What a 15-lawyer firm does when automatic capture misbehaves

Updated September 28, 2026

Something will break after automatic capture is live. A partner at a 15-lawyer firm needs a written path for when Capture, Create, or Connect misbehaves: which exceptions exist, who owns them, how severe they are, when to pause release into Clio, and how to write a memo without browsing raw activity.

Teaching is the training curriculum brief. Buy-in is the associate adoption brief. When a control has already failed and release should stop, reopen the control-failure playbook. This page is the catalog you use when someone asks what to do.

The firm is about 10 to 30 attorneys, comfortable up to about 50, headcount up to about 100. Keep the groups already live. Do not open new practice areas during an active severity-1 window unless partners accept partial coverage in writing.

LegalTime AI sits beside the practice management system. Capture is local-first on the attorney device by default. When Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. Drafts stay with the attorney. Release waits for approval. A SOC 2 Type II examination is in progress. LegalTime AI is not certified. It is not a monitoring tool.

Before you call exceptions coverage done

Check	In place	Not in place
A published catalog	Capture, Create, and Connect exceptions are listed with owners.	"We will know it when we see it."
A severity ladder	Severity 1, 2, and 3 are defined.	Every hiccup escalates to partners the same way.
A stuck-pause path	The attorney can pause, IT can force-pause, or the case is escalated in writing.	Pause is unknown, or only IT can ever do it.
Wrong-matter Connect	Sampled wrong-matter releases are corrected before the invoice.	They harden into invoices.
Draft rejection	The attorney rewrites on a named cadence. Partners sample released entries only.	Partners browse raw drafts "to fix quality."
Approve gate	It stays on through exceptions.	Unsupervised auto-post "to clear the backlog."
Partner override	Dated, rare, and written.	A silent rewrite of raw activity.
Timers	Capture stays the default.	Timers come back as the real workflow.
SOC 2 and price	Type and status are in the kickoff. The quote path is clear.	A logo, or invented savings used to pressure a fix.
Owners and a memo	Capture, Create, Connect, IT, and a partner are named. Partners write hold, continue, or reopen.	"Someone will escalate," or the window ends by calendar.

If a hold fails in writing, pause unsupervised release into Clio and reopen the control-failure playbook.

Capture exceptions

Exception	Default severity	Owner	First response	Escalate when
Capture is not running on a live device	Severity 1	Capture owner or IT	Reinstall or reopen the device path. Timers are an optional fallback only.	More than one attorney, or more than four business hours.
Pause is stuck, or the attorney cannot resume	Severity 2	Capture owner	Force-pause with IT. Document it. Resume on the next session.	The attorney cannot bill that day without bringing timers back as the default.
Personal activity was captured by accident	Severity 2	The attorney first	The attorney deletes or redacts before Create. Partners do not browse it.	The pattern shows up across attorneys. Reopen the privacy FAQ.
The attorney switches devices mid-day	Severity 3	Capture owner	Confirm the install on the second device. Note the gap.	Repeated gaps harden into missed time.

Create exceptions

Exception	Default severity	Owner	First response	Escalate when
Create surprises someone	Severity 1	Create owner or a partner	Restate it: when Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. Open security and subprocessors.	The attorney cannot restate that. Pause Create firmwide.
Drafts keep getting rejected	Severity 2	Attorney and the Create trainer	The attorney rewrites on a named cadence. Partners sample released entries only.	Partners demand access to raw drafts.
The suggested matter is wrong	Severity 2	Attorney	Correct the matter before approval. Log the sample.	The wrong-matter pattern crosses the threshold you named.
Create is unavailable	Severity 2	Create owner or IT	Queue drafts.	A multi-day outage. Reopen the control-failure playbook.

Connect exceptions

Exception	Default severity	Owner	First response	Escalate when
A release hit the wrong Clio matter	Severity 1	Connect owner and the attorney	Correct it in Clio before the invoice. Pause unsupervised release for that attorney.	The pattern is firmwide. Pause firmwide.
The approve gate was bypassed	Severity 1	Partner and Connect owner	Turn unsupervised auto-post off. Write the memo.	Any silent auto-post.
Clio Connect is down	Severity 1	Connect owner or IT	Hold releases. Keep the current practice management system through the outage.	More than four business hours, or an invoice deadline.
A partner asks to override	Severity 2	Partner	A dated written override. Rare. Still no raw-activity feed.	Overrides become the default.

