What Is the Definition of a Legal Matter

IILPM templates are useful tools for illustrating details. When students fill out some of the templates in the context of a legal and business scenario that I use in my course, they can experiment, not just observe, some of the details that fill the framework. In order to properly manage legal issues or a portfolio of issues, it is necessary to have access to all information on relevant issues. Whether it`s information about status, risks, resources, expenses, contracts, business, etc., this information needs to be collected, available, and easily reportable. By communicating clearly with their clients from the outset, lawyers and their teams can begin to realistically define client expectations and scope. For example, many junior lawyers at large law firms have relatively little contact with clients. In my conversations with junior lawyers at these law firms, I often hear things like, “I have no influence on the scope of the project because the client partner comes to us and tells us what to do because they have spoken to the client.” During the workshop on the definition of the subject matter in my trainings, I play the role of the client (and indeed all the other characters described in the business and legal scenarios I use). Sometimes clients have an unrealistic idea of what their lawyers can accomplish for them, and sometimes clients have very little idea of how their lawyers can best help them. While legal teams are smart people, it`s only natural that they can`t have all the answers. You need quick access to accurate, high-quality data and expertise to take care of the delivery of all legal matters. Making this knowledge available when needed is an essential part of material management. Many lawyers and legal service providers are now familiar with the concept of case management. These starting points are intended to serve as an invitation for lawyers and legal project managers to identify, discuss and define the facts with their clients.

The book is not only relevant to litigants. Every lawyer, including non-contentious lawyers, has clients and someone, somewhere, needs to be convinced of that client`s story and how the legal arguments support the client`s point of view. Think of lawyers, and you`ll often conjure up images of huge contracts and files filled to the brim with documents. Every legal issue involves documenting a description, from contracts and licenses to emails and letters. All this documentation must be stored and managed centrally and securely. This means that junior lawyers and the rest of the legal delivery team have no connection to the client and almost certainly do not understand the client`s story. (Unless the customer partner has truthfully disclosed it). I don`t think the tools or approaches used matter – agile, user-centric design or project templates that stimulate the client`s narrative – as long as at the end of the day, the advice given to the client makes sense to them and advances the story of their problem and how they have dealt with it. As you have already understood, I encourage my students to take a structured approach to defining the material. Within this structure, I give some ideas to understand the stories and stories of the customers.

Indeed, to reiterate the point already mentioned, at the end of the day, projects of all kinds are about people, whether they are people who work on the projects or people who feel the effects of completed projects (and especially those who feel the effects of poorly managed projects). It is extremely useful to pursue a structured approach to defining issues. Much of project management revolves around the structure. Well-designed structures increase the likelihood that project objectives will be achieved. Recently, efforts have been made in the area of legal services to raise awareness among the “end-user” of these services. I`m sure you`ll have noticed the reference to “emotional connection.” In some areas of law, such as crime and family, emotions are often close to the surface, but dig a little deeper and they are also present in commercial legal work. For example, it should be easy to make an emotional connection between the late completion of a much-needed new hospital and the negative impact on people`s lives. The project definition template guides students through a more detailed approach to defining questions than those summarized in the framework. Filling out detailed templates in a specific order means that students follow a proven process to get it right. Tracking expenditures against budget is a key element in all cases where outside counsel or other legal service providers are hired.

It is always important to monitor the performance of expenditures against budget, track work-in-progress and provisions, and look for issues that could negatively impact the budget and expenses. Storytelling helps lawyers recount what happened and use the facts and the law to make an emotional connection to the legal issue that convinces the decision-maker or the public to find in favor of the client. The authors begin with some definitions. A story is “what is told” and a narrative is “how history is transmitted.” The automation of legal processes is not new. In some areas of legal practice, in particular the. Unfortunately, these points are still overlooked or simply cannot be addressed in legal project teams, especially by junior staff. This is more than a shame. This can have a negative impact on team morale, customer relationships, and project success. Typically, templates are assigned to different project phases of the IILPM framework in 4 phases. Therefore, the project definition template is designed to be populated during the project definition phase. The real purpose of the client`s Q&A session is to help the client explain their story and understand the legal team. Questions are projects, so they must be managed with the same care and attention.

From scope, budgeting and resources to segregation of duties, risk monitoring and progress reporting, issues must be carefully managed like any other project to ensure delivery on time and within budget. How can we provide more meaningful legal services for clients? This may mean that junior members of the legal team are working in a technical bubble. Your work may be legally correct and persuasive, but it doesn`t advance the client`s story. The Subject Matter Definition workshop is only one part, albeit an important one, of my three-day training in legal project management. I also introduce students to agile project management, process improvement techniques, legal information technology, and team building, including ideas on how to collaborate more effectively with colleagues and clients. The elements listed at the definition stage (type of case, parties, requirements, scope, objectives, assumptions and constraints) are the starting point for initial investigations.