible to the new owner, and the matter should keep the prior event history. The team should decide when an event is useful alongside a deadline, such as when a hearing generates a filing requirement.

Confirm how dates and time zones are handled for organizations working across jurisdictions. The App Administrator maintains organization and member time zones, while the legal team remains responsible for confirming the actual deadline. A dashboard can draw attention to approaching dates, but the responsible person must inspect the matter and external confirmation.

An attorney has a filing due for an active matter. The coordinator enters the deadline with its owner and due date, then records a filing event when the submission occurs. The external receipt is attached to the event and the deadline is marked complete with its receipt. Another authorized reviewer can now see the due date, occurrence and completion evidence in the same matter context.

Run the case again without an external receipt. The owner should see that the work still needs verification even if the event says it was filed. The team can contact the court or its filing service before calling the obligation complete. This check prevents a typed completion date from standing in for the external result.

• Deadline register — Inspect due work and its completion evidence.
• My deadlines — Review obligations assigned to the current owner.

Follow deadline completion and review the model.