The purpose of the matter plan boils down to two essential elements of a successful practice:

1. Risk management - The matter plan guides practitioners and support staff through the practical execution of the area of law one step at a time, ensuring nothing is missed.
2. Ease of use - The matter plan organizes commentaries, precedents and forms into an intuitive and logical folder structure that is easy to use.

This means:

• Practitioners will never have to spend time searching for a precedent again – the precedent is right there where they need it when they need it.
• Precise answers can be found quickly and easily as commentaries and reference materials are presented in a logical order within the matter itself.
• Users can access as much or as little guidance as needed, with the ability to easily navigate to the commentary and precedents required.
• Nothing is missed – every detail is laid out clearly, concisely, and sequentially.

The matter plan system is designed to increase a team's productivity by organising the information in an intuitive and easy to use format. It is also designed to minimize risk by ensuring every step of every matter is considered and that every team member is following best practice and has ready access to the resources they need to complete a matter meticulously.

All areas of law are broken down into relevant matter plans. So, for example, for family law there are five matter plans:

1. Children;
2. Divorce;
3. Domestic contracts / Family law agreements;
4. Property division;
5. Enforcement.

Each matter plan typically starts with the folder ‘Getting the matter underway’. It contains everything you need to get a matter started. There are precedents such as a File Cover Sheet, Retainer Instructions, a To Do List and initial letters, conflict of interest, client details, verification and source of funds check.

There is also commentary detailing the first things you need to do and be aware of when getting the matter underway. Each matter plan then proceeds through the logical sequence, providing all required precedents and commentary detailing how to conduct each step of the matter.

This sequence is represented by a series of folders breaking down each step. For example; in a civil litigation matter plan the folder ‘Settling it early’ will precede the folder ‘Going to court’ and so on. Each matter plan concludes with a ‘Finalization’ folder containing precedents such as finalization letters and a file closing checklist.

This clear structure is a very useful risk management tool and essential to the efficient operation of daily practice.