The Work Intake System<\/strong><\/p>\nCounselLink+ is organized into matters, and each matter provides a comprehensive overview of every item to track \u2014 these include law firm relationships, eBilling, documents, and contracts.<\/p>\n
Matters can be generated manually or imported from other systems, and they can automatically include data and documents through API functionality. The system is also highly configurable, allowing each enterprise to customize the KPIs it\u2019s following.<\/p>\n
Once a matter is created, it takes you to a matter portal that allows you to view all of its related documents and metrics. Tabs contain exhaustive detail on everything from budget in reserve to internal stakeholders.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_02\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_02.jpeg?resize=1080%2C573&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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Matters can also be created with the CounselLink+ feature called \u201cWork Intake.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Work Intake system allows the legal department to share a customizable form, most likely on the company\u2019s intranet, that will allow anyone in the organization to ask a question or make a request.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a process that eliminates the need to chase down requests in the form of voicemails, emails, and other contacts, instead bringing them all into one standardized system.<\/p>\n
The routing of the form is also customizable \u2014 employment-related requests can go to an employment lawyer, while questions about a vendor can go to the legal operations team, for example.<\/p>\n
Requests may simply be questions that are asked and answered, or they may be promoted to matters.<\/p>\n
But whatever the outcome, the CounselLink system will track all of the work the legal department is performing.<\/p>\n
While just about any system will tell you high-level metrics like number of cases handled, this system excels in tracking all of the work a legal team is performing.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_07\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_07.jpeg?resize=1080%2C574&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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CounselLink+ will track all of the questions that come into a law department \u2014 the volume, the number of questions that are converted into matters, the practice area of each inquiry, and more.<\/p>\n
In addition to demonstrating value, this data also gives the law department the opportunity to refine its processes and maximize efficiency.<\/p>\n
Work Management<\/strong><\/p>\nOnce the work intake is completed and a matter is created, CounselLink+ will integrate its varied aspects into one easy to use workspace.<\/p>\n
One work management section allows you to store documents and contracts in one location.<\/p>\n
They can be imported directly from email, or added through an upload form. The system also integrates with document management software like iManage, and has check-in\/check-out and version tracker capabilities.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_03\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_03.jpeg?resize=1080%2C567&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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CounselLink+ users can control access to each document, sharing only certain ones with an outside law firm, for example.<\/p>\n
The matter file also tracks workflow with an intuitive calendaring and task-management system.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_06\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_06.jpeg?resize=1080%2C561&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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This allows seamless collaboration with other internal users and external users. It particularly allows law departments to collaborate with outside counsel within the same portal.<\/p>\n
Outlook Add-In<\/strong><\/p>\nAt a large legal department, legal operations professionals will spend most of their time in the dashboards, digging into every available metric to seek greater efficiency.<\/p>\n
Lawyers, however, are often working in applications like Outlook, while only occasionally utilizing the full system.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why CounselLink+ has a feature that will meet lawyers where they are.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_04\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_04.jpeg?resize=1080%2C606&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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Any matter created in CounselLink+ will create a mini-homepage that can be accessed in Outlook.<\/p>\n
The homepage contains all of the matter information relevant to a lawyer assigned to work on it, and it allows lawyers to easily scroll between matters and find all documents, invoices, and other data a matter includes.<\/p>\n
An \u201cAdd Journal Entry\u201d field is particularly popular among CounselLink\u2019s lawyer end-users.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_05\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_05.jpeg?resize=1080%2C613&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
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The panel (seen at the right above) allows lawyers to include things like status updates, meeting notes, or documents that will be attached to a matter, as well as to tag other users to bring it to their attention.<\/p>\n
The entry will be reflected in the main CounselLink+ system, but the end-user lawyer only needs to create it in Outlook.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a process that reflects seamless user adoption for any lawyer currently using Outlook.<\/p>\n
AI-Powered Bill Review<\/strong><\/p>\nWhether your law firms bill hourly or through AFAs, CounselLink+ can transform the widely dreaded task of bill review.<\/p>\n
To populate the system, law firms can submit invoices directly through CounselLink+ at no cost.<\/p>\n
Once an invoice is in the system, a proprietary Smart Review functionality will examine all of the charges.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_08\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_08.jpeg?resize=1080%2C567&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n
The system will immediately validate the invoice and reject items like hours billed by unknown timekeepers. CounselLink+ will then review all of the items in an invoice, and call out certain ones for additional scrutiny.<\/p>\n
It flags these items with a review that goes far beyond just UTBMS codes \u2014 leveraging AI to scrutinize every part of the charge, like the date, the level of timekeeper, the charge text, the units, and the rate.<\/p>\n
In the example above, the system identified a line item coded for trial and hearing attendance where its description indicated it was billing for setting up a meeting.<\/p>\n
Every CounselLink+ client can customize the rules Smart Review uses in its bill review. They can also be customized for different types of matters \u2014 different rules for IP invoices versus those for litigation, for example.<\/p>\n
CounselLink+ also has a Combined Invoice Review functionality that allows it to review multiple invoices at once.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_09\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_09.jpeg?resize=1080%2C561&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n
This feature allows law departments with a high volume of invoices to review them all simultaneously, as opposed to opening and closing each one.<\/p>\n
It can also provide in-depth spend analysis on a particular matter \u2014 quickly seeing how much of a particular matter was handled by partners versus associates, for example.<\/p>\n
To manage your roster of law firms, CounselLink+ will also provide a 360 degree view of your law firm relationships.<\/p>\n
![\"Lexis_10\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_10.jpeg?resize=1080%2C569&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n
Law firms have a weighted score \u2014 customizable by the in-house law department. The system also maintains a law firm diversity survey and can track timekeeper diversity.<\/p>\n
Each corporate client can leave Yelp-style reviews of their law firms as well, to be maintained in the internal system. The internal star rating can be incorporated into the law firm score as well.<\/p>\n
See for Yourself<\/strong><\/p>\nAn article like this can only scratch the surface of the capabilities of a program like CounselLink+.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re curious about this product and would like to book a demo, you can do so here.<\/a><\/p>\nAnd stay tuned to Above the Law for our follow-up article, where we\u2019ll dive into additional CounselLink+ capabilities, including its contract lifecycle management integration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Recent CounselLink upgrades integrate the full in-house workflow with the broader suite of LexisNexis products. The post Lexis\u2019 CounselLink+\u2122: A One-Stop Shop To Streamline Your Law Department appeared first on Above the Law. Corporate law departments have elevated the legal operations profession in recent years, making these roles central to their ongoing quest for ever-more […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":101537,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law","category-legal_matters"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_07-CrdPjM.jpeg?fit=1634%2C868&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101536"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101536\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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Corporate law departments have elevated the legal operations profession<\/a> in recent years, making these roles central to their ongoing quest for ever-more efficiency.<\/p>\n![\"Lexis_01\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Lexis_01.jpeg?resize=1080%2C569&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n