Stop 1 of 8 · Daily
Intake and the confidentiality line
Turn a new caller's note into an intake summary and a conflicts list for Dev, without a client name ever reaching the chat.
The call that starts a matter
Elena takes her own intake calls. A bakery owner rings about a renewal, a founder rings about a services agreement she already signed, a manager rings about a termination that happened yesterday. Elena writes half a page while they talk, and then owes herself three things before the day ends: a summary she can act on, a conflicts list Dev can run through Clio, and a decision about whether she is taking the matter at all.
Nothing in this course is legal advice, and nothing here changes your obligations under your state bar's rules.
The line you draw before you type
The rule is simple enough to apply while you are still on the phone. Facts go in. Identities stay out.
| Goes into the chat | Stays in Clio |
|---|---|
| The deal, the dates, the clause, the dispute | Client and entity names, addresses, account numbers |
| Roles: tenant, landlord, employer, buyer | Individual names of employees and non-parties |
| Initials plus a matter number, MF-2411 | The key that maps initials to people |
Two things follow from that. Redaction happens at intake, not at the moment you upload a document, because by then you are pasting under time pressure. And a practice that puts client matter facts into Claude at all belongs on a Team or Enterprise plan, not a personal Free or Pro one; see claude.com/pricing, and Dasow can set the firm plan up if you would rather not do it yourself.
Try this
Below is my note from an intake call. Give me back four things. One: a five line matter summary. Two: the legal issues you can see, one line each, with the ones that have a clock on them first. Three: the facts I did not get and should have asked for. Four: a suggested matter type from this list: lease, business contract, employment. Use only the initials in my note, invent no names, and state no conclusion about who is right. [paste the redacted call note]
From this matter summary, write the conflicts search list Dev runs in Clio. Every party and role that appears, plus for each one the affiliates, trade names, former names, parent and subsidiary entities and individual signatories I should also search for, and why each is worth searching. Mark anything that would only show up if we searched a person rather than a company. Do not tell me whether there is a conflict; you cannot see my client list. [paste the matter summary]
Draft a non-engagement letter for a matter I am turning down. Four sentences. Say that I am not taking the matter, that no attorney client relationship has been formed, that I am giving no view on the merits, and that they should consult other counsel promptly because deadlines may apply. Neutral, warm, no fee discussion. Leave brackets where a date or a jurisdiction specific line belongs.