How Filevine’s New DraftAI Cuts Out Hours Of Writing Work – Above the Law

After
years
of
being
a
market

leader
in
case
management
software,
Filevine

has
built
a
reputation
for
making
lawyers’
jobs
easier. 

From
data
entry
to
document
management,
the
software
applies
AI
to
every
layer
of
your
case
to
save
countless
billable
hours. 

Now,
with
its
new
DraftAI
feature,
Filevine
transforms
your
creation
of
legal
documents,
too.

A
user
can
use
natural
language
instructions
to
draft,
edit
or
modify
any
kind
of
document
without
leaving
the
security
of
the
Filevine
system,
said
John
Rizner,
Product
Manager
at
Filevine. 

During
a
recent
demonstration,
Rizner
showed
us
how. 


Getting
Started


Filevine Produce Review Screenshot 1

From
the
Filevine
dashboard,
the
scope
of
its
abilities
quickly
becomes
clear.
On
the
left
is
a
customizable
menu
where
users
can
easily
navigate
all
aspects
of
their
practice. 

Behind
the
scenes,
firms
that
already
have
their
own
in-house
templates
for
demand
letters,
settlement
agreements,
labor
contracts,
loan
terms,
etc.,
can
have
those
templates
populated
with
information
straight
from
the
case
files,
using
DraftAI.
Select
the
type
of
document
you
need,
click
Generate,
and
a
document
assembly
tool
populates
the
template
with
information
from
the
case
file.



Applying
AI
to
Document
Generation

In
the
past,
a
lawyer
or
paralegal
would
then
have
to
manually
type
hundreds
if
not
thousands
of
words
to
fill
out
the
specifics
of
the
case.
With
DraftAI,
it
takes
seconds.

Using
what
looks
like
a
chatbot
at
the
bottom
right,
users
can
ask
Filevine
to
help
complete
the
document.
Depending
on
a
firm’s
configurations
and
integrations,
Rizner
noted,
DraftAI
can
function
as
an
enhanced
version
of
ChatGPT
or
Microsoft
Copilot
that
only
uses
information
found
in
that
case’s
notes,
text
messages,
emails,
activity
feed
and
uploaded
documents.


He
demonstrated
a
request
for
adding
basic

Whereas

clauses
that
are
specific
to
the
case.
Filevine
dropped
them
into
the
document.

“Our
AI
tool
looks
at
the
document,
looks
at
what
actions
can
be
taken,
and
tries
to
understand
the
user’s
request,”
Rizner
said.
“Then
it
applies
them
and
highlights
the
changes
it
makes.”

The
user
can
also
ask
it
to
make
several
changes
at
once.
For
instance,
if
you
need
every
definition
put
in
boldface
type,
you
can
type
it
into
the
chatbot.

The
versions
can
be
compared
side
by
side,
with
each
iteration
saved
in
the
system.



Drafting
a
Case
Narrative

The
system
goes
much
further
than
modifying
boilerplate.

Rizner
said
DraftAI
reaches
into
every
part
of
the
Filevine
case
file
to
gather
facts
and
help
draft
the
narrative
of
the
case. 

He
offered
the
example
of
personal
injury
firms
in
the
early
testing
group
that
used
DraftAI
to
generate
fact
sections
in
demand
letters.
At
one,
a
paralegal
needed
to
describe
the
mileage
burden
a
client
faced
when
attending
medical
appointments. 

The
information
that
supported
the
point
was
scattered
across
different
areas
of
the
case
file,
and
DraftAI
gathered
it.
This
helped
the
paralegal
estimate
the
value
of
the
travel’s
impact
on
the
client
to
help
write
the
proposed
settlement. 


“Instead
of
having
to
go
through
that
process
of
sifting
through
the
data,
reviewing
and
writing,
they
can
have
this
tooling
kind
of
take
those
actions
for
them,”
Rizner
said.

Then
attorneys
can
dedicate
their
time
to
reviewing
and
finalizing
the
document.


A
Tool
for
Every
Practice
Area

Rizner
said
many
of
Filevine’s
users
have
been
personal
injury
firms,
but
DraftAI
is
designed
to
apply
to
every
area
of
the
law.


