# Training Guide — Active Blue Family Law (v2)

How to use the platform day to day. Written for two audiences:

- **Staff / paralegal** — captures facts, assembles the file, prepares drafts.
- **Attorney** — reviews, decides, approves, signs. Only the attorney can clear
  conflicts, approve documents, file/send, and attest citations.

> **The one rule that governs everything:** the software **builds, verifies,
> organizes, and flags.** A **licensed attorney judges, decides, and signs.** Nothing
> reaches a client, a clerk, or a court without the attorney's approval. The software
> never gives legal advice and never predicts who will win.

App location: the **Family Law (v2)** menu in Odoo.

---

## 1. Roles & access

| You are… | You can… | You cannot… |
|---|---|---|
| **Staff (Family Law / Staff)** | Run intake, add parties/children/issues, run conflict screening, draft documents, prepare deadlines/disclosure/discovery, request filing | Clear conflicts, approve documents, file/send, attest citations, close/reopen matters, see matters you aren't assigned to |
| **Attorney (Family Law / Attorney)** | Everything staff can do **plus** all the gated actions and all matters | — |

**Matter-scoped access:** staff see only matters where they are the assigned
attorney/paralegal (or that they created). Attorneys see all matters. This protects
client confidentiality — don't try to work a matter you weren't assigned; ask the
attorney to assign you.

**Golden rule for staff:** you capture and assemble, but you **never communicate a
legal position or opinion to a client.** Every legal question goes to the attorney.

---

## 2. The two gates (what they mean for you)

1. **Review gate (Gate 1).** Anything the AI produces, and anything headed to a
   client/court, is born as a **Draft**. It cannot be filed or sent until an
   **attorney approves it**. You'll see draft documents marked *Draft* → *In Attorney
   Review* → *Approved*.
2. **Citation gate (Gate 2).** Every case-law citation starts **Unverified**. It must
   be **verified against a real reporter** (or attorney-attested) before the document
   that uses it can be filed. If a citation can't be verified, it stays blocked — the
   software fails *closed* on purpose, so a made-up citation can never reach a filing.

You don't have to enforce these — the software does. If a button is missing or a
warning banner appears, it's a gate doing its job.

---

## 3. Menu map

**Family Law (v2) →**
- **New Intake** — start a new matter from the guided questionnaire
- **Cases** — all matters (your assigned ones)
- **Documents** — work product, with the review gate
- **Deadlines** — procedural clocks + calendar
- **Financial Affidavits** — 12.902(b)/(c)
- **Emergency Motions** — 12.941 pick-up / removal
- **Support Modifications** — child-support modification workflow
- **Discovery** — requests + subpoenas
- **Citations** — case-law citations + verification status
- **AI Tasks** *(attorney)* — the AI audit/cost ledger
- **Communications** — client updates (never auto-sent)
- **Archive** — stored files + retention
- **Configuration** *(attorney)* — Retention Classes

---

## 4. Open a new matter (Intake)

**Family Law (v2) → New Intake.** The questionnaire runs **triage first**, then
branches.

### Step 1 — Triage
Fill in caller name/phone/email, county/court, case type, opposing party name, whether
there are minor children, and whether there's an existing order. Then answer the
**Urgency Screen**:
- Child being withheld / refused access?
- Threat of removal from Florida?
- Domestic violence / immediate safety concern?

- **If none are checked → Standard path** (strict): you must provide matter name,
  client, case type, and county before the matter can be created. The friction is
  intentional — it keeps the file clean.
- **If any are checked → Emergency fast-path:** the matter is opened immediately on
  minimum facts (who, which child, what's happening). Complete the rest right after.

### Step 2 — Case details (standard path)
Matter name, client contact, attorney/paralegal, and the **Caller's Question for the
Attorney**. Type the caller's question in their own words — the software logs it for
the attorney and **does not answer it** ("Do I have a good case?" is the attorney's
call, never the software's).

### Step 3 — Modification details (only for modification case types)
Capture the prior order summary and what changed (income, etc.). Facts only.

### Step 4 — Complete
The draft case is created in **Intake** state with an initial proceeding, and
**conflict screening runs automatically**. Review the result, then click **Open
Matter**.

---

## 5. Work the case

Open a matter from **Cases**. The form has a status bar (Intake → Engaged →
Disclosure → Discovery → Mediation → Hearing → Closed) and notebook tabs.

