Figure 3-5, Clients & Cases Drop-Down Box
Client/Case Manager brings up a management window where you can add, delete, search for or select clients and cases as well as modify specific client and case information. This selection performs the same function as the Client/Case toolbar button, .
One of the most important features of ProDoc is its ability to build a case file for saving your answers.
Using this feature allows you to reuse information entered in earlier assembly sessions every time you produce documents for that case. As the case progresses, you find that you enter less and less
information in order to produce finished documents. For example, once you enter the county where the suit is filed, dates, names of the parties, addresses, etc., that information is automatically available for subsequent documents and does not have to be retyped. The answers you entered in previous assembly sessions will be automatically displayed as the proposed answer whenever appropriate to the question.
You can have an unlimited number of clients in ProDoc and each client can have an unlimited number of cases. Note: Normally, you will enter new clients and/or cases during a document assembly session as discussed in Chapter 2.
While a case file should normally be created for a single legal matter (such as Estate Planning or Divorce), you are not restricted to using only one ProDoc volume. If necessary, you can assemble documents from several volumes in a single case file.
Clicking Client/Case Manager brings up a window like the one shown in Figure 3-6. This window displays the clients you have entered, the cases, phones, correspondence addresses and custom fields for each client and case. It allows you to add, update and delete these items.
Figure 3-6, Client/Case Manager Window
The client/case list will be blank for new customers until they have added new clients and cases.
Then, as in Figure 3-6, it lists all previously entered cases and clients.
Note the flat blue button at the right of the window. You can click it to expand the window to reveal client and case details or contract it to only reveal clients and cases.
Left side of Client/Case Manager Window (visible in both basic and expanded mode)
Clients, cases and unique IDs for each will be displayed alphabetically by last name. The IDs appear only if you have chosen to use these in setup preferences.
The Now Showing: box tells you what types of contacts or clients are displayed. Click the drop down arrow to select the type to display:
All Contacts
Active Clients (default) Closed Contacts
Private Clients Non-Clients
Use the Hide/Show Cases toggle button to display or hide cases. Click or to hide or show cases for individual clients. You can drag the vertical line column separator left and right to allow more room for a particular column. You can also use the scroll bar at the bottom of the section to move the column view to the right.
To add a new client or update the information for the highlighted client, click New Client or Update Client. This brings up the Client Information Dialog window where you perform the desired action.
You can also double-click a client to update the information for that client. Right-clicking on a client brings up a pop-up menu corresponding with the New, Update and Delete options displayed. You can also click Delete Client to remove the client from the system.
When you double-click a client or click the New Client or Update Client buttons, a Client Information Dialog window similar to Figure 3-7 will appear.
Figure 3-7, Client Dialog Window
Information is displayed in three tabs: Client Information,
Correspondence and Phones and Custom Fields.
To add or edit client information, click the appropriate field or press the Tab key to move from one field to the next.
The Client Information tab of the Client Dialog Window is where basic information about the client is maintained such as shown in Figure 3-7. Most of the information in this screen is self-explanatory, such as name, address, and correspondence. Client ID's are unique letter/number combinations that identify each client (similar to how a social security number identifies a person). If you do not use this feature in your practice, you can turn it off in ProDoc under the Options menu as discussed elsewhere in this chapter. When this feature is turned off in ProDoc, the client ID field is not displayed.
NOTE: If you will use Timeslips with ProDoc, you should assign Client IDs and Case IDs. You should also ensure your Client IDs are no more than 30 characters long due to Timeslips program limitations on that program's corresponding Nickname fields.
The Close Client button will only appear when you are updating an existing client. You can use it to change your client's status. If you are updating a client with a status of closed, the button will be labeled Re-Open Client. If you click this button, the client's status will change to open.
NOTE: At the bottom of this window is a Directory field which displays the default location where your completed documents will be saved. Leave the Override Document Placement box unchecked to use the default directory you specified in the Customize
/Options/Completed Document settings. Check the box to specify a different directory for this client.
When you click the Custom Fields tab, the Custom Dialog window like the one shown in Figure 3-8 will appear. Just fill in the custom fields provided (if any were established by you in system options settings).
Figure 3-8, Client Custom Fields Tab
The same functions on the left side of the Client/Case Manager Window explored earlier for clients also apply to working with cases. Double-click a case or highlight it and click Update Case to reveal the Case Dialog Window, where you perform the desired action. Clicking New Case also reveals the window. Clicking Delete Case removes the case from the system.
When you double-click a case or click the New Case or Update Case button, a window similar to Figure 3-9 appears.
Figure 3-9, Case Dialog Window
If you use Case IDs, enter the appropriate one here. The ID must either be blank or be a unique set of characters for each case. If your firm doesn't use Case IDs, you can turn this feature off from the Main Menu.
NOTE: If you want to integrate Timeslips with ProDoc, you will need to use Case IDs. Activating Case IDs is explained in the Clients & Cases Settings section in Chapter 3.
The Close Case box will only appear when you are updating an existing case. You can use it to change the status of the case.
The Date: field will default to today's date. You can change the date by typing it in or clicking on the date selection button next to the field.
Enter a unique name or phrase in the Description: field to help identify this case. It can be any word, number or combinations. Common uses are short descriptions such as "Divorce" or "Estate Planning".
Only click the Override Document Placement and Directory box if you want to override the default setting for this particular case. You can type in the path or click the browse button. The Directory
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Browse Window will appear; use this to find the desired location.
Filename - This field will not be visible if you chose in setup to have ProDoc automatically "use the form title for filename". Use this field to enter a file name to store all files for the case. Specifying the filename here prevents manually typing it for each document assembly session.
Click the Custom Fields tab if you have set these up earlier and wish to enter appropriate information.
A window similar to Figure 3-10 will appear.
Figure 3-10, Enter Case Custom Fields Window
In this example, Case Custom Fields were set up which included Judge, Court Clerk, and Opposing Counsel.
Type in the information as needed, then click the OK button to return to the Select a Case window.
Click the Select Case button on that window to use the new client and case for document assembly.
Right side of Client/Case Manager Window
You can view detailed client correspondence, telephone, and custom field information on the right side of the Client/Case Manager window, depicted in Figure 3-11. While working on this window, if the right side is not already displayed, click the arrow button on the right border of the window.
Figure 3-11, Client/Case Manager Window, Right Side
The Client Information tab displays salutation, mailing address and phone information.
Click the Send to... button to reveal a pick list of actions involving this information.
Choosing Paste functions opens your word processor and pastes the information. Clipboard functions copy information to the Windows clipboard for later pasting.
You can double-click any phone entries to edit the phone type and number. To edit any other information, click the Update Client or Update Case buttons on the left side.
Click the Client Custom Fields and Case Custom Fields tabs to display information already entered in the custom fields designated during setup or in a later options setting. If you want to change any
information, you must click the Update Client or Update Case buttons on the left side of the window.
Figure 3-12, Clients & Cases Drop-Down Box
Document Manager brings up a list of the documents, organized by client and case, which you've already assembled, and any additional files that you have selected for file management within ProDoc.
This selection performs the same function as the Document toolbar button, . You can also work with any documents in your computer and/or network that you can locate with Windows Explorer.
Selecting this menu item or button brings up a window similar to Figure 3-13.
Figure 3-13, Clients & Cases Document Manager Window
This window is resizable to let you see more information. You can click and drag any vertical line
separating columns to allow more or less room for each column. Where scroll bars are displayed, you can also scroll up or down through the lists or scroll the view from left to right.