HoudiniEq Customizing Forms

Customizing Forms

Custom Forms and Customizing Fields

Administrator Tutorial

Introduction

Software is traditionally divided into two categories: pre-packaged off-the-shelf or custom-built. Custom-made software is fully adapted to meet the needs of the client, in contrast, pre-packaged software works and functions the same for every client resulting in users performing workarounds and using brute force data entry tactics over time. This is not the best practice. 

Law practice operations are complex and every organization has different needs. There are many practice areas and no two firms do everything alike. Legal practice software is an expensive and a long-term investment. Your legal practice software should grow and adapt just like your organization does. That is where HoudiniEsq comes in.

You can add custom fields to records and create supplemental forms. The ability to extend the functionality of HoudiniEsq means your organization’s needs can be met now and well into the future.

Best Practice Tip

Use a test matter for all your testing. Start by adding your firm as a contact record. Then create a matter linked to this contact record as a party to the matter. Simply search for your firm name whenever you need to try or test a feature. Don't forget to set the Matter Reference field to something unique that indicates it is a test record. Calling it "Test" works great. This provides an easy way to test functionality, settings, and your workflow without the risk of altering an important record while you experiment and test your custom configuration.

Editing a Field’s List-of-Values

Use case

Forms in HoudiniEsq consist of buttons, entry fields, memo fields, check-boxes, selectors, and dropdown fields. These are the application’s core fields. Core fields can be edited, re-labeled, have triggers and rules assigned, and be customized. One of the first areas that are typically customized are the list-of-values in the dropdown fields.

Example Let’s take a look at the Practice Area dropdown field of the Matter form.

A legal team may handle many practice areas. What if you need to add or remove some of these practice areas? HoudiniEsq makes this painless and easy.

If you are a member of the Admin group you can edit any dropdown field’s list-of-values to suit your needs. 

Whenever you see a dropdown with a wrench icon adjacent to the field’s label that means the field is editable. It is also an indicator that you are a member of the Admin group since only Admins can customize the application. 

 The image below depicts the fields of the classification area of the matter form. You can edit the list-of-values in the fields displaying a wrench icon by using the enter key.

Editing list-of-values

Place your cursor in any dropdown field displaying a wrench icon. Select an existing value and hit the enter key to edit. If the value you want doesn’t exist, enter a name and hit the enter key. The enter key opens the configuration form as depicted in this image. Choose your options and click save. To quickly add values simply enter a name in any dropdown field and hit the enter key twice.

Creating Supplemental Forms

Introduction

Records+ (records-plus) are supplemental forms you create for any purpose. You can define forms that collect creditor information, medical records, doctor appointments kept, etc. You can add as many fields as you like and there is no limit to the number of forms you can create. Supported field types are date, text, memo, dropdowns, checkboxes and more. You can even add triggers so when data is entered or the user performs an action the form can complete workflow, send emails, notify staff, calendar events, set values in fields, and more. Each form can optionally be linked to a related party of the matter and you can generate documents from the data contained in your supplemental forms.

Use case

Let’s look at a bankruptcy example. The matter form collects details about the case, client, parties, billing, etc. However, a bankruptcy case requires that you record a list of creditors, associated account numbers, balances, and due dates. Where do you put all this vital information? In competing products they expect you to add this info to your matter form as a collection of custom fields. This works of course if you have just a single creditor but clutters your matter form. Now imagine having to record 20 creditors. What a mess. This is where Records+ comes in. You create a single form to collect the creditor name, account number, balance, and due date. Then use this form whenever you need to add creditor information to a matter. HoudiniEsq’s form extensibility reduces redundancy, reduces risk, and puts you in control of your data.

Use Records+ whenever you need to record a collection of repetitive data such as medical exams, liens, real property, creditors, etc. 

Getting Started

Step 1 To view the supplemental records list select a matter.

Step 2 Click Records+ in the Artifacts ribbon.

Step 3 Click New in the supplemental records list.

