What to do when an AI time tracking control fails
A control has already failed. Pause does not work, time can post without a person, the Clio matter is wrong, the SOC 2 sentence slipped, or partners are being offered a raw activity feed. The next step is not another comparison. It is stop, contain, reopen, and a memo before the next invoice or the next shortlist decision.
LegalTime AI is built for privacy-conscious firms on Clio, ideally about 10 to 30 lawyers, comfortable up to about 50, with headcount up to about 100. It sits beside the practice system. Capture is local-first on the attorney device by default. When Create drafts an entry, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. Drafts stay with the attorney until release. The attorney approves before release. Pause exists. This is not a monitoring tool. A SOC 2 Type II examination is in progress. LegalTime AI is not SOC 2 certified. Pricing is quote-only. A directory note sometimes cites about $125 per seat per month. Get a firm quote. A savings figure does not skip a stop.
A risk register records likelihood and owner. This note is what you do after the break.
The sequence, every time
- Stop unsupervised release into Clio, or into the current practice system, for the affected attorneys.
- Contain it in writing: which control, which attorneys, which matters, who owns the reopen.
- Reopen only when the condition below is true on a primary page or in a written demo or operations note.
- Tell the partners before invoices leave, or before the shortlist hardens. The memo is hold, reopen with extra support, narrow the rollout, or remove the vendor.
Keep these open while you run the sequence: security, subprocessors, the FAQ, pricing, the Clio integration, about, passive time tracking, and the home page.
When a specific control breaks
A row with no stop step stays open. Marketing copy does not close it.
| What broke | Stop | Contain | Reopen only when | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pause | Stop unsupervised capture-to-release for that attorney | Which devices failed, and the training note you will refresh | Every affected attorney can pause and resume without IT | Capture |
| Unsupervised posting | Freeze Connect releases for that rollout group | Confirm approval is on, and there is no auto-post path | A sampled release into Clio shows the human gate | Connect |
| Wrong Clio matter | Stop further releases on the affected matters | Audit the sample and correct the matter map | Sampled releases land on the intended matter | Connect and operations |
| SOC 2 language | Pause any packet line that claims certification for LegalTime AI | Pull the security page. State type and status exactly | The packet says examination in progress, not certified. For another vendor, their status is tied to their own page | Partner and IT |
| Monitoring creep | Disable or refuse the raw feed | Restate attorney-only drafts and approval before release | Partners review sampled released narratives only | Partner |
| Vague processing claims | Pause language that skips the Create step | Open security and subprocessors. State local-first Capture and Create processing | Those pages are open, and Create processing is written down | Partner and IT |
| Timers become the default again | Spot-check attorneys who are babysitting timers to bill | Refresh the Capture default, and check pause | Automatic or reconstruction is the default again | Practice lead |
| A made-up return or a fake list price | Pull that section of the packet | Replace it with a quote path or the vendor's published tiers | The price is quote-only, or the vendor's real tiers, with no invented return | Partner |
| Pressure to replace Clio | Pause any mid-cycle language about ripping out the practice system | Restate release into Clio Manage | The path releases into Clio without a replacement project | Partner and operations |
| No owner | Pause closeout or shortlist hardening | Assign Capture, Create, and Connect in writing | Each of the three has a name | Partner |
If the break happens in the middle of a billing cycle, also open the billing-cycle playbook before invoices leave. The risk register is where likelihood and impact live. The weighted decision tree is the walk you used before the failure.
The same rows on other tools
If a control fails on another product, walk the same stop, contain, and reopen. Use the same standard.
| Product | What it does | What to confirm if a control fails |
|---|---|---|
| LegalTime AI | Local-first Capture, Create with relevant activity sent for processing, Connect after approval, beside Clio. SOC 2 Type II examination in progress. Quote-only pricing. Not monitoring. | Reopen against security, subprocessors, FAQ, pricing, Clio, about, and passive time tracking |
| Ajax | Screen and content capture, with AI draft narratives. Security page states SOC 2 Type II certified. | Clio depth and the capture model, on Ajax's materials |
| PointOne | Passive capture across email, documents, calls, and meetings. Custom pricing. | A Clio-only day and governance, on a demo |
| Laurel | Enterprise time intelligence, often aimed at larger firms. | Whether a 10 to 30 lawyer firm is in the packaging |
| Billables AI | Workflow and API-style capture, with attorney review. Published mid-market tiers. | Live capture depth, on a demo |
| Clio Manage AI | Suggestions from activity already inside Clio. | Many firms still add capture beside Manage. Walk the same failure rows. Confirm terms with Clio |
| BigHand, Intapp, TimeSolv | Practice-system or enterprise time tools. | Still walk automatic capture and privacy if you are deep in that stack |
| Daytimed, MagicTime, Memtime, WiseTime, Timing, MyCase, Smokeball | Lighter AI, timelines, or practice-system tools. | Confirm legal governance on the same rows |
Chrometa belongs with that last group when it is in the conversation: a vendor fact, scored on the same failures.
How the product maps to the stops
- Capture is local-first on the attorney device by default. Pause without IT is the reopen condition when pause is broken. See passive time tracking and security.
- Create is an attorney-only draft: matter, narrative, and duration. When Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. That is what closes a vague processing claim. Draft privacy is what blocks a raw partner feed. See the FAQ and subprocessors.
- Connect is approval before release into Clio Manage. The human gate reopens an unsupervised-posting break. The matter path reopens a wrong-matter break. See the Clio integration.
A SOC 2 break on LegalTime AI is closed only when the packet says a Type II examination is in progress and the product is not certified. See security.
Names to keep straight
LegalTime AI (legaltime.ai) is timekeeping beside your practice system. Unrelated Legaltime practice-management products, sometimes listed near $24 a month in directories, are separate. See about.
Sources
Related
- Risk register
- Weighted decision tree
- Billing-cycle playbook
- Capability matrix
- AI timekeeping for Clio Manage
- SOC 2 in progress versus certified
Assign an owner before the meeting ends. Reopen only what a page or a written note supports. Start a 30-day free trial or book a 15-minute demo.
Frequently asked questions
What do we do first when a control breaks?
What if pause is broken or time can post by itself?
What closes a privacy or SOC 2 break?
What if partners asked for a raw activity feed?
Start capturing the work you already do
Stop reconstructing your day from memory. Let capture run. Review in minutes. Release only what should bill.
Capture → Create → Connect. Not a monitoring tool.