Matter intake

A litigation matter begins with a named organization, an owner and a counterparty. The coordinator records the subject and jurisdiction so counsel can distinguish a new dispute from another matter involving the same client. The record number remains the working reference across deadlines, documents and decisions. A conflict review follows intake before engagement is recorded.

The coordinator assigns an active team member to the organization that owns the matter. Counsel can see the counterparty and the recorded eligibility note when checking whether the team should proceed. The engagement reference and agreed fee belong on the matter after that decision; they should not be inferred from the presence of an intake record. Subsequent status changes keep the original record number and owner in view.

• Identify the parties. Link the correct organization and counterparty before entering a new dispute.
• Keep the owner visible. A named team member can reconcile matter events and deadlines with counsel.
• Record the engagement. The reference and fee give the active case an agreed commercial context.

Agree a convention for record numbers, jurisdiction names and engagement references. Decide how staff distinguish a fresh dispute from a reopened matter and who can change an owner. Prepare an intake involving an existing counterparty and another involving a newly entered organization. Counsel should be able to find each from its record number and parties without relying on a personal spreadsheet.

A client asks the team to respond to a new dispute in a court where another matter is already active. The coordinator opens the new matter under the correct organization, links the counterparty and records the jurisdiction. The supervising attorney checks the parties and the conflict evidence before accepting engagement. The earlier matter remains a separate record with its own owner, dates and evidence.

When the new engagement is accepted, enter the engagement reference and agreed fee on that matter. Confirm that the matter’s events and court deadlines point to this record, not to the earlier dispute. A person reviewing the case later should be able to explain why the team proceeded and which case each filing belongs to.

• Matter intake queue — Candidate matters ready for party and owner checks.
• My matters — Assigned work with its current status and opening date.
• Matter status board — Matters grouped by the stage of work.

Follow matter intake to carry a candidate through conflict review. Review the data model before importing parties and cases. The implementation plan sets out a first operating cycle.