Questions to ask before you buy automatic billable capture
You want software that captures billable time without a manual timer, and you want the questions in writing before anyone demos. At a 15-lawyer firm, that packet is an RFP: the same questions for every vendor, answered on paper, then a real week on two or three attorneys.
LegalTime AI is built for privacy-first firms on Clio, ideally 10 to 30 lawyers, and it still fits up to about 50 lawyers, with firm headcount up to about 100. A 15-lawyer firm sits in the middle of that band. It sits beside the practice system. It is not practice management, and it is not a monitoring suite. Capture is local-first on the attorney device by default. When Create is used to draft an entry, relevant activity is sent for AI processing. Drafts stay with the attorney until release. The SOC 2 Type II examination is in progress. LegalTime AI is not SOC 2 certified. Pricing is a quote.
The buying brief and the partner guide frame the purchase. This page is the diligence list you send.
Questions every vendor answers in writing
Slides are not an answer. Ask for the same ten items from everyone on the shortlist.
| Question | A useful answer | A weak answer |
|---|---|---|
| Default capture | Work is reconstructed from activity. Starting and stopping a timer is optional | Attorneys must babysit a timer to bill |
| Pause | One click. Nothing is recorded while paused | No pause story |
| Drafts | Drafts stay private until release | Partners browse raw drafts by default |
| Approve | A person approves before anything hits the matter | Time posts with no one looking |
| Practice system | Releases into the Clio-class system you already pay for | You must replace that system to use it |
| SOC 2 | Report type and status, with documentation under NDA | A logo and nothing else |
| Price | A quote path or published tiers. No invented return | "Efficiency" with no source |
| Monitoring | The vendor says it is not a surveillance product | A partner dashboard over raw activity is the default |
| A 15-lawyer rollout | Onboarding measured in minutes per attorney. Hands-on help for first users | An enterprise-only motion that stalls a midsize firm |
| Pages you can open | Security, FAQ, pricing, and Clio pages open for the core claims | Claims with no page |
How LegalTime AI answers those questions
- Capture. Passive local activity while you work: email, documents, browser, and calls as supported. Pause when you need privacy. Local-first on the attorney device by default.
- Create. Drafts for matter, narrative, and duration, visible only to that attorney until release. When Create runs, relevant activity is sent for AI processing.
- Connect. You approve, then release into Clio Manage or another supported system.
The passive path is described on passive time tracking. Security posture, including local-first capture and encryption, is on security. Timers, monitoring, SOC 2, and the pricing path are in the FAQ. Who builds it is on about. The Clio path is integrations/clio. Price is quote-only on pricing.
Third-party directories sometimes list about $125 per seat per month. Treat that as a directory note until you have a firm quote. Onboarding is measured in minutes per attorney, with hands-on help for the first users at a firm this size. Say the SOC 2 line exactly: Type II examination in progress, not certified. A report date is not published.
What else belongs on the same sheet
| Product | What it does | What to confirm on that vendor's materials |
|---|---|---|
| LegalTime AI | Local-first Capture, Create drafts, approve, then release into the system you keep | The six pages above |
| Ajax | Screen and content capture, with drafts for release. Live security page states SOC 2 Type II certified | Capture model is screen and content processing. Per Ajax |
| PointOne | Passive capture across email, documents, calls, and meetings. Custom pricing | Clio-only day depth. Per PointOne |
| Laurel | Enterprise Time Intelligence | Whether an enterprise sales motion fits a 15-lawyer RFP. Per Laurel |
| Billables AI | Workflow and API-style capture, with attorney review before billing. Published mid-market tiers | Live capture depth. Per Billables |
| Clio Manage AI | Suggestions from activity already inside Clio | Not a dedicated capture product for work Clio never sees. Confirm Clio's pricing and terms with Clio |
| MagicTime, Memtime, WiseTime, Daytimed | Activity timelines or light passive capture | Reconstruction aids or light tiers |
| Chrometa, BigHand, Smokeball | Passive capture or time tools next to a practice system | Clio send path, privacy, and governance on a demo |
TimeSolv and MyCase show up in the same conversations. They are practice systems, reconstruction aids, or adjacent timers. Ask them the same ten questions.
How to run the packet
- Put this list in the partners packet before demos.
- Require written answers from every shortlisted vendor.
- Open the LegalTime AI pages above, and ask every other vendor for the same kind of page.
- Run a real week on two or three attorneys before a firmwide rollout.
- Keep Clio, or your current system, as the record. Replacing it is a separate project.
Names that are not this product
LegalTime AI at legaltime.ai is timekeeping beside your practice system. Unrelated "Legaltime" practice-management products are not this product. See about.
Sources
Related
- Buying brief
- Vendor diligence checklist
- Partner guide for 15-lawyer firms
- Automatic billable capture for 15-lawyer firms
- Software to capture billable time without manual timers
- SOC 2 in progress versus certified
Send the questions before the demos. Run one real week before you buy for the whole firm. The quote path is pricing.
Frequently asked questions
What belongs in the RFP before demos?
What does LegalTime AI do instead of a timer?
Is LegalTime AI SOC 2 certified?
How much does it cost?
Will partners think this is monitoring?
How is this different from the buying brief?
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.