In
the
case
of
employment
law,
for
example,
firms
always
have
similar
starting
points
for
a
negotiation.
DraftAI
can
pull
in
those
details,
along
with
notes
about
conversations
from
the
case,
interviews
with
the
client
and
text
messages
with
coworkers,
to
present
the
facts
to
a
company. 

DraftAI
can
include
lists
or
tables
in
the
document,
and
each
section
can
be
edited
independently.
Different
permissions
can
be
created
to
collaborate
with
others
in
the
firm,
giving
lawyers
total
control
over
the
finished
product.
The
system
is
infinitely
customizable
to
whatever
a
firm
needs
in
any
practice
area,
Rizner
said.

Once
a
document
is
drafted,
the
action
is
tracked
in
FVDA/Outlaw. 
Every
action
going
forward
is
tracked
as
the
document
is
redlined
within
the
system,
and
the
same
chat
window
can
be
used
to
query
anything
about
the
case. 


It
all
happens
within
the
secure
environment
of
the
Filevine
space,
Rizner
said.

“Your
case
data
remains
with
Filevine’s
secure
environment,
which
for
our
customers
is
important
for
the
privacy
and
legal
ethics
that
they
require,”
he
said. 


To
schedule
a
personalized
demo,
click
here.

From Pilot To Playbook: How One Nonprofit Reaped The Benefits Of AI – Above the Law

What
happens
when
a
nonprofit
embraces
AI
not
for
the
hype,
but
for
the
help?

In
the
latest
episode
of
the
UpLevel
View
podcast,
Brandi
Pack
and
Ken
Callander
of
UpLevel
Ops
sit
down
with
Cristal
Cardenas
Sanchez
and
Marissa
La
Brecque
of
the
nonprofit
Hanna
Center
to
talk
about
how
their
grassroots
AI
pilot
turned
into
a
full
2026
roadmap.


Keep
It
Simple
(at
First)

An
effective
start
for
your
AI
use
involves
a
simple
pen
and
paper.
Here,
Brandi
shares
her
system
for
bringing
in
AI.


Transformative
ROI

Hanna
Center
tracked
the
savings
from
its
implementation
of
ChatGPT.
Here,
Cristal
shares
what
the
numbers
show.


Taming
Your
Paperwork

A
nonprofit
like
the
Hanna
Center,
which
has
many
layers
of
oversight,
must
complete
large
amounts
of
paperwork.
Here,
Marissa
shares
what’s
changed
since
bringing
on
new
technology.


Hear
the
Full
Conversation

Curious
to
learn
more?
Check
out
this
episode
below.

Top 50 Biglaw Firm Offers Associates Bonuses On Top Of Bonuses On Top Of Bonuses, Up To $218K! – Above the Law

Biglaw
firms
have
largely
fallen
in
line
with
the
prevailing
market
rate
(i.e.,
the
Cravath/Milbank
scale
for

year-end

and

special
bonuses
)
this
cycle,
with
match
announcements
rolling
in
one
after
another
as
firms
play
it
safe
and
stick
to
the
script.
One
Biglaw
firm
that’s
offering
compensation
far
beyond
market
for
its
highest
achievers
made
its
announcement
earlier
this
month,
but
we’re
just
hearing
about
it
now.

Sources
tell
us
that
on
December
4,
Morrison
&
Foerster

a
firm
that
brought
in
$1,410,430,000
gross
revenue
in
2024,
putting
it
at
No.
40
on
the
Am
Law
100

announced
that
it
would
be
offering
the
prevailing
market
rate
for
both
year-end
and
special
bonuses.
On
top
of
their
base
bonuses,
associates
at
the
firm
are
also
eligible
to
receive
not
one,
but two additional
bonuses
on
top
of
their
special
bonus
payments.
Here’s
what
the
bonus
grid
looks
like
at
the
firm:

Now
THIS
is
a
law
firm
that’s
willing
to
go
above
and
beyond
to
offer
compensation
incentives
to
reward
its
hardworking
attorneys.

