LawServa Matter Approvals

Matter Approvals in LawServa lets a partner accept a new file onto the firm's books before it opens. Under the anti-money laundering regime the firm, not the individual fee earner, takes on the client, so LawServa keeps a named, dated record of who accepted each file, who refused it and why. It is used by partners who decide, by fee earners who open files, and by compliance and accounts staff who need to see what is waiting.

Matter Approvals does not repeat the conflict check. The conflict search answers whether the firm may act at all. Matter Approvals answers a different question: does a partner accept this client, this work and this fee basis. Each decision names the conflict search it relied on.

Before You Start

• Open it from Files > Matters, on the Matter Approvals tab. You need permission to view the approval queue.
• Only a partner with authority to approve new files can accept or refuse one, and only for files sent up by someone they approve for.
• The person who sent a file up can never accept it themselves. A different partner has to decide.
• The firm's policy is set in Firm Management by someone who manages the firm.

Choose the Firm's Approval Policy

1. Open Firm Management.
2. Find Partner Approval for New Files.
3. Choose one of the three options below and save the firm's details.

A file opened directly as closed or on hold is a record of something that already happened, so it never waits.

What Counts as a High Risk Trigger

Under the high risk option, a file waits if any of these is true of the client:

• customer due diligence is not complete
• the client is rated high risk
• the client is a politically exposed person
• enhanced due diligence is required
• the conflict search on the file returned a match

What a Waiting File Can and Cannot Do

While a file is waiting, a Waiting for a partner banner shows on the matter with who sent it, when, and why it is held.

• You can record time and disbursements as usual, because the work often starts before sign-off.
• You cannot bill the file until a partner accepts it.

The banner and the queue both show the work in progress already on the file, so nothing sits unapproved and quietly costing.

Sending a File for Approval

When the policy requires it, a new file goes into the queue automatically the moment it is opened. You do not need to do anything else.

If a file was refused and has since been corrected:

1. Open the matter.
2. On the refusal banner, press Send Again.
3. Confirm. The file returns to the queue and stays out of billing until it is accepted.

Reviewing the Queue

1. Go to Files > Matters and open the Matter Approvals tab.
2. Choose Waiting to see files still to be decided, or Already Decided for past decisions.
3. Narrow the list with Search (matter number, description or client), Practice Area and Asked By, then press Filter.
4. Press the Open icon on a row to see the file in full.

A file waiting for more than 5 days is flagged in red, and the foot of the list states how many files are waiting and how many are older than that.

If some files are hidden from you by a confidentiality wall, the screen says how many it did not list.

Approving or Refusing a File

The file's dialog brings together everything a partner needs before deciding.

• Warning banners if no conflict search is recorded, if a name is still a potential conflict, if the conflict check was declined, or if customer due diligence is not complete. Where you can run conflict searches, Run it now takes each unsearched name straight to the search.
• Why It Is Held, Fee Basis, Work in Progress and Client Risk.
• What Has Happened on This File, the full history of requests and decisions.
• Where your firm has AI switched on, an assistant that reads the file and says what is worth a second look. It cannot recommend a decision.

To decide:

1. Open the file from the queue, or press Decide On It on the matter's banner.
2. To accept, optionally write a Note on Accepting It, then press Approve and confirm. The file opens and can be billed from then on.
3. To refuse, write the Reason for Refusing It (required), then press Refuse and confirm. The file goes on hold. Nothing is deleted.

If you cannot decide on a file, the dialog tells you why and, where possible, names who can accept it. If nobody is set up to accept it, ask a partner to put a reporting line in place.

Withdrawing a Request

Only the person who sent the file up can take the request back.

1. Open the file from the queue, or press Withdraw Request on the matter's banner.
2. Enter the Reason for Taking It Back (required).
3. Press Withdraw and confirm. The file goes on hold until it is sent up again.

Decisions and Statuses

Each decision also freezes the client's due diligence position, risk rating and the work in progress at that moment, so you can later see what the partner knew when they decided.

The File Acceptance Record

Press Acceptance Record in the file's dialog or on any row under Already Decided to download an A4 PDF. It contains:

• the file details, including who sent it and when
• The Decision: accepted, refused, withdrawn or awaiting decision, with who decided, when, the note or reason, and the position then
• Grounds for Holding the File: the firm's policy now and any high risk reason
• Conflict Search Relied On: each name on the file, its search and outcome
• Decision History, up to the first 30 steps
• signature lines for the partner and the compliance officer

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Record Time on a File That Is Waiting?

Yes. Time and disbursements can be recorded as normal. The file simply cannot be billed until a partner accepts it.

Why Can I Not Approve a File I Opened?

The person who sent the file up can never accept it. A different partner must decide, so every acceptance has a second pair of eyes.

Does Refusing a File Delete It?

No. A refused file goes on hold and everything on it is kept. It can be corrected and sent up again with Send Again.

I Switched the Policy Off but Files Are Still Waiting. Why?

Switching the policy off stops new files arriving but does not release files already in the queue. A partner still has to accept or refuse each one.

Can a Decision Be Changed?

No. Decisions cannot be edited. If the position changes, the file is sent up again and a new decision is added to its history.

Related Guides

• Matters
• Conflict Check and Screening
• Enquiries and Clients
• Time Recording
• Billing and e-Invoice
• Firm Management and Access
• Risk Radar