Automations
Automations do the routine work for you. Each one watches for something to happen — a field changing, a step changing, a matter being created, a date approaching, a document arriving — and then performs actions such as calculating a deadline, sending a reminder email, creating a task or generating an invoice. Built well, they keep matters moving without anyone having to remember the next step.
The automations list
Each row is one automation. The columns show its Name, the When (its trigger, as a coloured badge), a count of its Actions, and a count of its Conditions. Numbering names like "10 – Initial Setup" keeps the list in a sensible order. An amber warning triangle flags an automation that is missing a required piece of configuration. Click a row to edit it, use the trash icon to delete it, or + Add Automation to create one.
Anatomy of an automation
Every automation has the same three-part shape:
- Trigger (When) — the single event or timing that starts it.
- Conditions (Only if) — optional tests that must pass for it to proceed.
- Actions (Do) — one or more things it performs when it runs.
Triggers
Pick one trigger from the grouped list. The main options are:
- Matter events — Matter created, Matter closed, Matter opened, Step changed, Field value changed, or Progress stalls.
- Communication — Email received, or an action link being clicked.
- Documents — Document uploaded.
- Time-based — Relative to a date field, a task due date or a deadline; or a recurring interval. These let you act a set time before or after a date, such as seven days before a filing deadline.
- Financial — Invoice paid.
- Manual — the automation only ever runs when someone starts it by hand.
Once you choose a trigger, its specific settings appear — which field to watch, the timing, the deadline mode, an upload pattern, and so on.
For a Field value changed trigger you pick which field to watch and the timing. Turning on Allow manual trigger also puts a run button on the matter screen, so a fee-earner can fire the automation on demand — useful for setup routines and one-off recalculations.
Conditions
Conditions are optional gates. If present, they are checked when the trigger fires and the actions run only if they pass. You can test a field (equals, contains, does not contain, greater than, less than) or the matter's current step (is / is not).
Add several conditions and combine them with the ALL / ANY toggle: ALL requires every condition to pass (AND), while ANY requires just one (OR). For example: run only if the current step is not Filed and the "Official fees paid?" field does not contain "Yes".
Actions
Add one or more actions from the grouped menu. Each expands into its own configuration card:
- Communication — Send email, Send SMS, or show an email popup for review before sending.
- Documents — Generate a document from a template, or create folders.
- Workflow — Change step, input a field value, update a date, or assign a user to a role.
- Tasks — Create a task or complete a task.
- Financial — Generate an invoice.
The Update date action shows how a calculated deadline is built: choose the target date field to set, an offset, interval and direction (for example, 18 months after), and a reference date field to count from. Turn on Only update if not set to skip fields that already have a value, so a manual entry is never overwritten.
Requiring approval before an action runs
Any action can carry a Require approval switch. When it is on, the action is queued for a person to review instead of executing straight away — the automation prepares the result (a drafted email, a calculated date) and holds it until someone approves it. This is ideal for anything client-facing or high-stakes. Queued items appear in the Approvals area.
Important