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4 minute read

News You Can Use – June 2023

Ab Saraswat

Ab Saraswat

lupl newsletter
In this article

    Legal technology is revolutionizing the way lawyers work at a rapid pace. In an industry plagued with slow tech adoption, lawyers now have access to powerful software solutions that streamline and automate many aspects of their work. For those who attended CLOC, it will come as no surprise to you that much of the conversation was around leveraging AI and LLMs and which roles inside a firm or legal department will be on the chopping block next.

    Many are guessing the biggest changes will come in the world of managed review, as advents in AI around review can dramatically reduce the need for large cohorts of contract reviewers. Some suggest that CLM tools may become a thing of the past. Others say that paralegals and support staff will be transformed into prompt engineers. Conjecture aside, one thing is certain: if your legal tech stack does not include a platform leveraging LLMs, it likely will very soon.

    Legal technology is reshaping our profession by enabling lawyers and legal professionals to work smarter, faster, and more effectively, ultimately improving client service and outcomes. And clients expect their lawyers to be utilizing the latest tech available. Why? Because they already do.

    Read on for links to the research reference above and more, and learn how Lupl is being leveraged to elevate the client experience 👇🏼.

    What's New in Lupl

    Lupl's new features allow lawyers to supercharge their workflows.

    Our team has been hard at work to improve your experience with Lupl, and make getting work done frictionless. Here are the highlights of what we shipped recently.

    • 🔔 Notification Center upgrade. Stay connected with real-time updates for all notifications, eliminating the need to refresh the feed manually. Effortlessly filter and delve into the notifications that are significant to you, whether based on the subject matter or notification type.
    • ✅ Tasks redesign. Lupl tasks keep getting better and better! Not only can you quickly add multiple tasks inline within the matter, assign them to team members, and attach documents. Now you can assign priorities to tasks as well!
    • 🔗 iManage integration, expanded. Firms using iManage can now rename folders and documents in Lupl. For users using the iManage integration in Lupl, we've eliminated the need to rename those documents and folders inside your DMS - do it all from your Lupl matter and it will effortlessly sync with iManage!
    • 🔍 Lupl Drive search improvements. Firms using Lupl Drive (our native storage) can now search the contents of a document from Lupl's Global Search feature. Looking for that one clause in a document across all of your matters? We've got you covered!

    Speak to your Customer Success Manager or book a demo with the Sales team to learn more and see the improvements for yourself.

    How customers (you) are using Lupl

    Successful practitioners harness Lupl to elevate their practice, boosting efficiency, client satisfaction, and profitability for their law firms. Our Success team has compiled a list of 80+ use cases across almost all practices. We highlight a different use case each month.

    ESG Compliance program management

    Lupl can be used to develop and audit ESG compliance programs to ensure regulatory compliance, risk management, and reputation protection for clients.

    This reduces risk, improves compliance management, improves efficiency & profitability, elevates the client experience, and positions the firm to win more work.

    How it works

    • Employ Lupl Matter Templates to standardize ESG compliance program development and auditing processes, accounting for regulatory requirements, firm best practices, and client preferences.
    • Establish a secure workspace for managing the ESG compliance program development and auditing process from start to finish.
    • Assign tasks and responsibilities to team members, and monitor progress in real-time using Lupl's task management features.
    • Set automated reminders for important dates, deadlines, and events, such as reporting and internal review deadlines.
    • Collaborate with clients and other parties in a central, secure workspace.
    • Save the matter history automatically to the firm's Document Management System (DMS) for compliance and record-keeping purposes upon completion.

    Have a use case you want to share? We would love to hear it. Check out our new Use Case Library for some inspiration!

    Start exploring the Lupl Use Case Library

    IRL / URL

    A collection of interesting finds across the web (URL) and a chance to meet with the Lupl team in real life (IRL).

    • LexisNexis unveils new Lexis+ AI. Our take - Lexis+ AI uses LLMs (GPT-4 included) to explore legal research, create summaries of legal issues and generate drafts of various documents. The tool is available only to a select group of AM 50 law firms; legal professionals can sign up through LexisNexis' "AI Insider Program." Lexis AI aims to provide more accurate and comprehensive legal research and analysis, with features such as natural language processing, semantic search, and entity recognition. The tool is part of a growing trend in the legal industry towards using AI to improve efficiency and accuracy in legal work.
    • In-house teams expect law firms to use legal analytics. Our take - A new survey conducted by Lex Machina shows that in-house teams increasingly expect law firms to use legal analytics tools - because they do. In-house teams are using legal analytics tools to gain insights into case outcomes, understand judge behavior, and identify potential risks and opportunities. They expect the law firms they work with to be able to provide metrics, such as their litigation win-loss record or how quickly they resolve cases (efficiency scoring). An industry slow to accept tech or change is now recognizing the benefits of building their firm's business and law practices with legal analytics.
    • Roundup Of Legal Tech News from CLOC Institute. Our take - as to be expected, the main focus of CLOC this year in Las Vegas was AI. Many legal service providers unveiled integrations to their platforms with LLMs like ChatGPT or announced new partnerships within the industry. From eDiscovery to contract drafting, the legal tech industry is getting a (text-to-image) makeover that revolves around emerging tech, platform fatigue, and client demand.
    • How to talk about A.I. like an insider. Our take - this month, all we can talk about is emerging AI tech in the legal space. We thought we would share this short article offering a comprehensive glossary of AI terms. It covers various terms and explanations related to AI, including key terminology such as machine learning, deep learning, neural networks, natural language processing, and computer vision. The glossary also includes terms related to AI applications, ethical considerations, and common misconceptions. If you want to familiarize yourself with AI terminology, look no further!

