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Using
Clients for Litigation
By John Paul Kemp
WHAT THIS PAPER CONTAINS
“Using Clients Case Management for Litigation.” was one of
the main themes at the upcoming September training in Memphis This is
the first time we’ve used this theme for a training. This was also
the theme of a mini-session I was asked to do at the Southeast Project
Directors Meeting.
LITIGATION USING CLIENTS CASE MANAGEMENT
Computerized case management has two major ways of helping an advocate
with litigation. The first in a Macro or caseload view of what is happening.
The second helps the advocate with the Mini or individual client service
view.
The following describes twenty-one reports and procedures to help you
with litigation on both a Macro and Mini level. Although Clients Case
Management contains literally hundreds of reports and procedures, I’ve
included this brief sampling to give you an idea of what is possible.
Some may not work if you haven’t entered the necessary information,
(e.g. you haven’t put in Agencies, the counties they work in or
the subjects they handle). Others might not work because you didn’t
purchase the add-in module (Intake Question System and Frequent Advice).
This paper also assumes you are using version 2000 of Clients, although
many of these features are included in the older versions.
MACRO VIEW
Offices have been gathering information for years but seldom use it. The
primary use of old information is Context. Macro information from case
management is seldom useful unless viewed in context. For example, knowing
that your office did 400 landlord tenant cases this year tells you very
little. However if you know that it did 200 cases two years ago and 300
last year, the information becomes much more valuable.
1. Find all my open Landlord Tenant cases in three clicks
Advocates need to manage their caseloads
a. Click on the Search tab
b. Click on the Advocate Button
c. Select your staff number from the pull down
d. Click on a Problem Code 63 and click on “Filter By Selection”
e. Click on a Date Closed that is blank and click on “Filter By
Selection” (all your open Landlord Tenant cases appear)
f. Click on a city you want excluded and click on “Filter Excluding
Selection” (only open Landlord Tenant cases NOT in that city will
be displayed)
2. Show how long it took to close all Landlord Tenant cases last year
Velocity in a caseload is more important than volume.
a. Click on the Report Tab
b. Click on the first button, Clients Case Reports
c. Go to General Reports and select the report, “Days a Case Remained
Open”
d. Click on the QBF button
e. Enter 63 next to problem code
f. Optional (next to date closed or date opened, enter a date range such
as 1/1/00-12/31/00)
g. Click on “Make Query”
h. Click on “Produce Form”
3. Show all cases that haven’t been looked at by advocates in 180
days
Many offices have a policy that every case needs to be reviewed every
so many days. If a case is reviewed, there should be a time sheet for
it.
a. Click on the Activity Tab
b. Click on the Check for Errors Combo Box
c. Click on the “Open Cases with No Time in Period” report
d. Enter number of days back, e.g., 180
e. All open cases with no time entered in the last 180 show up
4. Show cases handled in the last year by Problem Code
What did your office handle last year? Does it follow your priorities?
a. Click on the Report Tab
b. Click on the Client Case Reports Button
c. Click on the Non QBF Case Reports combo box
d. Click on “Case Activity for time period by Pcode”
e. Enter in dates and then S for Staff Cases
f. This shows cases active during your time period by problem code, how
many were open at the beginning date and how many were open on your ending
date.
5. Show cases handled in last year by Advocate
What is the gross overview of numbers of cases handled by your advocates?
a. Click on the Report Tab
b. Click on the Client Case Reports Button
c. Click on the Non QBF Case Reports combo box
d. Click on “Case Activity for time period by Staff Number”
e. Enter in dates and then S for Staff Cases
f. This shows cases active during your time period by advocate, how many
were open at the beginning date and how many were open on your ending
date.
6. Show cases that have Good Stories – Cases resulting in excellent
results
It’s time for the Annual Report or a report to a funder. How can
you find those great cases that you did?
a. The second page of the client intake sheet has a check box called Good
Story. Make sure some have been checked.
b. Click on the Report Tab
c. Click on the first button, Clients Case Reports
d. Go to General Reports and select the report, “Basic Tabular Reports
for Clients”.
e. Click on the QBF button
f. Click on the Good Stories Button
g. Optional other criteria (next to date closed or date opened, enter
a date range such as 1/1/00-12/31/00)
h. Click on “Make Query”
i. Click on “Produce Form”
j. This is a list of cases that have good stories checked. You can copy
the case numbers from each (Ctrl-C) and paste them into the Search Tab
for Client cases (press Case Number button then Ctrl-V) to look at each.
