The operating problem
Start with a lawyer preparing a client fee estimate. A successful handoff produces an approved estimate with assumptions and scope limits. Define the accountable owner before connecting systems. The workflow cannot set legal fees or promise a matter outcome. A source event is a request to evaluate the current state; it is not permission to make an irreversible change.
Use your own working copy
The free workbook for this process opens in a browser and works offline after download. It includes editable checks and notes, a text export, and a print view. It is a planning resource: it does not send messages, read account data, or run actions in business systems. No vendor account is needed to use the workbook.
Map the process
1. Capture the scoped request
Record matter category, proposed service, client reference, and responsible lawyer.
2. Gather approved assumptions
Use reviewed phase, staffing, and uncertainty inputs; mark missing facts explicitly.
3. Calculate a draft scenario
Apply deterministic arithmetic to the lawyer-supplied assumptions without inventing hours or rates.
4. Review terms and wording
A lawyer confirms fee basis, exclusions, uncertainty, and required disclosures.
5. Release and version
Send the approved estimate securely and preserve the version tied to any client response.
Information to check
These reference fields describe the process. Use invented values while planning. Keep real records in an appropriate private system; the public website does not need them.
| Reference field | Working record | Check before progressing |
|---|---|---|
| estimate_id | estimate_id | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
| scope_version | scope_version | Bind approval to this exact source version; changes require review. |
| assumption_set | assumption_set | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
| approval_ref | approval_ref | Use the authorized owner or reviewed decision; unknown values stop the handoff. |
Acceptance checks
- Missing assumptions cannot become a precise quote.
- A scope change invalidates the old estimate draft.
- A repeated source event creates only one current review task.
- A changed source version invalidates an earlier approval.
Walk through a successful example, a duplicate, a missing item, an incorrect match, and an interrupted handoff with synthetic records. Record the expected result, observed result, owner, and recovery action. Checklists record your work; checking a box does not establish that an external action happened.
Ownership and review
Name the person responsible for the process and the person who can resolve an exception. Define which decisions require qualified professional review. Use stable references, limit access to private records, and document when work must stop. Educational material does not establish legal, accounting, tax, security, or regulatory compliance.
Run a measured pilot
Choose a small, reversible sample. Measure handling time, waiting time, review, rework, and errors before changing the process. Include the effort of maintaining the new method. Expand only when the observed result meets your acceptance criteria; a longer checklist is not proof of improved performance.
Use the free workflow planner to define your next step, or compare the assumptions in the opportunity calculator.