The law firm intake checklist: 35 controls to review this week.
Use this checklist with the people who answer calls, review matters, manage marketing, and own the firm's systems. A process that looks complete from one desk often contains serious gaps from another.
Ownership and coverage
Confirm who owns intake performance, not just who answers the phone.
- One person is accountable for the complete intake system.
- Business-hours coverage is documented.
- Lunch, court, absence, and simultaneous-call coverage is documented.
- After-hours coverage is documented.
- Every channel enters a visible queue or system.
- Backup ownership is assigned when the primary reviewer is unavailable.
Conversation and qualification
Confirm that staff and technology follow one approved operating standard.
- The greeting and identification language are approved.
- AI or recording disclosures are reviewed for applicable requirements.
- Each practice area has a current question set.
- Contact details are confirmed, not assumed.
- The workflow contains safety and urgency triggers.
- The workflow contains conflict-information fields.
- The workflow distinguishes administrative screening from legal advice.
- Unexpected answers have an exception path.
- Callers are not promised representation or results.
Routing and scheduling
Confirm that every outcome has a next action and an owner.
- Urgent calls have a live escalation path.
- Existing clients have a separate route.
- Qualified prospects can be scheduled during first contact when appropriate.
- Calendars reflect real availability and buffers.
- Failed transfers return to a defined fallback.
- Incomplete calls are flagged for follow-up.
- Outside-criteria matters receive approved administrative language.
Records, privacy, and access
Confirm that the record is complete enough for review and controlled appropriately.
- Each interaction creates a timestamped record.
- The record distinguishes caller statements from classifications.
- Recordings, transcripts, notes, and summaries have defined retention periods.
- Access is limited by role.
- Vendor data use and training terms have been reviewed.
- Sensitive information is minimized to what the workflow requires.
- Deletion and export procedures are understood.
Quality assurance and measurement
Confirm that the firm can detect failure and improve the process.
- Representative scenarios were tested before launch.
- Early calls are reviewed on a defined schedule.
- Answer rate and time to response are measured.
- Completed intake and consultation-booking rates are measured.
- Signed matters are connected back to intake source and outcome.
- Transfer failures and abandoned calls are reviewed.
- Staff correction time is measured.
- Workflow changes are documented and approved.
Unknown is not a passing answer. It identifies a control the firm cannot currently verify.