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AI Assistant

Last updated on Dec 07, 2025

The AI Assistant is your intelligent legal co-pilot that answers questions, analyzes documents, and helps draft legal content using advanced AI technology.

What is the AI Assistant?

The AI Assistant uses Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) technology to provide accurate, context-aware answers by searching your document library, the web, or using general legal knowledge. It's like having a junior associate who has read all your documents and can instantly recall relevant information.

Key Capabilities

Three Operating Modes

The AI Assistant can operate in three different modes, depending on your needs:

1. Standard Chat Mode

When to use: General legal questions, explanations of concepts, brainstorming

How it works: Uses general AI knowledge without searching your documents

Example questions:

  • "What is the difference between an NDA and a confidentiality agreement?"

  • "Explain the statute of limitations for contract disputes"

  • "What should I consider when drafting a termination clause?"

Limitations: Cannot access your specific documents or company-specific information

2. Document Search Mode (RAG)

When to use: Questions about your uploaded documents, company-specific information

How it works:

  1. Searches your indexed documents for relevant content

  2. Finds the most relevant sections using semantic search

  3. Generates an answer based on that content

  4. Cites sources so you can verify

Example questions:

  • "What are the payment terms in the Acme contract?"

  • "Summarise all the non-compete clauses in our employment agreements"

  • "Which contracts have termination for convenience clauses?"

Requirements: Documents must be uploaded and indexed first

[SCREENSHOT: Document Search toggle enabled showing "Search Documents (15)"]

3. Web Search Mode

When to use: Research on current events, recent legal developments, external information

How it works:

  • Searches the internet for relevant information

  • Synthesises results from multiple sources

  • Provides links to original sources

Example questions:

  • "What are recent changes to GDPR regulations?"

  • "Find recent court cases about non-solicitation agreements"

  • "What are best practices for data breach notification?"

Note: Always verify legal research with official sources

[SCREENSHOT: Web Search toggle enabled with globe icon]

Using the AI Assistant

Accessing the Assistant

  1. Click "Assistant" in the left sidebar

  2. Or navigate to /assistant

  3. The chat interface appears with two tabs:

  • Chat - Main conversation interface

  • History - Previous conversations

[SCREENSHOT: Assistant page with tabs visible]

Asking Questions

Basic Question Flow

  1. Type your question in the text box at the bottom

  2. Select your mode using the toggle switches:

  • "Search Documents" for RAG mode

  • "Web Search" for internet research

  • Both off for standard chat

  1. Press Enter or click "Send"

  2. Wait for response (typically 2-15 seconds)

  3. Review the answer and cited sources

[SCREENSHOT: Question being typed with toggles visible]

Writing Effective Questions

Do:

  • ✅ Be specific: "What is the liability cap in the Acme MSA?" vs "Tell me about liability"

  • ✅ Provide context: "In our standard NDA template, what is the confidentiality period?"

  • ✅ Ask one thing at a time: Break complex queries into separate questions

  • ✅ Use document names: "What payment terms are in the Smith contract?"

Don't:

  • ❌ Be vague: "Tell me about contracts"

  • ❌ Ask multiple questions at once: "What are the terms, payment, and liability in this contract?"

  • ❌ Expect perfection: Always verify critical information

Advanced Question Techniques

Comparative questions:

  • "Compare the liability clauses in our top 3 vendor contracts"

  • "What's different between our NDA v1 and v2?"

Analytical questions:

  • "Identify all indemnification clauses in my uploaded contracts"

  • "Which agreements have the most favorable payment terms?"