### Fill in the file (tabs)
- **Parties** — client, opposing party, opposing counsel, others. Opposing-party names
  feed conflict screening.
- **Children** — name + date of birth (the system rejects future or implausible
  dates).
- **Issues** — time-sharing, support, equitable distribution, alimony, etc.
- **Proceedings** — the units of legal action. The original action is created
  automatically; modifications/enforcements get their **own** proceeding (so their
  deadlines and documents never get mixed up).
- **Obligations** — for Miami-Dade matters these seed automatically (Status Quo Order,
  Parenting Course, Mediation).

### Conflict screening & clearance
1. Add the opposing party, then click **Run Conflict Screening** (anyone can run it).
2. If the opposing party matches a past/current client or another matter, you'll see a
   **Conflict Hits** tab and a warning banner. The software **flags** — it never
   auto-clears.
3. **Attorney only:** review the hits, then click **Clear Conflict Check**. The matter
   cannot be **Engaged** until this is done.

### Move through the stages
Use the header buttons in order: **Engage** → **Start Disclosure** → **Start
Discovery** → **Start Mediation** → **Set for Hearing**. The software rejects illegal
jumps. **Close Case** and **Reopen** are attorney-only.

> **Miami-Dade course-before-judgment guard:** if the matter involves children, you
> cannot **Set for Hearing** until the **Parenting Course** obligation is marked
> completed.

### Find a matter fast
In **Cases**, search by matter name, client, **opposing-party name**, **child name**,
or **court case number**.

---

## 6. Documents & the review gate

**Family Law (v2) → Documents** (or the Documents tab on a proceeding).

1. Create a document, choose its **Proceeding** and type. A manual draft starts as
   **Draft**; AI-assembled documents are born **Draft** too.
2. **Submit for Review** → it moves to *In Attorney Review*.
3. **Attorney:** **Approve** (or **Reject** with feedback → back to draft).
4. After approval: **Mark Filed** / **Mark Sent** (attorney only). For client-facing
   docs, **Send for E-Signature**.

You'll see a yellow banner until approved, and a red banner if the document has
**unverified citations** (it can't be filed until those clear — see §9).

---

## 7. Deadlines & calendar

**Family Law (v2) → Deadlines.**

- Each deadline belongs to a **proceeding** and computes its **due date** from a
  trigger date + day count, automatically rolling off weekends.
- From a proceeding, **Seed Standard Deadlines** creates the common ones (answer 20,
  disclosure 45, discovery 30 days).
- Overdue deadlines are flagged automatically each day and shown in red.
- Deadlines mirror onto the shared **calendar**; filter by **layer** (statutory /
  hearing / internal).
- Mark a deadline **Completed** or **Waived** as work progresses.

> Day-counts follow Florida rules but **always confirm the current rule** for the
> specific matter — the attorney owns that judgment.

---

## 8. Mandatory disclosure & financial affidavits

**On a proceeding → Disclosure tab / Financial Affidavits tab**, or the menu.

- **Seed Disclosure Checklist** creates the Rule 12.285 mandatory items. Mandatory
  items **cannot be waived** — the software blocks it.
- **Financial Affidavit:** enter **Gross Annual Income** and the software picks the
  form — **12.902(b)** (short) below the threshold, **12.902(c)** (long) at/above it.
  It computes the **45-day** due date and totals income/expense/asset/liability and net
  worth from the line items.

---

## 9. Citations & verification (the citation gate)

**Family Law (v2) → Citations**, or the Citations tab on a document.

- Every citation is born **Unverified**.
- Click **Verify (CourtListener)** — the software checks it against a real reporter.
  - Found + good law → **Verified**
  - Found but not good law → **Rejected**
  - No record / source down → stays **Unverified** (blocked — fails closed)
- **Attorney only:** if appropriate, **Attorney Attest** records that the attorney
  personally confirms the citation.
- A document with **any** non-verified citation **cannot be filed or sent**. Use
  **Verify Citations** on the document to run them all.

> This is the protection against AI-hallucinated citations. If a citation won't verify,
> it does not go in the filing — period.

---

## 10. Discovery & subpoenas

**Family Law (v2) → Discovery**, or the Discovery tab on a proceeding.

- Choose the type. **Non-Party Production (Rule 12.351)** has a hard safety gate:
  1. **Serve Notice (12.351)** to the other parties — this starts the **10-day
     objection window**.
  2. The subpoena **cannot be Issued** until the window elapses and no objection is
     pending. If an objection comes in, **Record Objection** (issuance stays blocked
     until the court resolves it).
  3. **Issue** — the software serves the **Notice of Issuance the same day** and sets
     the response due date.
- **Routing is automatic** by representation: attorney-of-record matters issue
  directly; **pro se** matters route issuance through the **clerk**.

---

## 11. Support modification (headline workflow)

From a **Child Support Modification** case, click **Open Support Modification** (header
button), or **Support Modifications → New**.

