Guides / AI prompts for lawyers
The prompt took ten seconds. Checking the answer is the job.
Six prompts for the tasks lawyers hand to AI most often, each ready to copy into Claude, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot or Gemini, with the mistakes to check for.
Every prompt below asks the AI to quote the words it relies on and to say where it is unsure, because that is what makes the answer quick to check. New to prompts? Read Your first prompt first.
Contract first pass against your positions
Use when a new agreement arrives and you want a list of departures before you read it closely.
You are assisting in-house counsel. We are the [CUSTOMER / VENDOR]. Review the attached agreement against these positions: [PASTE YOUR POSITIONS]. Return a table: Clause number | What the clause says (quoted) | Our position | Departure | Risk (high, medium, low) | Suggested response. Cover every section, including schedules and order forms. List any document the agreement refers to but does not include. Do not invent clauses. Say where the text is unclear or where you are unsure.
What to check: Clause numbers that do not exist, schedules skipped, and "acceptable" ratings on clauses you have not read yourself.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
Explain a clause in plain language
Use before a call, or when the business asks what a clause means for them.
Explain the clause below to a non-lawyer reader on our side. Cover: what it requires, who it protects, what happens if it is breached, and how it interacts with any clause it refers to. Quote the words you rely on for each point. Then list what you cannot tell from this clause alone. [PASTE THE CLAUSE AND ANY CLAUSE IT CROSS-REFERS TO]
What to check: A defined term read in its everyday sense instead of as the agreement defines it.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
Summary for the business
Use when a stakeholder needs the commercial picture, not the legal analysis.
Summarize the attached agreement for [READER, FOR EXAMPLE THE SALES LEAD] in under 200 words. Include: parties, term and renewal, notice periods, fees and payment, liability cap, and anything unusual. Give the clause number for each point. End with the three questions the reader should ask before signing.
What to check: Renewal and notice dates, and anything left out that the reader would care about.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
Issues list from a markup
Use when the other side returns a marked-up draft.
Compare the two attached versions of the agreement. List every change, including small wording changes, as a table: Clause | Original text | New text | Effect on us | Accept, reject or discuss. Flag any change that is not shown as a tracked change. Do not summarize; list each change separately.
What to check: Silent changes outside the tracked edits, and changes to defined terms that ripple through other clauses.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
Reply email on a contested point
Use after you have decided your position and need first-draft wording.
Draft a short reply email to [COUNTERPARTY ROLE] on clause [NUMBER]. Our position: [YOUR POSITION AND THE REASON]. Tone: courteous and direct. Lead with our position, give one reason, and propose [FALLBACK, IF ANY]. Keep it under 150 words. Do not concede anything I have not stated.
What to check: Concessions the draft adds on its own, and statements that promise more than you can verify.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
Check your own draft
Use before a draft goes out.
Review the attached draft for: undefined or inconsistently used defined terms, broken cross-references, numbering errors, and obligations with no party, deadline or consequence. Return a table: Location | Issue | Suggested fix. Do not rewrite the document.
What to check: Cross-references it calls broken that read correctly in context. Check each one where it sits.
Test status: test pending. Results will appear in the update log.
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Agent Kit 1
The contract first pass run from one instruction, with three review points.
See the kitBased on U.S. law and practice. Adapt it to your jurisdiction before use. Information and tools only, not legal advice. Run the safe to paste questions before any confidential material goes into an AI tool.