7. Show a graph of our open case load for use in Board Meeting
Graphs communicate much better than raw numbers. Show what you’ve
done in such a way that people can understand at a glance. Some directors
do board books for their board members.
a. Click on the Reports Tab
b. Click on the Client Case Reports Button
c. Click on the Graphs button
d. A graph appears, click on the Report tab and select Open Cases by Subject
Area
e. Enter S for Staff Cases
f. Play with the other pull downs to modify the graph
g. Single click on the graph so small blocks appear around the outside
h. Press Ctrl-C to copy graph.
i. Open a new Word (or Word Perfect) document. Press Ctrl-V to paste the
graph into the new document.
j. Change to landscape in Word (if you wish), size the graph and add a
text explaining its meaning.
8. Look at how much of our funding was spent in each major problem code
area based on number of cases
How much of your funding money was spent in each problem area based upon
numbers of cases?
a. Click on the Reports Tab
b. Click on the Client Case Reports Button
c. Click on the “Cost per Case for a Period of Time”
d. Enter funding amount, e.g., 500,000, next to “$ Funding in Time
Period”.
e. Optional (next to date closed or date opened, enter a date range such
as 1/1/00-12/31/00). Enter a number next to Funding code to limit to a
specific funding code.
f. Press “Make Query”
g. Press “Produce Form”
9. Look at how much of our funding was spent in each major problem code
area based on number of hours
How much of your funding money was spent in each problem area based upon
numbers of hours of work?
a. Click on the Reports Tab
b. Click on the Client Case Reports Button
c. Click on the “Cost per Hour for a Period of Time”
d. Enter funding amount, e.g., 500,000, next to “$ Funding in Time
Period”.
e. Optional (next to date closed or date opened, enter a date range such
as 1/1/00-12/31/00). Enter a number next to Funding code to limit to a
specific funding code.
f. Press “Make Query”
g. Press “Produce Form”
10. Take a look at time records for cases handled by an Advocate
How much time is being spent by an advocate and how is it being spent?
a. Click on Report Tab
b. Click on Reports on Other Tables, Select Ttime
c. Select Available Reports and click on Time by Advocate and Case
d. Put in an Advocate’s number
e. Select “Make Query” and “Produce Form”
11. Take at look at the Main Benefits for Clients
Besides the gross reasons closed, what actual benefits did you get for
the client?
a. Click on the Reports Tab
b. Click on the Main Benefit Button
c. Click on the Search Button to look at all cases that have a Main Benefit
entered
d. Use the boxes to limit the report to certain funding codes, etc. You
have to press the Search Button to refresh the report.
12. Map the any data from case management
a. Get a copy of Microsoft MapPoint
b. Use a make table query to create a table with data you want.
c. Link to table in MapPoint and generate graph.
MICRO VIEW
This view of litigation uses case management for helping individual clients.
These reports focus on what technology can do to help a particular applicant
or client.
1. Find if we’ve opposed a particular adverse party before
Is this landlord a problem for our clients?
a. Go to the Search Tab
b. Select the Conflict choice
c. Note the Adverse Party button is pressed. Type in a last name (or organization
such as “Joe’s Used Cars”, this assumes your staff have
been consistent in entering the organization’s name in the adverse
party last name field) and tap Enter.
d. Note the list of cases for all the adverse parties with that last name.