1. Classify your form

The fields you will be creating for the form are linked to a classification. The classification consists of a Type, Subtype and Status Code. The subtype and status are optional. The name of the record type is arbitrary but necessary. Every record in HoudiniEsq must be classified. When you select the form’s classification the associated fields assigned to the classification are displayed.

The image below depicts a supplemental form in edit mode for collecting Creditor info. Name, Account, Amount, and Due have been added as custom fields.

If a record type, subtype or status does not exits it can be added easily. See the Editing a Fields List-of -Values tutorial.

2. Adding fields to forms

Be sure to set the form’s classification by selecting the type, subtype, and status code prior to any customization. Remember, what you customize will be tied/linked to the selected classification.

2.1 To add fields to the form click the Wrench icon in the upper right hand corner of the form. This will place the form in edit mode. You know you are in edit mode when a yellow dashed area appears in the form as depicted in the image below.

2.2 Click New in the Field Detail area left of the form to add a new field to the dashed area. Select any field to expose the field’s detail. In the image below the user has selected the Creditor field. You can add any number of fields to this area for any purpose. You can drag your fields into any position or order within the outlined area of the form.

Remember to set field widths when necessary so your forms are neat and well organized. Use titles, labels, and tooltips when appropriate. 

3. Exit edit mode

Click the Wrench icon once again to exit the form’s edit mode. Your supplemental form is ready for use.

Did you know

You can use workflow to manage docket alerts and the production of work product either in draft form or as a finished deliverable. You define the workflow and docket once and HoudiniEsq does the rest. HoudiniEsq Workflow and Docketing make for a powerhouse of automation that reduces risk and streamlines your workload. Learn more HoudiniEsq Workflow. Workflow Tutorial

Customizing Matter Forms

1. Classify your form

The fields you will be creating for the form are linked to the record’s classification. The classification consists of a Type, Subtype and Status Code. The subtype and status are optional. The name of the record type is arbitrary but necessary. Every record in HoudiniEsq must be classified. When you select the form’s classification the associated fields assigned to the classification are displayed. Select your form’s classification and move on to step 2.

Classifying Records
Best Practice

A record's classification is one of its most important set of data elements.

A record's classification is the record's type, subtype, and status code.

You can classify most records whatever you like. However, there are some best practices that should be followed when it comes to Matter records. A matter's record type is typically the practice area. For example, Criminal, Family Law, or Personal Injury. The records are further broken down by subtype. A criminal case may have the following subtypes, Assault, Larceny, DUI, etc. Personal Injury might have Auto, Work, Product Defects, and so on. When you create a subtype it is tied/linked to the selected type at the time of creation. The same is true for the record's status code. Everything you customize is tied/linked to the record's classification.

If a record type, subtype or status does not exits it can be added easily. See the Editing a Fields List-of -Values tutorial.

2. Adding fields to forms

Be sure to set the form’s classification by selecting the type, subtype, and status code prior to any customization. Remember, what you customize will be tied/linked to the selected classification.

2.1 To add fields to the form click the Wrench icon in the upper right hand corner of the form. This will place the form in edit mode. You know you are in edit mode when a yellow dashed area appears in the form as depicted in the image below.

2.2 Click New in the Field Detail area left of the form to add a new field to the from’s dashed area. Select any field to expose the field’s detail. In the image above the user has selected a field called “A new custom field to call my own”. You can add any number of fields to this area for any purpose. You can drag your fields into any position or order within the outlined area of the form.

Core fields that can be edited or customized have a dotted outline such as the User Date fields as depicted in the image above.

Remember to set field widths when necessary so your forms are neat and well organized. Use titles, labels, and tooltips when appropriate. 

3. Exit edit mode

Click the Wrench icon once again to exit the form’s edit mode. Your supplemental form is ready for use.

Did you know

You can assign triggers to fields. Triggers fire when a user performs a task or action. A trigger can send an email, notify staff, calendar events, enter values into fields and more. For more details on adding triggers to fields see the Field Trigger Tutorial

Customizing Contact Forms

1. Classify your form

The fields you will be creating for the form are linked to the record’s classification. The classification consists of a Type, Subtype and Status Code. The subtype and status are optional. The name of the record type is arbitrary but necessary. Every record in HoudiniEsq must be classified. When you select the form’s classification the associated fields assigned to the classification are displayed. Select your form’s classification and move on to step 2.

