The lifecycle
Ten stages, two sides, and the signed engagement letter between them.
Every matter moves through one lifecycle with two sides. The funnel is the conversion side, winning the engagement. The pipeline is the delivery side, doing the work. The boundary between them is a single event: the signed engagement letter.
Seen end to end, a matter is one continuous thread from inquiry to closing:
The ten named stages sit along that thread, five on each side of the signed letter.
Funnel stages
| Stage | What it means |
|---|---|
| Contact | An inquiry exists, from an intake form on the firm's site, an intake link, or manual entry. |
| Schedule | A consultation is being booked (or has been offered). |
| Consult | The consultation happened; the firm is deciding next steps. |
| Engage | An engagement letter is being drafted. |
| Convert | The letter is out for signature. |
Pipeline stages
| Stage | What it means |
|---|---|
| Discovery | The detailed intake is out with the client and under review. |
| Drafting | Documents are being assembled from the client record. |
| Reviewing | Drafts are with the client for review. |
| Signing | The signing ceremony is being scheduled or has been held. |
| Closing | Wrap-up, typically the disengagement letter. |
Stage is derived, not maintained
Stages compute from recorded facts: a submitted form, a confirmed booking, a signed letter, a shared document set. Nobody drags cards to keep the board honest. When a step doesn't apply or an outside system doesn't report an event (a consultation that happened off the books, for example), staff record the fact directly, with an action like Mark consult held, and the stage follows.
Setting matters aside
Two overlays exist outside the stage ladder:
- Archive sets a matter aside reversibly: a prospect who didn't proceed, a client who paused indefinitely. Archived matters keep their history and can be reopened in place.
- On hold freezes an active matter without moving it. It keeps its stage and resumes where it stood.