Attachments in every thread
The contract in one reply, the notice in another, a scan from a personal address. Before the work starts, someone pieces the file together.
For law firms
Get a matter's documents in without the email chain.
New matters, estates, disputes: send your client one checklist for the matter through a private link, and let reminders chase whatever is still missing.
Last updated
A new matter shouldn't start with an email chain.
Every matter starts with a pile of client documents. Over email, getting them in is the slow part.
Paralegals chasing by phone
A call, a voicemail, an email to confirm the call, then the same again next week, for every client still missing something.
No clear view before a deadline
Did the signed version arrive, or only the draft? With a deadline coming, the only way to know is to read back through every thread.
How it works
Four steps, for every matter.
The same way of working for new matters, estates and disputes.
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1
Pick a template
One list for each type of matter.
Start from your intake, estate or dispute template, then add, remove or rename documents for this client and this matter.
Create a template -
2
Send a private link
Your client uploads. No account.
Your client opens the link on any device and uploads each document against its item. Their progress is saved.
Copy or share the client link -
3
Let reminders follow up
Only what's missing, on a schedule.
By default, reminders go out 3 and 7 days after you send the request and shortly before the due date, listing only what's outstanding.
How automatic reminders work -
4
Review each file
Approve it, or ask for a clearer copy.
Approve each document, or ask for a replacement with a note your client sees next to that item. Earlier versions stay in the history.
Review and approve uploads
Start from your intake, estate or dispute template, then add, remove or rename documents for this client and this matter.
for Meridian Studio · Due 6 Nov
Private upload link · what Meridian Studio seesNo account needed
A
Alder & Finch
Documents requested for
Due 6 Nov
Upload a few, leave some missing, then see what the reminders do.
Default schedule
Features
Everything a matter's paperwork needs. Nothing it doesn't.
A template per matter type
Build your intake, estate and dispute checklists once, then start each request from the one that fits.
Create a templateA link, not an account
Clients upload through a private link on any device. No account, no password and nothing to install.
How client links are protectedA note on each document
Say exactly which version you need. Your client sees the description under that document's name.
Add, remove or rename requested documentsReplacements with a note
A missing page, an unsigned draft, a blurry photo: ask for a replacement with a note shown next to that item.
Ask a client for a replacement fileDue dates and overdue labels
Each request turns amber in its last three days and red once it's overdue.
Due dates and overdue requestsTeam workspace
Growth and Pro
Invite attorneys and paralegals, assign each request to the person handling the matter and see who reviewed what.
Invite your teamBranded client page
Growth and Pro
Your logo and accent colour on the upload page and in the emails your clients receive.
Add your logo and brand colourZIP download, then deletion
Download a matter's files as one ZIP for your own system. GarnerDocs deletes them after the retention period you choose, from 30 days to a year.
Download all files as a ZIPOne request per matter
The client is the person or business you work for, and each request is the paperwork for one matter. Title it after the matter and set a due date ahead of your own deadline. A client with a lease dispute and a will to update gets two requests, each with its own link, checklist and reminders.
Keeping client documents confidential
Files are stored privately with encryption. Only your team can download them, after a permission check, through a link that expires shortly after. Everything runs over HTTPS. Each client link ends in a long random code that GarnerDocs doesn't keep in readable form, and you can reset a link so the old one stops working. Files are deleted after the retention period your firm chooses, and client data isn't sold or used to train AI models. The Security page has the details.
GarnerDocs doesn't claim to meet any bar rule or ethics opinion. Check the measures above against your own professional obligations.
What GarnerDocs doesn't do
GarnerDocs does one job: getting documents from your clients to you, complete and checked. It isn't case or practice management, and it doesn't connect to Clio, MyCase or any other system. It doesn't collect e-signatures, run conflict checks, verify identity or handle client trust accounting. Your clients get a link and a list, and the files go into the system you already use.
Questions
Does my client need to create an account?
No. Clients open the private link you send them and upload directly. There's no registration and no password to remember.
Can I send a request for a specific matter?
Yes. Each request has its own title, link, due date and reminders, so name it after the matter. A client with two matters gets two requests.
Can several people at the firm work on one request?
Yes, on the Growth and Pro plans. Invite colleagues and assign the request to whoever handles the matter: they get its notifications and email replies. The activity history shows who reviewed what. Starter includes one seat.
How long are files kept?
For the retention period your firm chooses: 30, 90, 180 or 365 days after a request is completed. Then they're deleted, and the workspace owner is emailed 14 and 3 days before. Download what you need to keep into your own system first.
Can the client send a note instead of a document?
Yes. From their upload page, your client can send a note of up to 2,000 characters, with or without a file, for example to say the signed copy is with their previous attorney. Remove a document that won't come, so reminders stop asking for it.
Related
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Use case
New client and matter intake
Photo ID, proof of address and the documents a new matter is about. Send your client one checklist for the matter through a private link, and let reminders chase the rest.
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Use case
Estate and probate administration
The death certificate, the will, account statements, and property and debt papers. Send the executor one private link, and let the family upload a few documents at a time.
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Use case
Documents for disputes and litigation
For attorneys starting on a dispute: send your client one checklist for the contracts, correspondence, photos and records it turns on. They upload through a private link, and reminders chase the rest.
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Checklist
Law firm client intake checklist, for every new matter
What to ask a new client for once the engagement is signed, with "why we ask" lines, add-ons by practice area and a copyable version.
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Compare
GarnerDocs vs email attachments
Email is free, and every client already knows how to attach a file. Here's what it costs you in chasing time and risk once you collect from more than a few clients.
Spend less time chasing. More time doing the work that matters.
Make document collection the easiest part of working with your clients.
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