As
noted
in
the
firm’s
bonus
memo,
this
“bonus
structure
allows
us
to
generously
reward
our
highest-performing
associates.”
MoFo’s
most
senior
associates
will
have
the
opportunity
to
walk
away
with
bonuses
up
to
$218,200,
which
is
a
fantastic
way
to
end
the
year.

Associates
at
MoFo
will
see
their
bonuses
come
February
13,
2026.
Congratulations
to
everyone
at
Morrison
&
Foerster!

Remember
everyone,
we
depend
on
your
tips
to
stay
on
top
of
compensation
updates,
so
when
your
firm
announces
or
matches,
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us
 (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Bonus/Matches”).
Please
include
the
memo
if
available.
You
can
take
a
photo
of
the
memo
and
send
it
via
text
or
email
if
you
don’t
want
to
forward
the
original
PDF
or
Word
file.

And
if
you’d
like
to
sign
up
for
ATL’s
Bonus
Alerts
(which
is
the
alert
list
we
also
use
for
salary
announcements),
please
scroll
down
and
enter
your
email
address
in
the
box
below
this
post.
If
you
previously
signed
up
for
the
bonus
alerts,
you
don’t
need
to
do
anything.
You’ll
receive
an
email
notification
within
minutes
of
each
bonus
announcement
that
we
publish.
Thanks
for
your
help!





Staci
Zaretsky
 is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to

email

her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
can
follow
her
on BlueskyX/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
o

Biglaw Firm Targeted By Trump Delights With Associate Bonuses – Above the Law

This
year,
WilmerHale
ponied
up
to fight
the
good
fight
 against
the
Trumpian
Executive
Order

designed
to
break
the
major
law
firm

and
have
them
bend
a
knee
to
Trump
or
extract
a
tremendous
financial
penalty.
WilmerHale’s
strategy
in
standing
up
for
the
rule
of
law
has
been

successful
thus
far
,
so
there’s
lots
to
celebrate
at
the
firm
this
year.

Yesterday,
the
firm
announced
they
are
sharing
the
financial
success
with
the
rank-and-file
attorneys,
in
the
form
of
associate
bonuses.
WilmerHale
is
matching
the
prevailing
market
rate,
according
to
the
below
schedule:

Congratulations
to
everyone
at
the
firm!

Read
the
full
memo
below.

Remember
everyone,
we
depend
on
your
tips
to
stay
on
top
of
compensation
updates,
so
when
your
firm
announces
or
matches,
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us
 (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Bonus/Matches”).
Please
include
the
memo
if
available.
You
can
take
a
photo
of
the
memo
and
send
it
via
text
or
email
if
you
don’t
want
to
forward
the
original
PDF
or
Word
file.

And
if
you’d
like
to
sign
up
for
ATL’s
Bonus
Alerts
(which
is
the
alert
list
we
also
use
for
salary
announcements),
please
scroll
down
and
enter
your
email
address
in
the
box
below
this
post.
If
you
previously
signed
up
for
the
bonus
alerts,
you
don’t
need
to
do
anything.
You’ll
receive
an
email
notification
within
minutes
of
each
bonus
announcement
that
we
publish.
Thanks
for
your
help!




Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of

The
Jabot
podcast
,
and
co-host
of

Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer
.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email

her

with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter

@Kathryn1
 or
Mastodon

@[email protected].

The ‘Koozie’ People Bullied A Wooden Drink Sleeve Product, ‘Woodzie’, Into A Name Change – Above the Law

I’ve
said
it
roughly
a
zillion
times: trademark
bullying
 exists
because
it
works.
One
of
the
unfortunate
inequities
of
our
system
is
that
having
a
large
legal
warchest
simply
allows
someone
to
push
around
others
over
trademark
“concerns”
that
aren’t
valid.
The
formula
for
this
is
consistent.
Large
corporate
interest
with
lawyers
at
the
ready
will
police
the
country
for
any
uses
of
a
term
in
any
way
close
to
the
corporation’s
trademark,
and
C&D
its
victim
into
making
a
change,
which
itself
only
happens
because
the
victim
can’t
afford
to
fight
back.
It
sucks,
but
it’s
reality.

