Custom Documents - Start Fresh

Lawmatics allows you to create a customized fee agreement using the Start Fresh document editor. This guide will walk you through the steps to build a document with merge fields, conditional logic, and e-signature fields.

1. Access the Documents Section

• Navigate to the Docs & Forms tab in the main side navigation.
• Select Document Templates from the sub-navigation options.

2. Create a New Document

• Click Create New Document in the upper-right corner.
• In the dialog box:
  • Select Start Fresh as your document type.
  • Enter a Document Name.
  • Choose a Record Type (Matter is commonly used for fee agreements).
  • (Optional) Select a Practice Area—this enables Practice Area Custom Fields in the document for more tailored content.
• Click Create to proceed.

3. Build Your Document:

You can either:

• Type or paste text directly into the text field, or
• Use the Word Import feature to upload content from a Word document.

4. Apply Conditional Logic

Conditional logic allows you to control which sections of the document appear based on data stored in Lawmatics.

Basic Conditional Logic

• Click the gear icon next to a text block.
• Set visibility conditions based on CRM field values (e.g., only show a section if the client's case type is "Personal Injury").
• Use AND/OR rules to refine conditions.

Advanced Conditional Logic

• If you need complex logic, select Advanced Logic in the conditions panel.
• This allows you to group conditions with nested rules for precise customization.
• Example: A section can be shown only if:
  • "Matter Type is Personal Injury" AND "State is California"
  • OR "Practice Area is Litigation

5. Insert Page Breaks

• Drag a Page Break from the left-hand menu to ensure proper document formatting.

6. Use Merge Fields for Dynamic Content

Merge fields personalize your document by automatically pulling in client, matter, or firm data.

• Click inside a Text Field where you want to insert dynamic content.
• Select a Merge Field from the dropdown menu to populate details like:
  • Client Name
  • Matter Type
  • Attorney Information
  • Custom Fields (including Practice Area Custom Fields, if selected earlier)

Remember that you will find basic contact information like name, email, address, etc in the Contact Fields drop down. Your case-related information will be found in the Matter Fields dropdown. 

If you are building a document to be used for multiple signers (ex: married couple), you may also use the Relationship Fields dropdown to add a related contact's information, such as Spouse First Name, etc.

As you are building your document, if you do not yet have the fields created that you would like to merge in, remember that you can add custom fields by going to settings > custom field settings. If you need to add a relationship type to merge in a specific related contact's information, you can add those in settings > matter settings.

7. Add Signature Fields

• Click the Settings button in the top right corner under "ESIGNATURE".
• Add signer roles by clicking Add Signer for clients or Add Firm Signers for firm users. Assign each a role name (e.g., Client, Managing Attorney).
• Click Apply Settings.
• In the document, place your cursor where the signature is needed.
• From the Signature Fields dropdown, select the appropriate signature field for each signer role.
• You can also add fields for initials, dates, and text, specifying whether they are required

• In addition to signatures, you can also use signature fields for initials, date, text, etc. You will also have the options to make those things required or not, as shown in the options in the dropdown in the video above.
• Note that the signature itself will always be required, you cannot make those optional.
• You are also required to add in at least one signature field for each signer on the document. So if your document has two signers, they each need to have one signature in the document. If you try to save the document without adding a signature for all signers, you will receive an error message.
• Also note that you cannot apply conditional logic for a block that contains a required signature field, since these cannot be made conditional. If a document sometimes requires one signer and other times requires more than one, for example if they are married, then those will need to be two separate documents.
• You can easily create a copy of a document using the button shown below. This is useful for the situation described above, so that you can easily create different variations of a document depending on the number of signers.

10. Click Save Document at bottom of screen

FAQs

Why can't I click into a text block on my document?

You can't click directly into a text block, you will need to click the edit pencil on the right side of the text block to type into it. Once you have clicked the edit pencil, then you can click right into the block and start typing or paste in text.

Why is the settings/conditional logic button grayed out for a certain text block?

Since you cannot add conditional logic when a signature field is present, the button will be grayed out for any blocks that contain a signature field. Move the signature field out of the block by simply deleting it, and then re-merging it into a different block, and then you will be able to apply conditional logic on the original block.

Can I add formatting elements to this document, such as my letterhead, page breaks, fee table, etc?

Add page breaks by dragging the page break block option from the left sidebar menu. You can add images, like your letterhead or a screenshot of a table, by using the image button found near the top right of the text editor options when editing a block. When adding images, make sure that you have resized your image to the appropriate dimensions before adding it into the document.