Legal Workflow Defined (Examples, Benefits & Tools You Need)

What Is a Legal Workflow?

A legal workflow is the defined sequence of steps that outlines how a legal task or matter gets handled from start to finish. Essentially, it:

• Sets the order of actions
• Assigns responsibility
• Creates a consistent way of working

Now, let’s put that into everyday terms. Well-established workflows take the guesswork out of legal practice by giving law firms a clear path to follow.

In practical terms, it acts as a roadmap for routine tasks like client intake, contract review, or legal billing. With a workflow in place, work moves forward without stalling, deadlines don’t sneak up on you, and clients enjoy a smoother experience. 

Examples of Common Workflows in Law Firms and Legal Departments

Workflows play a big role in both law firms and corporate legal departments. While every practice area has its own details, a few workflows show up almost everywhere.

Let’s take a look at a few examples:

Client Intake and Onboarding

Client intake and onboarding are often the very first steps in a law firm workflow, and you know how important first impressions are.

When someone reaches out for help, they want quick answers and clear guidance. A well-structured intake process gives your team the information it needs while showing clients they’re in good hands.

Here’s how a typical intake workflow might look:

1. Collect client details through a simple client intake form.
2. Run a conflict check to rule out overlaps.
3. Draft and send the engagement letter.
4. Get signatures and return documents.
5. Assign the matter to the right attorney or team.
6. Store all information securely in your system.

The old way often meant chasing paperwork or juggling email threads. With legal practice management software, those repetitive tasks can be automated as forms, conflict checks, and document storage all happen in one place.

That means less back-and-forth, smoother client communication, and improved client satisfaction from the very beginning.

Case Management

Once a client is onboarded, the real work begins, and this is where case management comes into play.

For many legal professionals, it’s the backbone of daily legal operations. From tracking deadlines to organizing documents, case management brings structure to the chaos that often surrounds complex matters in the legal industry.

Without clear steps, cases can quickly become messy. Missed deadlines, scheduling conflicts, or misplaced files slow things down, and they can harm client relationships.

That’s why many firms now rely on legal workflow tools that handle task management, reminders, and document storage in one place. A typical case management workflow may include:

1. Opening the case and creating a matter file.
2. Assigning tasks to the right team members.
3. Setting key dates for filings, hearings, and meetings.
4. Uploading and organizing related documents.
5. Tracking progress and updating case notes.
6. Closing the file once the matter is resolved.

This workflow reduces manual administrative tasks and gives everyone a clear view of what’s happening.

Contract Drafting and Review

Within the legal profession, few tasks demand as much focus as contracts. Legal drafting, editing, and reviewing them is part of daily legal work, but it often turns into a pile of manual tasks that drain time.

Luckily, a clear workflow brings structure to the process and helps cut down the clutter. A typical contract workflow might look like this:

1. Begin document creation based on client needs.
2. Speed up document preparation with templates or document automation tools.
3. Review the draft in-house and mark points for revision.
4. Share with the client or counterparty for feedback.
5. Revise, finalize, and sign.
6. Store the signed version in your document management system.

Without a system, small mistakes slip through, edits get lost, and the back-and-forth drags on. A workflow reduces those administrative burdens, which can make the process more predictable and organized.

Discovery and Document Management

Legal discovery is one of the most time-consuming parts of litigation. Sorting through piles of legal documents, checking for relevance, and preparing files for production can overwhelm even the most organized team.

With that in mind, it’s often a stage where missed deadlines or overlooked details can have serious consequences.

A discovery and document management workflow usually involves:

1. Identifying the documents needed for the case.
2. Collecting and indexing files from different sources.
3. Reviewing for relevance and privilege.
4. Redacting sensitive information.
5. Producing the final set of documents for opposing counsel.
6. Storing everything securely for future reference.

Manual approaches often stretch this process out longer than necessary. But by using legal workflow automation tools, firms bring process automation into play for sorting, tagging, and even initial review. That cuts down on repetitive effort and reduces errors.

Tools like Briefpoint are designed to speed up discovery drafting and document handling. They take repetitive review tasks off your plate, so your team has more room to focus on strategy and the arguments that genuinely shape the outcome. 

See how it works today!

Billing and Invoicing

Billing connects the legal and financial sides of a practice. Clear steps keep records accurate, make invoices easier to follow, and support steady revenue.

When billing is treated as a defined workflow, the process becomes more predictable for both the firm and the client.

A good billing workflow often includes:

1. Recording time and law firm expenses as matters progress
2. Reviewing entries for accuracy
3. Preparing invoices in a clear format
4. Sending invoices on schedule
5. Monitoring balances and payment status
6. Closing the cycle with updated financial records

Strong billing processes reduce extra non-billable tasks and help ensure timely payments. For firms, this means fewer delays in cash flow. For clients, it means transparency in the legal services they’re paying for.