But
I’ll
admit
I
didn’t
expect
the
koozie
people to
have
such
a
dirth
of
chill
 over
this
sort
of
thing.
The
Koozie
Group
is
the
company
that
holds
the
trademark
for
the
word
“koozie”,
which
I
didn’t
even
know
was
a
registered
mark.
I
personally
have
always
used
the
term
generically
to
refer
to
a
drink
sleeve.
Better
Wheel
Workshops
makes
drink
sleeves
out
of
wood
and
named
its
product
“the
woodzie”.


Better
Wheel
Workshops
in
Newfane
produces
wood
can
insulators
previously
known
as
“The
Woodzie.”
The
husband
and
wife
team
made
them
for
about
a
decade
until
the
Koozie
Group
filed
a
petition
to
cancel
the
trademark. 


The
Chevaliers
said
they
were
informed
about
a
year-and-a-half
ago
that
Koozie
Group,
a
large
corporation
based
in
Clearwater,
Fla.
that
owns
the
trademark
phrase
“Koozie,”
filed
a
petition
with
the
U.S.
Patent
and
Trademark
Office
to
cancel
“The
Woodzie”
trademark
due
to
potential
confusion.


Now,
the
couple
is
tentatively
changing
the
name
of
the
product
to
“Tree
Sleeve.”
The
website, betterwheelvt.com,
will
stay
and
any
mention
of
“The
Woodzie”
will
be
removed. 


“We
have
until
the
end
of
the
year
for
the
full
switchover,”
Jeff
said.
“We’re
notifying
all
wholesale
partners
of
the
change
in
the
name
and
rebranding
products
in
house.” 

Now,
there
are
a
lot
of
other
companies
out
there
that
are
using
the
term
“koozie”
that
have
nothing
to
do
with
The
Koozie
Group.
You
can
do
a
simple
Google
shopping
search
and
find
them.
I
would
also
argue
that
“The
Woodsie”
is
a
name
and
product
type
that
is
transformative
enough
that
I
have
a
hard
time
believing
any
real
public
confusion
of
association
is
likely.
At
a
minimum,
this
sounds
to
me
like
a
fight
worth
fighting,
all
else
being
equal.

But
that’s
the
point:
all
else
is not equal.
Specifically,
the
ability
to
fight
the
fight
monetarily
is
not
equal.


Jeff
said
the
dispute
cost
his
family
“a
little
in
legal
fees.” 


“And
by
a
little
bit,
I
mean
quite
a
lot
actually,
but
it
is
what
it
is,”
he
said.
“It’s
the
cost
of
doing
business.” 


Jeff
said
“The
Woodzie”
was
trademarked
in
2019
after
being
in
use
since
2015.
The
dispute
with
the
Koozie
Group
began
about
a
year-and-a-half
ago. 
The
family
is
working
with
a
trademark
attorney
on
the
new
name. 


“We
don’t
want
to
go
through
the
same
thing
all
over
again,”
Jeff
said,
“so
we’re
really
trying
to
scrub
the
world
and
make
sure
we’re
not
stepping
on
any
toes.”

It’s
just
too
bad
we
don’t
have
a
better
mechanism
for
the
little
guy
to
fight
back
on
this
sort
of
thing.
I
remain
convinced
that
“koozie”
and
“woodzie”
are
distinct
enough
to
prevent
customer
confusion.
While
“koozie”
is
somewhat
creative
and
fanciful,
it
ultimately
derives
from
“tea
cozy”
in
Britain,
making
the
leap
to
“woodzie”
a
trademark
issue
largely
over
the
letters
“i”
and
“e”.

Given
that
and
the
lack
of
policing
of
the
mark
elsewhere,
this
strikes
me
as
a
fight
that
The
Koozie
Group
didn’t
have
to
start.
But
it
did
and,
because
trademark
bullying
works,
a
smaller
company
did
the
math
and
found
that
caving
was
cheaper
than
fighting.