    Upcoming Events

    Why You Should Use Lupl For Legal Project Management

    In our very first ILTA Product Briefing, India Preston, our Director of Platform Solutions, will demonstrate why Lupl is the go-to LPM solution for lawyers and legal professionals.

    💻 Online | July 19, 2023 | 12-1 PM EST

     

    The Next Frontier of Lawyering: From ESG to GPT

    Lupl is a proud partner of the Singapore Law Academy. Hear from subject matter experts about the state of legal today in Asia, the art of law firm management, and more. For participants who qualify, this is a SILE Accredited CPD Activity.

    🇸🇬 Singapore | August 3-4, 2023

     

    ILTACON 2023

    Lupl is thrilled to be exhibiting at ILTACON again this year at the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, FL. Stop by Booth 200 (just to the left of the Pacific Hall entrance) and get a sneak peek at our latest features before they're rolled out to the public!

    🇺🇸 Orlando | August 20-24, 2023

    In this article

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      # Lupl Workstream Design Principles: A Practical Guide to Legal Project Management for Lawyers Legal project management works when your setup is simple, ownership is clear, and statuses are unambiguous. This guide shows how to turn existing processes and checklists into a lean, reliable Workstream. Lupl is the legal project management platform for law firms, making it easy and intuitive to apply these principles. It also supports moving your work from Excel, Word tables, or if you are transitioning from Microsoft Planner, Smartsheet, or Monday. You will learn what belongs in a Workstream, a Task, or a Step, and which columns to use. If you want practical project management for lawyers, start here. **Excerpt:** Legal project management works when ownership, dates, and statuses are clear. This guide shows lawyers how to turn checklists into Lupl Workstreams with the right columns, Tasks, and Steps. Use it to standardize project management for lawyers, reduce follow ups, and move matters to done. --- ## How to organize your work with Workstreams, Tasks, and Steps Workstreams, Tasks, and Steps are three different types of objects in Lupl. They form a simple hierarchy. Workstreams contain Tasks. Tasks may contain optional Steps. This hierarchy aligns with standard project management. In project management, you break work into projects, deliverables, and subtasks. Lupl adapts this for lawyers by using Workstreams, Tasks, and Steps. This makes it easier to map legal processes to a structure that teams can track and manage. * **Workstream.** Use when you have many similar or related items to track over time. Think of the Workstream as the table. * Examples: closing checklist, court deadlines, pretrial preparation, regulatory obligations, due diligence, local counsel management. * **Task.** A high level unit of legal work. A key deliverable with an owner and a due date. Tasks are the rows. * Examples: File motion. Prepare Shareholder Agreement. Submit Q3 report. * **Step.** An optional short checklist inside a single Task. Steps roll up to the parent Task. * Examples: Draft. QC. Partner review. E file. Serve. ### Quick test * If it can be overdue by itself, make it a Task. * If it only helps complete a Task, make it a Step. * If you need different columns or owners, create a separate Workstream. --- ## Do you need to track everything in Lupl Not every detail needs to be tracked in a project management system. The principle is to capture what drives accountability and progress. In Lupl, that means focusing on deliverables, not every micro action. * Use the level of detail you would bring to a weekly team meeting agenda. * Position Tasks as key deliverables. Treat Steps as optional micro tasks to show progress. * Example: You need client instructions. Do not add a Task for "Email client to request a call." Just make the call. If the client approves a key deliverable on the call, mark that item Approved in Lupl so the team has visibility. --- ## Start with the Core 5 columns Columns are the backbone of a Workstream. They define what information is tracked for each Task. In project management terms, these are your core metadata fields. They keep everyone aligned without overcomplicating the table. Keep the table narrow. You can add later. These five work across most legal project management use cases. 1. **Title.** Start with a verb. Example: File answer to complaint. 2. **Status.** Five to seven clear choices. Example: Not started, In progress, For review, For approval, Done. 3. **Assignee.** One named owner per row. If you add multiple assignees for collaboration, still name a primary owner. 4. **Due date.** One date per row. 5. **Type or Category.** Show different kinds of work in one table. Example: Filing, Discovery, Signature, Approval. **Priority.