- Enter **current** and **proposed** monthly support. The software shows whether the
  change meets the **15% / $50 substantial-change presumption** — this is a factual
  threshold check, **not** a prediction of whether the court will grant it.
- It opens a **new proceeding** under the same matter and sets the **20-day answer**
  clock.
- Flag **DOR / Title IV-D** if applicable; the **retroactivity** date defaults to the
  filing date.
- Paste the prior order text and click **Extract Prior Judgment** (if AI is enabled):
  you get a plain-language summary plus **interpretation questions flagged for the
  attorney** — the software never draws the legal conclusion itself.

---

## 12. Emergency motions

For an emergency matter, click **Emergency Motion** (header button on the case), or
**Emergency Motions → New**.

1. Pick the motion type (pick-up order, emergency custody, prevent removal).
2. Answer **Existing Order to Enforce?** — this **fork** changes the required
   attachments:
   - **Yes** → certified copy of the order + proposed order
   - **No** → verified motion / sworn affidavit + proposed order
3. **Seed Requirements** builds the checklist. Tick each attachment as **Provided**.
4. **Mark Ready** — blocked until every required attachment is present. Then **File**.

---

## 13. Communications (never auto-sent)

**Family Law (v2) → Communications.**

- Draft a client update (optionally AI-assisted). It starts as **Draft**.
- **Attorney:** **Approve**.
- Then **Send** — an explicit, human action. The software **never auto-sends** a
  communication, and staff never send legal positions.

---

## 14. Time & AI-assisted billing

On a case, the **Billing / Time** tab: log time entries and tick **AI-Assisted** when
AI materially helped. The case shows total hours, AI-assisted hours, and the
**AI-assisted %** — useful for fee transparency.

---

## 15. Closing a matter, archive & retention

- **Attorney:** **Close Case** when done. From a closed matter, **Return Client File**
  records the client-file return.
- **Archive** (menu): stored files carry a **SHA-256 checksum** and a **retention
  class**. When a file's retention period elapses it becomes **Eligible for
  Destruction**; an attorney can **Destroy** it — the audit log records *that*
  destruction happened (and keeps the checksum as proof) without keeping the content.
- Retention periods are set under **Configuration → Retention Classes** (attorney).

---

## 16. Attorney-only actions (quick reference)

- Clear Conflict Check
- Approve / Reject a document; Mark Filed / Mark Sent; Send for E-Signature
- Attorney Attest a citation
- Close / Reopen a matter; Return Client File
- Destroy an archived file
- Approve a client communication
- View the AI Tasks ledger and Configuration

If you're staff and a button isn't there, it's gated to the attorney by design.

---

## 17. What the software will NOT do

- It will **not** tell you (or the client) whether you have a good case or your odds of
  winning. No success percentages, anywhere. That judgment belongs to the attorney.
- It will **not** rule on whether evidence is admissible — it only flags what's missing.
- It will **not** file, send, or sign anything without attorney approval.
- It will **not** let an unverified citation into a filing.
- It will **not** give legal advice.

---

## 18. Troubleshooting / FAQ

- **"I can't see a matter."** You're not assigned to it. Ask the attorney to set you as
  the paralegal/attorney on the case.
- **"The Engage button won't work."** The conflict check hasn't been cleared by an
  attorney yet.
- **"I can't Set for Hearing."** For a children's matter, the Parenting Course
  obligation must be completed first (Miami-Dade).
- **"I can't file the document."** It's either not approved (Gate 1) or it has
  unverified citations (Gate 2). Check the banners.
- **"Verify Citations did nothing / stayed unverified."** The verification source had
  no record or was unavailable — the citation stays blocked (by design). The attorney
  can attest it if appropriate.
- **"AI Draft / Verify / Send for E-Signature is missing or errors."** Those features
  need API keys configured (Claude / CourtListener / DocuSeal). Ask the administrator —
  the rest of the platform works without them.

---

## 19. Glossary

- **Matter / Case** — the client engagement (the spine).
- **Proceeding** — a unit of legal action under a matter (original, modification,
  enforcement…). Deadlines and documents attach here.
- **Gate 1 (review)** — attorney must approve before anything goes out.
- **Gate 2 (citation)** — citations must be verified before they enter a filing.
- **Conflict screening** — automatic search for conflicts of interest; flags for the
  attorney to clear.
- **Fast-path** — the emergency intake that opens a matter on minimum facts.
- **Retention class** — how long a file is kept before it's eligible for destruction.

---

*This guide describes how to operate the software. It is not legal advice, and the
platform does not practice law. A licensed Florida attorney reviews, verifies, and
signs all output.*