The
‘Koozie’
People
Bullied
A
Wooden
Drink
Sleeve
Product,
‘Woodzie’,
Into
A
Name
Change


More
Law-Related
Stories
From
Techdirt:


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Deal
Done
And
It’s
Somehow
The
Shittiest
Possible
Outcome,
Making
Everything
Worse


Thousands
Tell
The
Patent
Office:
Don’t
Hide
Bad
Patents
From
Review


FCC
Boss
Brendan
Carr
Showcases
How
He’s
A
Shameless
Liar
And
Opportunist
In
Testimony
Before
Congress

Morning Docket: 12.19.25 – Above the Law

*
Trump
orders
looser
restrictions
on
marijuana…
immediately
after
passing
harsher
new
laws
on
hemp.
Certainly
no
dementia
at
work
here.
[Law360]

*
Lawyer
for
the
Joint
Chiefs
advised
that
officers
should
retire
rather
than
follow
unlawful
order.
No
word
on
whether
he

consulted
the
Pentagon’s
new
AI

for
that
answer.
[CNN]

*
KPop
Demon
Hunters
explain
how
to
study
for
the
bar
exam.
[ABA
Journal
]

*
ROF’s
year
in
review.
[Roll
on
Friday
]

*
The
future
of
the
AAA
is
in
AI.
So…
a
fourth
A.
[Legaltech
News
]

*
ADF
moves
to
spread
its
assault
on
rights
to
the
rest
of
the
world.
[Guardian]

*
Jeanine
Pirro’s
office
has
seen
criminal
complaint
dismissals
rise
to
21
percent
from

checks
notes

0.5
percent.
Amazing
work
all
around!
[Reuters]

Firms Merge To Make The 5th Largest Firm By Revenue! – See Also – Above the Law

Hogan
Lovells
To
Merge
With
Cadwalader:
They’ll
still
be
HoLove
in
our
hearts.
A
Quiet
Bonus
Announcement:
Morgan
Lewis
announced
bonuses
back
in
November,
along
with
‘extraordinary’
bonuses!
Boutique
Firm
Wows
With
$355K
Bonus!:
Amazing
time
to
work
for
Gjerset
&
Lorenz!
Former
DLA
Piper
Partner
Accused
Assault
And
Battery:
The
firm
is
also
accused
of
facilitating
a
hostile
work
environment
based
on
sex,
among
other
things.
Man
Files
Federal
Suit
After
Being
Arrested
Over
A
Meme:
Everyone
should
be
interested
in
this
free
speech
case.
Dershowitz
Finds
A
Way
To
Read
Vagueness
Into
A
Cut
And
Dried
‘No’:
Right
wingers
keep
dropping
Originalism
when
the
22nd
Amendment
comes
up.

The Biglaw Firm Trying To Figure Out What The Hell Has Gone Wrong With Michigan Football – Above the Law

Sherrone
Moore
(Photo
by
Aaron
J.
Thornton/Getty
Images)



Ed.
Note:

Welcome
to
our
daily
feature

Trivia
Question
of
the
Day!


Following
the
firing
and
arrest
of
Michigan
football
coach
Sherrone
Moore,
stemming
from
an
alleged
relationship
with
a
team
employee,
the
university
has
hired
what
Biglaw
firm
to
conduct
an
investigation
into
the
scandal?


Hint:
The
firm’s
assignment
was
expanded
yesterday
“to
include
an
independent
evaluation
of
culture,
conduct
and
procedures
throughout
our
athletics
department.”



See
the
answer
on
the
next
page.

A Super-Competitive Admissions Cycle At Top Law Schools Will Be ‘Brutal’ For Would-Be Law Students – Above the Law



Ed.
note
:
Welcome
to
our
daily
feature,

Quote
of
the
Day
.


This
is
looking
to
be
a
brutal
year
for
applicants
and
admissions
outcomes
[because
schools]
have
more
high-quality
applicants.
In
the
last
several
years
medians
for
both
LSAT
and
GPA
have
risen
at
almost
all
schools,
making
the
admissions
cycle
tougher
and
tougher
each
year.
Many
of
the
top
schools
the
acceptance
rates
will
drop
even
further
.






