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Matter Briefing

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Quickly assess legal matters for counsel updates.

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Free · Opens the source repo

What Matter Briefing does

Matter Briefing is a skill designed for legal professionals who need to quickly summarize the status of a specific legal matter. It streamlines the briefing process by pulling in relevant information from structured logs and narrative documents. When a user requests a briefing on a specific matter, the skill gathers data from multiple sources, including the matter's history and current posture, to produce a concise and actionable report. This skill is particularly useful before meetings with general counsel or outside counsel, ensuring that legal teams are well-informed and prepared.

The skill operates by first loading necessary context from the user's file system, specifically targeting the relevant matter's details and historical data. It checks for conflicts and ensures that the matter has been properly intaken before proceeding. Once the context is established, the skill generates a structured briefing that includes key elements such as the current status, risk assessment, and upcoming deadlines. This allows legal professionals to stay updated on critical developments without sifting through extensive documentation.

Matter Briefing is ideal for legal teams that require timely updates on ongoing matters. It eliminates the need for manual note-taking or lengthy reviews of case files, allowing counsel to focus on strategic decision-making. The skill is particularly beneficial in fast-paced environments where quick access to accurate information is crucial for effective communication and planning.

However, it is important to note that Matter Briefing does not predict outcomes or recommend strategies. It simply surfaces existing information and prompts users to consider important questions regarding risk and stakeholder involvement. This makes it a valuable tool for those who need to make informed decisions based on current data rather than speculative forecasts.

When to use it

Use this skill when you need a concise update on a legal matter before a meeting or call.

When not to use it

This skill is not suitable for predicting case outcomes or developing legal strategies.

What you can build with it

Pre-Meeting Preparation

Use Matter Briefing to quickly gather the latest updates on a legal matter before a call with outside counsel.

Risk Assessment Review

Leverage the skill to reassess the risk of a matter by reviewing changes and open questions.

Status Reporting

Employ the skill to generate a concise status report for internal stakeholders or during team meetings.

How to install Matter Briefing

View source

1. Install with the skills CLI

npx skills add anthropics/claude-for-legal/matter-briefing --agent claude-code

2. Or install it manually

Download the skill folder and drop it into ~/.claude/skills/ for all projects, or .claude/skills/ to scope it to one repo. Restart Claude Code so it picks up the new skill.

Anthropic's agentic coding CLI, and the reference implementation of Agent Skills. Drop a skill folder into ~/.claude/skills and Claude Code loads it automatically whenever a task matches the skill's description. Claude Code docs

Inside SKILL.md

Written by anthropics

/matter-briefing

  1. Load ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md → risk calibration + relevant stakeholders.
  2. Follow the workflow and reference below.
  3. Read ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/matter.md + ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/history.md + log row from _log.yaml.
  4. Produce briefing: current posture, what's changed since last update, next deadline, open questions, risk re-assessment check ("does the risk: field still reflect reality?").
  5. Flag staleness: if last_updated > 30 days, say so.

Matter Briefing

Purpose

Give the counsel a clean read on one matter in the time it takes to walk to a conference room. Current posture, what's changed, what's next, what's worth reconsidering.

Load context

  • ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/_log.yaml — structured row
  • ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/matter.md — narrative intake
  • ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/history.md — event log
  • ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md — risk calibration (so "risk: high" means something specific, not generic)

Conflicts gate — unbypassable. Before briefing, check _log.yaml for the matter slug. If the matter is not in _log.yaml, refuse and route:

"I don't see [matter slug] in the matter log. Run /litigation-legal:matter-intake first so the conflicts check runs and the matter workspace is set up. I won't build a briefing on a matter that hasn't been intaken — the conflicts check is the gate."

Input

Slug (required). If ambiguous or missing, ask the user to pick from a list of active matters.

The briefing

[WORK-PRODUCT HEADER — per plugin config ## Outputs — differs by role; see `## Who's using this`]

# [Matter Name] — Briefing as of [today]

**Status:** [status / stage]
**Risk:** [rating] ([severity] × [likelihood])
**Materiality:** [category]
**Outside counsel:** [firm — lead]
**Last updated:** [date] [flag ⚠️ STALE if >30d]
**Conflicts:** [status — flag ⚠️ if `pending` or `not-run`]

---

## One-paragraph summary

[Current posture. What are we doing and why. Name the pivot fact if one is captured.]

## What's changed recently

[Last 3-5 entries from history.md, most recent first. If history is thin, say so.]

## What's next

- **Immediate deadline:** [next_deadline + what it is]
- **Upcoming milestones:** [anything dated in matter.md or recent history]
- **Decisions pending:** [open questions flagged in matter.md]

## Exposure

[Range + any change since intake. If reserved, current reserve + whether recalibration is overdue.]

## Internal owners

[Who's looped in; whether anyone should be looped in and isn't]

## Risk re-assessment check

*A prompt, not an answer.*

- Does `risk: [rating]` still feel right, or has the case moved?
- Does `materiality: [category]` still match? (New facts might push toward reserve or disclosure.)
- Any new stakeholder the matter needs (e.g., CISO becomes relevant after a discovery development)?

## Open questions

[From matter.md and anything unresolved in history]

## For the conversation

[If user specified a purpose — "brief me before the call with outside counsel" — tailor the final section: questions to ask, decisions to get, updates to extract. If no purpose given, omit this section.]

Staleness

If last_updated > 30 days ago: flag at the top AND suggest running /litigation-legal:matter-update [slug] after the meeting to capture whatever's discussed.

Tone

This is not marketing. Say what's known; flag what's not. If a matter has thin history and was just opened, the briefing is short — and that's correct. Don't pad.

Close with the next-steps decision tree

End with the next-steps decision tree per CLAUDE.md ## Outputs. Customize the options to what this skill just produced — the five default branches (draft the X, escalate, get more facts, watch and wait, something else) are a starting point, not a lock-in. The tree is the output; the lawyer picks.

What this skill does not do

  • Predict outcomes. Risk rating is a captured judgment, not a forecast.
  • Recommend strategy. Surfaces questions; the counsel answers them.
  • Re-triage. If the user wants to re-triage, that's an /matter-update with field changes — this skill reads, doesn't write.

Frequently asked questions about Matter Briefing

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