 

Classifying Records
Best Practice

Classify your contact records by contact type not their role.

A record's classification is the record type, subtype, and status code.

You can classify most records whatever you like. However, there are some best practices that should be followed when it comes to Contact records. Contact records never have a type of "Client". The contact record's type should reflect the type of contact not the role of the contact, e.g. Prospect, Attorney, etc. When you add the contact as a party to the matter is when you define the contact's role on the matter such as Client, Witness, or Opposing Counsel. The reason is a Contact can technically have different roles in matters. For example, you may represent a client on one matter and the same contact is a witness or beneficiary on another so setting a contact record type to "Client" isn't best practice.

If a record type, subtype or status does not exits it can be added easily. See the Editing a Fields List-of -Values tutorial.

2. Adding fields to forms

Be sure to set the form’s classification by selecting the type, subtype and status code prior to any customization. What you customize is tied/linked to the selected classification.

2.1 To add fields to the form click the Wrench icon in the upper right hand corner of the form. This will place the form in edit mode. You know you are in edit mode when a yellow dashed area appears in the form as depicted in the image below.

2.2 Click New in the Field Detail area left of the form to add a new field to the dashed area. Select any field to expose the field’s detail. In the image below the user has selected the Creditor field. You can add any number of fields to this area for any purpose. You can drag your fields into any position or order within the outlined area of the form.

Remember to set field widths when necessary so your forms are neat and well organized. Use titles, labels, and tooltips when appropriate.

3. Exit edit mode

Click the Wrench icon once again to exit the form’s edit mode. Your custom contact form is ready for use.

Did you know

You can assign triggers to fields. Triggers fire when a user performs a task or action. A trigger can send an email, notify staff, calendar events, enter values into fields and more. For more details on adding triggers to fields see the Field Trigger Tutorial

Admin Tutorials

How do I add Field Triggers?

Field Triggers can send emails, notify staff, calendar events, enter data into fields, and more. Triggers go beyond field level. You can apply triggers to the matter, contact and event forms, your custom forms custom fields, and workflow.

"Whether in the Cloud or In-house, HoudiniEsq is the most effective way to manage a law practice."

Jackie Bales CNBC

"A great innovation for the department. We handle over 100,000 cases annually. HoudiniEsq has made the department more effective and efficient. The department saves over $750,000 annually."

Phyllis Cheng Esq. DirectorDepartment of Fair Employment and Housing

HoudiniEsq Knowledge Base

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Getting Started

Getting Acquainted with the User Interface

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

The HoudiniEsq Office 365 Plugin has several tabs at the top:

  • Settings: This is where you can go to change your login information and cloud server settings as described in the HoudiniEsq Add-In Setup section we just mentioned.
  • Document: This tab will allow you will allow you to either Open or Upload a file.
  • Template: This tab allows you to either Open an existing HoudiniEsq document template, or Insert Fields from HoudiniEsq in order to create a new template.
    • Uploading templates is currently not supported by the Office 365 add-in, however any templates created with the Insert Field function can be uploaded manually through the web interface. For more information on how, consult this article.
  • Merge: This tab will allow you to merge Matter information from an existing HoudiniEsq document template into a finished document.
  • Timer: This tab will allow you to start and stop a timer in order to track your progress while working on documents using the add-in.

Opening Documents

How to Open Existing Files in HoudiniEsq

To open a file from HoudiniEsq, select the Document tab from HoudiniEsq menu and then select the Open option.

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

Next, follow these steps:

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

 

  • Begin typing a matter reference in the Matter field. Once you stop typing, the system will return matters that match the searching criteria.
  • After you select a matter from the list, the file drop down list will be enabled allowing you to select a Document Type.
  • Once a Type has been specified, the File field will appear with a list of files for the selected matter. Select a file and click Open.