** Add only if you actively triage by priority each week. If added, keep it simple: High, Medium, Low. --- ## Add up to three Helper columns Lupl includes a set of pre made columns you can use out of the box. These allow you to customize Workstreams around different phases or stages of a matter. They also let you map how you already track transactional work, litigation, or other processes. Helper columns are optional fields that add context. In task management, these are similar to tags or attributes you use to sort and filter work. The key is to only add what you will update and use. Pick only what you will use. Stop when you reach three. * Party or Counterparty * Jurisdiction or Court * Phase * Approver * Approval, status or yes or no * Signature status * Risk, RAG * Amount or Number * External ID or Client ID * Document or Link * Docket number * Client entity **Guidance** * For Task Workstreams, prefer Approver, Approval, Risk. The rest are more common in Custom Workstreams. * Aim for eight columns or fewer in your main table. Put detail in the Task description, attachments, or Steps. --- ## Simple rules that keep your table clean Consistency is critical in project management. A cluttered or inconsistent table slows teams down. These rules ensure your Workstream remains usable and clear. * Only add a column people will update during the matter. If it never changes, set a default at the Workstream level or set a default value in the column. * Only add a column you will sort or filter on. If you will not use it to find or group work, leave it out. * If a value changes inside one Task, use Steps. Steps show progress without widening the table. * Keep columns short and structured. Use Description for brief context or instructions. Use Task comments for discussion and decisions. Link to work product in your DMS as the source of truth. * One accountable owner per Task and one due date. You can add collaborators, but always name a primary owner who moves the Task. If different people or dates apply to different parts, split into separate Tasks or capture the handoff as Steps. * Add automations after you lock the design. Finalize columns and status definitions first. Then add simple reminders and escalations that read those fields. --- ## Status hygiene that everyone understands Status is the single most important column in project management. It tells the team where the work stands. Too many options cause confusion. Too few cause misalignment. In Lupl, keep it simple and consistent. * Five to seven statuses are enough. * Use one review gate, For review or For approval. Use both only if your process needs two gates. * One terminal status, Done. This is the end state of the Task. Use Archived only if you report on it or need it for retention workflows. --- ## When to split into multiple Workstreams In project management, it is best practice to separate workstreams when workflows, owners, or audiences diverge. Lupl makes this easy by letting you create multiple Workstreams for one matter. Create a new Workstream if any of the following are true. * You need a different set of columns for a chunk of work. * Ownership or cadence is different, for example daily docketing vs monthly reporting. * The audience or confidentiality needs are different. **Signal** * If half your rows leave several columns blank, you are mixing processes. Split the table. --- ## Decision tree, three quick questions Use this quick framework to decide where an item belongs. This is the same principle used in task management software, adapted for legal workflows. 1. Is this a list of similar items over time, or a discrete phase of the matter * Yes. Create a Workstream. 2. Can it be overdue by itself, and does it need an owner * Yes. Create a Task. 3. Is it a step to finish a Task and not tracked on its own * Yes. Create a Step. --- ## Common mistakes to avoid Many project management failures come from overdesigning or misusing the structure. Avoid these mistakes to keep your Workstreams lean and effective. * Wide tables with many optional columns. Keep it to eight or fewer. * Two columns for the same idea, for example Status and Phase that overlap. Merge or define clearly. * More than one approval gate when one would do. It slows work and confuses owners. * Mixing unrelated processes in one table, for example signatures and invoice approvals. --- ## Build your first Workstream Building a Workstream is like setting up a project board. Keep it light, pilot it, then refine. Lupl is designed to let you do this quickly without heavy admin work. 1. Write the Workstream purpose in one sentence. 2. Add the Core 5 columns. 3. Add at most three Helpers you will use. 4. Define clear Status meanings in plain words. 5. Set defaults for any value that repeats on most rows, for example Jurisdiction. 6. Add two light automations, a due soon reminder and an overdue nudge. 7. Pilot for one week and adjust. --- ## Where this fits in legal project management Use these principles to standardize project management for lawyers across matters. Keep structures consistent. Reuse column sets and status definitions. Your team will find work faster, reduce follow ups, and close loops on time. --- ### On page SEO helpers * Suggested title tag. Lupl Workstream Design Principles, Practical Legal Project Management for Lawyers * Suggested meta description. Learn how to design lean Lupl Workstreams for legal project management. Get clear rules for Tasks, Steps, statuses, and columns to run matters with confidence. * Suggested URL slug. legal-project-management-for-lawyers-workstream-design

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