Dave
Killoran,
a
prelaw
expert
and
former
CEO
of
PowerScore,
in
comments
given
to

Law.com
,
concerning
the
incredibly
competitive
admissions
cycle
that
law
school
applicants
are
currently
going
through
at
top-tier
schools
that
are
decreasing
their
acceptance
rates
amid
an
increase
in
applicants.





Staci
Zaretsky
 is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to

email

her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
can
follow
her
on BlueskyX/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.

Rape Allegation Rocks Major Biglaw Firm – Above the Law

Proceeding
under
the
name
Jane
Doe,
a
former
associate
at
DLA
Piper

has
filed
suit

alleging
that
Brian
Biggs,
then
a
partner
at
the
firm,
raped
her
and
later
escalated
the
violence
by
breaking
into
her
home
and
strangling
her.
The
complaint
paints
a
grim
picture
of
how
power
imbalances,
silence,
and
allegedly
known
misconduct
can
metastasize
into
something
far
more
dangerous.

According
to
the
lawsuit,
Doe
began
working
at
DLA
Piper
in
2021.
Almost
immediately,
she
alleges,
Biggs
pressured
her
into
drinking
heavily
with
him
and
into
a
sexual
and
romantic
relationship.
This
was
not,
the
suit
emphasizes,
a
relationship
between
equals.
Biggs
was
not
only
a
senior
partner,
the
complaint
also
alleges
he
was
her
professional
mentor,
holding
significant
sway
over
her
career
trajectory.

Doe
also
alleges
Biggs
told
her
that
“her
first
priority
was
to
socialize
with
him
and
placate
him
sexually
at
the
expense
of
her
work
and
professional
obligation.”

The
complaint
alleges
that
Biggs
systematically
isolated
Doe
from
others
at
the
firm
over
an
extended
period,
cutting
her
off
from
colleagues
and
support
systems.
As
per
the
complaint,
“Biggs
insisted
that
he
was
Plaintiff’
only
ally
in
the
Firm,
that
other
partners
within
the
practice
group
(a)
could
not
be
trusted,
(b)
were
not
fans
of
Plaintiff’s
work,
and
(c)
looked
upon
her
less
favorably
than
he
did.”

That
isolation,
the
suit
claims,
culminated
in
an
alleged
rape
in
December
2022
inside
the
firm’s
Wilmington
office
and
later
breaking
into
Doe’s
home
and
attempting
to
strangle
her.
Doe
alleges
she
suffered
from
PTSD
as
a
result
of
Biggs’s
action
and
eventually
forced
her
to
resign.

The
complaint
alleges
that
this
behavior
was
not
an
aberration.
According
to
the
suit,
Biggs
“had
a
history
of
sleeping
with
his
female
subordinates,”
and
that
this
history
was
known
to
his
partners
at
the
firm.

The
lawsuit
asserts
claims
against
DLA
Piper
for
hostile
work
environment
based
on
sex,
quid
pro
quo
sexual
harassment,
and
retaliation,
all
arising
from
Biggs’s
alleged
conduct
as
a
partner
of
the
firm.
It
also
brings
a
separate
count
of
assault
and
battery
against
Biggs
individually.

A
DLA
spokesperson
said,
“The
firm
was
notified
in
January
2025
of
a
romantic
relationship
between
a
partner
and
an
associate,
which
we
investigated
promptly.
The
associate
made
no
allegations
of
rape
to
the
firm.
Following
the
firm’s
review,
the
partner
immediately
withdrew
from
the
firm;
the
associate
remained
employed
at
the
firm
until
she
resigned
on
December
12.
We
will
address
this
lawsuit
through
the
appropriate
channels.”

According
to

reporting
by

Bloomberg
Law,
DLA
Piper
hired
an
attorney
know
for
crisis
management
work,
Seyfarth’s
Camille
Olson,
after
they
were
notified
of
Doe’s
allegations.




Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of

The
Jabot
podcast
,
and
co-host
of

Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer
.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email

her

with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter

@Kathryn1
 or
Mastodon

@[email protected].