Summarisation requests:

  • "Summarise the key obligations in the Acme agreement"

  • "Give me a 3-sentence overview of this employment contract"

Understanding Responses

Response Components

When the AI responds, you'll see:

  1. Source indicator - Badge showing which mode was used (Documents, Web, or Standard)

  2. Answer text - The AI-generated response

  3. Sources section - Documents or web pages used (if applicable)

  4. Relevance scores - How well each source matched your question (for document search)

[SCREENSHOT: Complete response with all components labeled]

Reading Sources

Document Sources

Each cited document shows:

  • Document name - Clickable link to the full document

  • Relevance score - Match percentage (e.g., "95% match")

  • Excerpt - The specific text used to generate the answer

  • Document icon - Indicates it's from your vault

What the relevance score means:

  • 90-100% - Highly relevant, strong match

  • 75-89% - Relevant, good match

  • 60-74% - Somewhat relevant

  • Below 60% - Weak match, verify carefully

[SCREENSHOT: Document source card with relevance score]

Web Sources

Each web source shows:

  • Page title - From the website

  • URL - Click to visit the source

  • Snippet - Preview of the relevant content

  • Globe icon - Indicates web source

[SCREENSHOT: Web source card]

Verifying Information

Always verify important information:

  1. Click the source - Read the full context

  2. Check multiple sources - Don't rely on one document

  3. Use professional judgment - AI is a tool, not a lawyer

  4. Consult colleagues - For critical decisions

  5. Review contracts directly - Never rely solely on summaries for binding decisions

Conversation History

Viewing Past Conversations

  1. Click the "History" tab at the top

  2. Browse previous conversations (up to 50 most recent)

  3. Each shows:

  • Conversation title (auto-generated from first question)

  • Message count

  • Last activity date/time

[SCREENSHOT: History tab with conversation list]

Loading a Conversation

  1. Click on any conversation in the history

  2. It loads into the Chat tab

  3. Continue where you left off

  4. All context is preserved

Managing History

  • Continue conversation - Click to load and add more messages

  • New conversation - Click the "New Chat" icon (document icon)

  • Automatic titles - Generated from your first question

  • Sessions persist - Available across browser sessions

Document Drafting

The AI Assistant can help draft legal documents from scratch or templates.

Accessing Draft Features

  1. Open the Assistant

  2. Click the "Draft" tab

  3. Choose between:

  • Templates - Pre-built document types

  • Custom Draft - Describe what you need

[SCREENSHOT: Draft tab showing template cards]

Using Templates

Available templates:

  • NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) - Standard confidentiality agreement

  • MSA (Master Service Agreement) - Framework for ongoing services

  • Employment Agreement - Employee contracts

  • DPA (Data Processing Agreement) - GDPR-compliant data processing

To use a template:

  1. Click on the template card

  2. Wait 10-30 seconds for generation

  3. Review the generated document

  4. Copy to clipboard or Save to Vault

  5. Edit and customize as needed

What's included:

  • All standard sections and clauses

  • Placeholder text for customization (e.g., "[COMPANY NAME]")

  • Professional formatting

  • Based on your organization's playbooks (if available)

[SCREENSHOT: Generated template with placeholders highlighted]

Creating Custom Drafts

For documents not covered by templates:

  1. Click the "Custom Draft" section

  2. Describe what you need in detail:


Example: "Create a vendor services agreement for IT support

services. Include standard liability limitations, 30-day payment

terms, and termination for convenience with 30 days notice."

  1. Toggle "Include Playbooks" if you want to use your organization's standard language

  2. Click "Generate Draft"

  3. Wait 15-45 seconds for generation

Tips for better results:

  • Be specific about key terms and requirements

  • Mention any regulatory requirements

  • Reference similar agreements if applicable

  • Include party types (vendor, customer, employee, etc.)

Working with Generated Drafts

Once generated:

  1. Review carefully - AI drafts are starting points, not final products

  2. Copy to clipboard - Use "Copy" button for easy pasting

  3. Save to Vault - Creates a new document in your vault

  4. Edit manually - Customize all placeholders and terms

  5. Have legal review - Never use AI drafts without review

[SCREENSHOT: Generated draft with Copy and Save buttons]

Advanced Features

Playbook Integration

When "Include Playbooks" is enabled:

  • AI uses your organisation's standard clauses

  • Maintains consistency with approved language

  • Incorporates guardrail-compliant terms

  • References your clause library

Best for:

  • Organizations with established playbooks

  • Maintaining standard positions

  • Ensuring compliance with internal policies

Conversation Context

The AI maintains context within a conversation:

Example flow:

  1. You: "What are the payment terms in the Acme contract?"

  2. AI: "Net 30 days from invoice date..."

  3. You: "What about late fees?" ← AI understands you mean in the same contract

  4. AI: "The contract specifies 1.5% per month for late payments..."

Context window: Last 10-15 messages typically retained

Multi-Document Analysis

Ask questions spanning multiple documents:

  • "Compare liability caps across all our vendor agreements"

  • "Which employment contracts include non-compete clauses?"

