Matter Update Skill for Claude

/matter-update

• Follow the workflow and reference below.
• Confirm slug exists in ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/ and _log.yaml.
• Prompt for event type, date (default today), summary, and any log field updates (risk change, status change, next deadline shift, materiality reclassification).
• Append dated entry to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/history.md.
• Update _log.yaml — set last_updated to today, apply any field updates.
• Confirm.

Matter Update

Purpose

The portfolio only stays useful if it stays current. This skill makes logging an update cheap — two minutes of structured capture, no freeform drift.

Load context

• ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/_log.yaml — find the row
• ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/history.md — append target
• ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/matter.md — reference (don't rewrite)
• ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md — risk calibration (if re-assessing risk)

Conflicts gate — unbypassable. Before logging an update, 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 exists. I won't append history to an unmanaged matter — the conflicts check is the gate, and there's no history.md to append to until the matter is intaken."

Input

Slug (required). If not provided, ask — with a short list of recently updated matters to pick from.

The update

1. Event type

Offer categories:

• Procedural — motion filed/received, order issued, hearing held, deadline set
• Discovery — production made/received, depositions taken, subpoena served
• Substantive — new facts, key document surfaced, ruling on merits
• Strategy — posture shift, settlement offer made/received, authority update
• Risk re-assessment — severity or likelihood changed
• Stakeholder — new person looped in, outside counsel change
• Administrative — engagement letter executed, budget adjusted, hold refreshed

Or freeform if none fits.

2. Date

Default today. Accept an override (e.g., capturing an event from last week).

3. Summary

One-paragraph narrative. What happened, what it means, any immediate implication.

4. Log field changes

Walk through potentially affected fields:

• status: — has the stage shifted (e.g., pleadings → fact discovery)?
• stage: — substage update
• risk: — reassessment required?
• materiality: — any change (new facts might trigger reserve or disclosure)?
• exposure_range: — revise if new information
• next_deadline: — new upcoming date, if any
• outside_counsel: — change?
• internal_owners: — anyone new or removed?
• legal_hold: — refreshed, expanded, released?

Only prompt for fields likely affected by the event type. Procedural updates usually touch stage and next_deadline only; a settlement offer might touch materiality, exposure_range, status.

4pre. Settlement-acceptance gate

If the Strategy update is a settlement acceptance (the company is accepting a settlement offer, executing a settlement agreement, or authorizing acceptance in principle — not merely logging an offer made or received): Read ## Who's using this in ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md. If the Role is Non-lawyer:

> Accepting a settlement has legal consequences — it resolves claims, typically requires a release, and can affect insurance, tax, and related matters. Have you reviewed this with an attorney? If yes, proceed. If no, here's a brief to bring to them:

>

> [Generate a 1-page summary: the matter, proposed settlement terms (dollar, structural, release scope, confidentiality, non-disparagement), exposure at stake, authority ladder status (see ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md settlement authority), what could go wrong, what to ask the attorney before accepting.]

>

> If you need to find a licensed attorney, solicitor, barrister, or other authorised legal professional in your jurisdiction: your professional regulator's referral service is the fastest starting point (state bar in the US, SRA/Bar Standards Board in England & Wales, Law Society in Scotland/NI/Ireland/Canada/Australia, or your jurisdiction's equivalent).

Do not log the acceptance or flip materiality on acceptance basis without an explicit yes. Logging offers or counters does not require the gate — acceptance does.

4a. Materiality trigger — explicit prompt

Certain event types force a materiality re-check. When the event type is in this list, always prompt — don't let the user move on without an explicit answer:

| Event type | Materiality trigger prompt |

|---|---|

| Substantive (new facts, key document, merits ruling) | "This event is substantive. Does it push materiality? Current: [current]. Options: reserved / disclosed / monitored / none. Change?" |

| Strategy (posture shift, settlement offer made or received) | "Settlement activity often triggers materiality reclassification. Current: [current]. If the offer, counter, or acceptance moves exposure or shifts from contested to probable-and-estimable, reclassify." |

| Risk re-assessment (severity or likelihood changed) | "Risk moved. Materiality should track. Current: [current]. Reclassify?" |

| Regulatory / enforcement development | "Regulator action (subpoena, CID, enforcement notice) usually triggers disclosure analysis. Current: [current]. Change?" |

Acceptable answers include no change — but no change must be explicit, not implied by silence. Capture in the history entry:

**Materiality check:** [no change / changed from X to Y]
**Reasoning:** [one sentence]

If materiality moves to reserved or disclosed, and the matter did not previously carry a reserve or disclosure, flag the event as requiring finance / audit-committee notification per ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/CLAUDE.md materiality thresholds.

5. Seed doc prompt (optional)

If the update references a document (order, filing, correspondence), ask if there's a path to link. Not pushy.

Writing

Append to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/[slug]/history.md

Most recent at top, directly under the --- that follows the header.

## [YYYY-MM-DD] — [Event type]: [short title]

[Paragraph summary.]

**Fields changed:**
- [field]: [old → new]
- [field]: [old → new]

**Related doc:** [path, if provided]

If no fields changed, omit the "Fields changed" block.

Update ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/litigation-legal/matters/_log.yaml

• Apply any field changes.
• Set last_updated: [today] (or the event date if the user overrode — the log tracks when the record was last touched).

Confirm

Show the user the history entry and the yaml diff before writing:

> Here's what I'll append and update. Good to commit?

What this skill does not do

• Edit past history entries. Corrections are new entries that reference and correct prior ones.
• Silently change the log. Every field change is shown to the user before write.
• Decide whether a new development warrants reserve/disclosure. It surfaces the question ("this might push materiality — want to reclassify?"), the user answers.