Check these before you claim the window is covered:

The catalog is published with owners.
Severity 1, 2, and 3 were applied in writing at least once, or you documented that there was no severity 1.
The stuck-pause path was tested, or deferred with a date.
Unsupervised auto-post stayed off.
Partners did not browse raw drafts outside the release path.
Sampled wrong-matter releases were corrected before the invoice.
After correction, sampled time lands on the intended matter in Clio Manage.
Capture stayed the default.
No raw-activity dashboard shipped "just for exceptions."
The memo says hold, continue, or reopen the control-failure playbook.

How the product behaves while you escalate

Capture. Local-first on the device. Pause when needed. Passive time tracking and security.
Create. Attorney-only drafts. When Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. FAQ and subprocessors.
Connect. Approve, then release into Clio Manage. Clio integration.

Say the SOC 2 line in the kickoff: Type II examination in progress, not certified. Pricing is quote-only. Directory notes sometimes cite about $125 per seat per month. Get a firm quote.

What else to score on the same ladder

Product	What it does	What to confirm for exceptions
LegalTime AI	Local-first Capture, Create, and Connect. You keep your system.	The catalog above.
Ajax	Screen and content capture, with AI draft narratives. Security page states SOC 2 Type II certified.	Clio depth, capture model, and midsize exception handling.
PointOne	Passive capture across email, documents, calls, and meetings. Custom pricing.	A Clio-only day and governance.
Laurel	Enterprise time intelligence. Often aimed at larger firms.	Whether midsize packaging exists.
Billables AI	Workflow and API-style capture, attorney review, published mid-market tiers.	Live capture depth.
Clio Manage AI	Suggestions from activity already inside Clio.	Many firms still add a dedicated layer. Confirm terms with Clio.
MagicTime, Memtime, WiseTime, Timing	Timelines or light passive capture.	Score the same holds.
BigHand, Intapp, TimeSolv, Chrometa, Smokeball, MyCase, Daytimed	Adjacent time or practice-management tools.	Clio send path, privacy, and governance before the memo.

The name

LegalTime AI at legaltime.ai is timekeeping beside your system. Unrelated "Legaltime" listings are sometimes a different practice-management product near $24 a month. See About.

Sources

Publish the catalog, name the owners, correct wrong-matter releases before the invoice, and write the memo before you call coverage complete.

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Frequently asked questions

What exceptions should we write down before we call coverage complete?

Publish Capture, Create, and Connect exceptions with owners. Severity 1 includes Capture not running, a Create surprise the attorney cannot restate, a wrong-matter release, a bypassed approve gate, and Clio Connect down. Severity 2 includes stuck pause, accidental personal activity, rejected drafts, and a wrong matter suggestion. Severity 3 includes a mid-day device switch. Escalate Capture-down past one attorney or four business hours, and a Clio outage past four business hours or an invoice deadline.

Who fixes a wrong matter that already reached Clio?

The Connect owner and the attorney correct it in Clio before the invoice, and pause unsupervised release for that attorney. If the pattern is firmwide, pause firmwide. Partners do not browse raw drafts to fix it.

What if someone is surprised that Create sends activity for drafting?

Treat it as severity 1. Restate that Capture is local-first by default, and that when Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. Open security and subprocessors. If the attorney still cannot restate it, pause Create firmwide.

Does an exceptions process mean partners monitor associates?

No. Drafts stay with the attorney until release. Pause exists. Escalation uses named exceptions and sampled released narratives. See the FAQ.

What if attorneys want timers back during an outage, and what does this cost?

Timers stay an optional fallback. Capture remains the default. Do not use a made-up savings number to pressure a severity-2 fix. Pricing is quote-only on pricing. A directory figure around $125 per seat per month is directional. The SOC 2 Type II examination is in progress, not certified. Unrelated Legaltime listings near $24 a month are a different product.

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Capture → Create → Connect. Not a monitoring tool.