  • "Find all contracts expiring in the next 90 days"

The AI will search all indexed documents and synthesize results.

Best Practices

For Legal Professionals

  1. Build your document library first - Upload key contracts and templates

  2. Use document search for specifics - Much more accurate than general knowledge

  3. Verify all citations - Click through to source documents

  4. Use for first drafts, not final - Save hours on initial drafting

  5. Train business users - Show them how to get answers without bothering you

For Business Users

  1. Start with simple questions - Build confidence gradually

  2. Use approved playbooks - Stay within guardrails

  3. Know when to escalate - If guardrails flag it, get legal review

  4. Ask clarifying questions - Don't assume, ask follow-ups

  5. Save useful conversations - Reference them later

Question Formulation Tips

Instead of: "Tell me about this contract"

Try: "Summarise the key commercial terms in the Acme MSA"

Instead of: "Is this okay?"

Try: "Does this termination clause comply with our standard playbook?"

Instead of: "Draft a contract"

Try: "Draft a software licensing agreement with annual renewal, liability cap at fees paid, and 90-day termination notice"

Limitations and Considerations

What the AI Can Do

  • ✅ Answer questions based on uploaded documents

  • ✅ Search the web for legal research

  • ✅ Generate first drafts from templates

  • ✅ Summarise and analyse contracts

  • ✅ Compare terms across documents

  • ✅ Explain legal concepts

What the AI Cannot Do

  • ❌ Provide legal advice (you need a lawyer for that)

  • ❌ Guarantee 100% accuracy (always verify)

  • ❌ Access documents you haven't uploaded

  • ❌ Read your mind (be specific in questions)

  • ❌ Replace professional judgment

  • ❌ Modify documents directly (use Chrome Extension for that)

Data Privacy

  • Your data stays private - Documents are not shared with other organizations

  • Not used for training - Your documents don't train the underlying AI models

  • Encrypted in transit and at rest - Industry-standard security

  • Access controlled by permissions - Only users with access can query your documents

Accuracy Considerations

  • AI can hallucinate - May generate plausible but incorrect information

  • Always cite sources - Use document search mode for verifiable answers

  • Cross-reference important terms - Check multiple sources

  • Have legal review for critical decisions - AI is a tool, not a lawyer

  • Update your document library - Outdated documents lead to outdated answers

Troubleshooting

AI not finding relevant documents

Possible causes:

  • Documents not indexed yet (check status in Vault)

  • "Search Documents" toggle not enabled

  • Question too vague or general

  • Documents don't contain the information

Solutions:

  • Wait for indexing to complete (10-60 seconds per document)

  • Enable "Search Documents" toggle

  • Rephrase question more specifically

  • Upload more relevant documents

Slow response times

Normal wait times:

  • Standard chat: 2-5 seconds

  • Document search: 3-10 seconds

  • Web search: 5-15 seconds

  • Document drafting: 15-45 seconds

If slower:

  • Check internet connection

  • Try during off-peak hours

  • Close other browser tabs

  • Reduce question complexity

Inaccurate or confusing answers

Try:

  • Rephrase your question more specifically

  • Break complex questions into simpler ones

  • Use document names explicitly

  • Check which sources were cited

  • Switch modes (try document search if standard chat isn't working)

Can't access drafting features

Check:

  • You need Legal or Admin functional role for full drafting

  • Business users limited to templates only

  • Try refreshing the page

  • Check browser console for errors

Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Enter - Send message

  • Shift + Enter - New line without sending

  • Esc - Clear current input

  • Ctrl/Cmd + / - Focus search box

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