2. Pull up specific legal questions to ask clients and advice to the
advocate and client on how to handle a case
You’ve got new attorneys and volunteers doing intake. Make sure
the quality of representation a client gets is not so dependant on who
they talk to.
a. Check to see if Main Menu has an Intake Sys. Tab, if not you don’t
have this feature.
b. Use Search Tab to open client with L-T case, Pcode 63.
c. Go to special problem code on second page and change to needed repairs
d. Click on the Intake System button.
e. If the example data is there, a list of questions to ask the client
about needed repairs will show up. Fill this out and click on the Print
Button.
f. Click on the Navigation button at the bottom of the page to go to the
last page of the questions. Note there is a signature line for the client
to turn this into a signed fact statement.
g. Close the print example and click on the Frequent Advice button. This
brings up advice to the advocate and client on how to handle this type
h. The Intake Sys Tab allows you to set these questions and advice. You
can get examples of these from other states or programs within your own
state.
3. Help our clients with non-legal remedies
Sometimes the non-legal help we provide our clients is more important
than the legal remedies we provide.
a. Click on the Search Tab
b. Click on Agencies
c. Click on Counties and choose one, all agencies in that county show
d. Click on Subject and choose one, all agencies in the that county that
handle that type of problem show
4. Keep your case notes on a case
This allows anyone to check the status of a case while you’re out
and lets you search for things such as ‘home repair scams’
if you use the phrase consistently.
a. Open a client intake sheet from the Search Tab
b. Go to the Notes using top line Tab.
c. Press the Date Button and enter you case notes. Put in an unusual word.
d. Close the case and go to the Search Tab.
e. Go to Clients
f. Press Summary button.
g. Type in the unusual word and tap Enter
h. The case should show up on the Search Screen.
5. Discontinue use of ‘Chron’ sheets in paper files
Time keeping is actually the same as keeping a ‘Chron’ sheet.
Don’t do double work!
a. Open a client intake sheet that you know has time sheets entered from
the Search Tab
b. Go to the Intake Page 3 using top line Tab.
c. Click on the Case Time button
d. This shows all the time records in the case
e. Press print to print out the list
6. Set up standard schedule to help clients with specific problems
Remind yourself to take certain steps in particular types of cases, such
as admin law, where there are deadlines to meet.
a. Use Search Tab to open client with L-T case, Pcode 63.
b. Go to special problem code on second page and change to needed repairs
c. Go to Intake Page 3 and click on the Way Points button.
d. If the example data is there, the Waypoint form will open that allows
you to automatically enter up to six dates in the calendar will show up.
e. You can change the advocate, the starting date and the individual’s
reasons and date for this case.
7. Send out special opening ‘form’ letters to clients
Why use just as single form letter? Why not a specific letter for each
type of major problem?
a. Open a client intake sheet from the Search Tab
b. Go to the Intake Page 3 using top line Tab.
c. Click on the Form Letter button
d. Select a special Opening letter you created using the Forms Tab for
Domestic Violence Clients (or use standard opening letter).
e. Click on the Add Text? Button and add custom text.
f. Decide on where the custom text appears (top or bottom) by clicking.
g. Decide on letterhead.
h. Click on Print for Preview of letter.
8. Use the litigation feature to track courts and parties
How does a judge rule on cases where the client is black? What courts
are we most active in?
a. Open a client intake sheet from the Search Tab
b. Go to the Intake Page 3 using top line Tab.
c. Click on the Litigation button
d. Note the ability to store judges names
e. Note the ability to store parties’ names (can be used to store
children’s names).
f. Reports available under the Report Tab – Reports on Other Tables
– Litigation
9. Avoid painful monitoring visits using the CLASP audit button
Use of this button was instrumental in having a team of ten monitors from
LSC completing their work at a program early.
a. Open a client intake sheet from the Search Tab
b. Go to the Intake Page 3 using top line Tab.
c. Click on the CLASP button
d. Note the ability to have a different staff member fill out
e. Click on Print to see preview of the audit form
f. Include a print out for each case when closed
10. Track ‘custom’ information for funding sources using
the Special Program feature
Case management never gathers all the information your thirty-five sources
of funding want. Create custom intake sheets for each funder that needs
one, without modifying the base case management system.
a. Open a client intake sheet from the Search Tab
b. Go to Intake Page 3 using top line Tab.
c. Go to Special Program pull down
d. Select VOCA to see an example Special Program Intake
e. Close form and select Title III to see a second example
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