Note – you should only open Microsoft Word files. Other file types may or may not be supported.

 

 

Saving Documents

How to Save a Document to HoudiniEsq

To save a file to HoudiniEsq server, select the Document tab and then select the Save option from HoudiniEsq menu.

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

You will then have a number of options:

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

  • File Name will allow you to specify the name for the file in HoudiniEsq. This field is required.
  • Check “Private File” checkbox if this file is private. This means that no other users will be able to access this file except you.
  • Matter field will be filled in automatically if the file is already linked to a matter in HoudiniEsq. Otherwise, please search for the matter that this file is related to.
  • Document Type dropdown is the list of document types available in your system. It will be automatically filled in if the document has a type associated with it. You can create document types in the Setting. The Document Subtype dropdown will automatically appear if the selected document type has subtypes defined.
  • You can add text in the Bates field to specify a Bates number if applicable.
  • The Memo field will allow you to add any additional information about the document you feel is relevant, such as revision notes or instructions for other users.
  • Check the “Billable Event” checkbox and select a task name and the time you spent if this is a billable event. The system will automatically create a time entry for you.
  • If you have Google Drive sync setup you can sync this document there as well using the checkbox.

Click Save to save the file. You will receive a confirmation if it is saved successfully.

Inserting Template Fields

How to Add Merge Fields from HoudiniEsq to Your Document

Note: You can find more information about document templates and how to manage them, including how to create them without the use of Microsoft Word, via this article: http://help.houdiniesq.com/knowledge-base/document-templates/

Templates allow you to insert ‘tokens’, or merge fields, into a Word document. A token is a placeholder for a particular value. Example ‘Client-first-name’. The Word document allows you to place these tokens into your document so that these values will automatically be placed in there.

Please note that currently, templates cannot be saved to HoudiniEsq using the Office 365 Add-In. You must save them in .ODT document format and then upload them to HoudiniEsq through the web interface. For more information on how to save a document template via HoudiniEsq, click here.

  • To create a template start with either a blank Word document or open an already existing template.
  • Click the Template section of the add-in, and select Insert Field to add tokens.
  • Select the Category of the field you want to add, such a Matter, Contact or Organization information. If Contact is selected you can also specify a Contact Relationship as well (such as Client, Attorney) to select that specific contact's information to merge.
  • Then, select the Field you wish to add from the list. This includes custom field data too.
  • Additionally, you can also add a Conditional Statement by selecting the field, checking “Conditional Statement” and then selecting your data comparator, and the result you are comparing.
  • When ready to add your field token to the document, click Insert Field.

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

You can also Open an existing template by selecting Document from the menu, then selecting Open. Select the Type of template you wish to open as well as the name of the Template, and click "Open". This can allow you to view example templates as well as modify existing ones which have already been added to the system.

Generating Documents

Creating Documents from Pre-Existing Templates in HoudiniEsq

To generate a document for a particular matter using matter specific data from a template, select the "Merge" option from the HoudiniEsq Add-in menu.

 

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

 

  • Then, select the Type of document you wish to generate, along with the specific template.
  • Select the Matter you wish to generate the document for. This Matter will be used as a basis for all merge tokens in the template.
  • Once ready to create your document, click Generate Document. The document will open in a new tab if you are using Office 365 online, or a new window in Word 2019.
  • A copy of your document will also be added to the Docs list for the Matter in HoudiniEsq.

 

Timer

Utilizing the Built-In Timer to Track Work

HoudiniEsq Office 365 Add-In for HoudiniEsq Legal Practice Management

For your convenience, the HoudiniEsq Office 365 Word Add-In also includes a timer that can be used to track time spent working on documents, or anything else. Select "Timer" from the add-in menu, then click Start to begin the timer. This timer will continue to run even if you minimize Word 2019 or switch to a new tab in your browser while using Office 365. Once you are ready to stop the timer, click the Stop button. You can reset the timer by clicking the Reset button at any time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Beyond the basics but in byte size chunks of information.

Configuration

Installation and setup
 

Customization

Visualize your data intuitively

Developers

API and SDK