In the bigger picture, billing software and workflows strengthen everyday business processes and make financial management part of the overall practice.

Why Should You Optimize Your Legal Workflows?

Workflows exist in every legal team, but not all of them are designed well. Some grow out of habit, others are patched together over time, and many depend too much on memory.

But when workflows are optimized, they do more than keep things organized. They deliver real benefits that support both your staff and your clients, such as:

Save Hours on Everyday Tasks

Legal teams often spend too much time on repeat work that doesn’t really need a lawyer’s attention. With workflow automation in place, those small but constant chores can shift to automated systems that run in the background.

You can automate almost anything these days, from simple reminders to complex case tasks. Common examples include:

• Automated task assignments based on case type or workload
• Scheduling reminders for filings and client meetings
• Document generation through automated workflows
• Status updates sent directly to clients or staff

Every hour saved on these routine steps is an hour you can use for strategy, client advice, or business development.

Cut Down on Costly Mistakes

Even the most careful teams see errors slip in from time to time. A missed filing date, a typo in client details, or an overlooked clause can slow progress and shake client confidence. These problems often come from human error, especially when repetitive tasks are handled manually.

Take contract drafting as an example. Copying names, dates, and terms from one document to another increases the chance of mistakes.

Legal document automation avoids that risk by pulling the correct client information directly into templates. The details end up in the right place, formatted consistently, every time.

With fewer errors to correct, work moves faster and communication with clients feels more reliable. Optimized workflows reduce the stress of constant double-checking and let you put more energy into the parts of practice that require judgment and expertise.

Keep Work Consistent Across Cases

When cases follow different rules depending on who’s handling them, it slows everything down. One person uses a different template, another skips a step, and before long, no one’s sure where things stand.

Setting up clear workflows solves this. You can build repeatable steps for time-consuming tasks using legal tools your team already works with.

Plus, there’s no need to start from scratch. You can leverage workflow automation inside your existing systems to keep things moving the same way every time.

It helps keep everyone on the same page, no matter who’s assigned to the matter. That kind of consistency doesn’t just improve internal communication; it gives clients a smoother, more reliable experience, too.

Give Clients a Smoother Experience

When it’s unclear who’s doing what, work tends to stall. Tasks get passed around, approvals go missing, and you end up chasing people for answers. A good workflow clears that up from the start.

With the right legal technology, roles can be assigned automatically so no one’s left guessing. It’s easier to follow the entire process when tasks, reviews, and approval processes are already mapped out.

That also helps reduce administrative burdens, especially for folks who usually spend too much time tracking things down.

You can set things up so that:

• Intake reviews go straight to the assigned paralegal
• Contracts land with the right attorney for review
• Notifications reach partners when their sign-off is needed
• Tasks bounce back if something’s missing

When roles are baked into the workflow, the back-and-forth disappears. Everyone knows what’s theirs to handle, and the work keeps moving without constant follow-up.

The Role of Legal Workflow Automation Software

Workflows are only useful if your team can follow them without friction. That’s why legal workflow software plays such an important role. It turns planning into action and, at the very least, keeps things organized, repeatable, and easy to track.

Legal teams don’t have to rely on memory or manual checklists with the right tools. Tasks move from one person to the next automatically. Documents stay connected to matters. Updates reach the right people on time.

Since many platforms include integration capabilities, you can connect your workflows to your calendar, email, or case management system.

Here’s what that can look like in practice:

• Use templates to automate document drafting
• Set up auto-reminders for deadlines and meetings
• Allow teams and clients to access documents securely
• Pull matter data into your legal research process
• Shift more time toward strategic tasks

Briefpoint, for example, helps legal teams automate discovery and draft documents faster. Tools like this reduce the daily clutter so teams can stay focused and consistent across every case.

Upgrade Your Legal Document Workflow With Briefpoint

Every firm has workflows, even if they’re not written down. Maybe it’s how new matters get assigned, how contracts get reviewed, or how documents move through the team.

The problem is, when those steps live in people’s heads (or random spreadsheets), things can get out of hand really quickly.

So ask yourself:

Are you repeating the same manual tasks every day?

Are things falling through the cracks because no one’s sure who’s handling what?

Is your team stuck in reactive mode when they could be focused on real legal work?

You don’t need a full system overhaul to fix this. Cleaning up your workflows can be simple, especially with tools built to handle the heavy lifting.

Briefpoint automatically generates first drafts of discovery documents in minutes based on your case file, not templates. It cuts out manual formatting, removes the repetitive work from discovery, and connects with the tools your team already uses.

Want to see it in action? Book a demo with Briefpoint and find out how smoother your day could run.