Primafact has released version 5, a major upgrade to their popular litigation document management software. Litigators use Primafact to manage and quickly access evidentiary documents when preparing cases.
This new version contains important improvements to annotations with issue coding, allowing teams to view case content by issue. Enhancements to document in-take and processing, and advanced list views help you and your team work faster and more efficiently. Much anticipated Outlook integration features make bringing content from emails into Primafact quick and easy. A new in-take screen, task management, and new mobility apps are just a few more features that version 5 boasts.
Read on to find out all the new features of Primafact 5 that are sure to make your life as a lawyer easier.
Case Summary Screen
Get up to speed quickly with at-a-glance access to key file details, including space for a client photo.
Primafact: Upcoming Milestones
Annotation Issue Coding
In version 5, Primafact’s annotations can be easily grouped, sorted and filtered – now as a list. The new Annotations list is an interactive view that allows teams to review cases by analytic content. This makes it much faster to get up to speed on issue development. By quickly stepping through the annotations on a file, issues can be quickly assessed, and briefing tasks reviewed. In the example below, all of the team’s notes on Loss of Income are displayed together. By clicking on each line, the highlighted paragraph is immediately previewed on the right.
Primafact: Annotation List
As a bonus, lists can be quickly copied to Excel for detailed review when you want to, for example, prepare a pre-accident health chart, or develop a specific head of damages.
Issues are assigned when creating annotations using the new Annotation form shown below.
Primafact: Annotation form
Document Searching
There is also a flexible new list screen for document retrieval that makes it faster to find and review documents.
In the example below, case documents are filtered to those that contain “report” in the title. The information columns can be customized, and documents are previewed on the right. Lists can be quickly filtered, sorted, and grouped to make the list appropriate for the task at hand.
Primafact: Document Searching
Outlook Integration
Users of Primafact have long been requesting an easier way to import documents and text from emails. These documents are primarily attachments, but occasionally, content in the body of an email needs to be preserved as well.
In addition to the drag and drop of messages, Primafact now sports a new “Send To Primafact” feature from inside Outlook. Users can control whether messages and attachments, or just attachments, are sent to Primafact. Users can send individual messages or many messages at a time. Primafact automatically converts messages to PDF for simple access.
Primafact: Outlook Integration
Task Management
A major new enhancement to Primafact is the introduction of task management for file development. Tasks are a type of annotation and are directly linked to document content, making it efficient to see the history and origin of file development tasks. Tasks can be delegated, monitored, and marked for approval required, before they are completed. You can also issue-code tasks for improved file review.
The new Tasks list shows all of the tasks on a file with filtering, grouping, and sorting options similar to the other new list screens. Users can also see all of their own global Primafact tasks (including tasks they have delegated or created) on their My Tasks tab.
Primafact: Task List
Advanced Numbering
Primafact has added two new advanced page numbering features to support the unique requirements of litigation. In litigation, a page may have a different number each time it is submitted. To support this, documents can be collected separately in special purpose Binder Indexes for each submission. Document pages will have different page numbers in each Binder in which they appear, so submissions can be created of the same documents with different numbers. Numbers contain many advanced features such as automatic re-numbering, re-setting at tabs and sections, and the ability to exclude documents from numbering.
The second numbering feature allows firms to apply Bates Ids to document pages in a case. This stamps a unique page identifier on each page that never changes and allows unambiguous reference to evidentiary pages in the file. Customizable formats are provided for Bates Ids and document pages can be quickly retrieved based on their numbers.
Primafact: Advanced Numbering
Document In-Take
A major enhancement in Primafact 5 is the new document in-take screen designed to make document processing more efficient for firms with centralized document capture and filing. The in-take screen provides a central location to efficiently review, route, and file new materials individually and in batches.
The Filing Center integrates with Primafact’s new in-app document messaging, making it easy to notify file owners that new documents have arrived. You can simply select the Assign button to redirect documents to the proper handler for filing. Documents are presented in a filing queue (centre column) and can be quickly dragged and dropped into binder indexes in the left column.
Primafact: Document In-Take
In-App Messaging
With the overwhelming growth in electronic communication, streamlining and tracking key internal communication has become a serious challenge for litigation teams. Primafact 5 introduces in-app messaging that makes it easy for teams to communicate about file development and documentary evidence, and automatically tracks communication on documents for future reference.
Primafact: In-App Messaging
Mobility Apps
The new Primafact Mobility Suite is an add-on module available for iOS and Android that provides access to your Primafact database from your phone or tablet. These native apps provide a mobile-friendly experience while making a large sub-set of Primafact’s desktop functionality available on your mobile device. The mobility suite is specifically intended for efficient document review, to keep files moving while you are on the go.
Documents are presented in Primafact’s familiar Binder Index view.
Primafact: Mobility Suite
Documents themselves can be downloaded on-demand or in batches. Messaging, creating annotations, and other key features are also available on mobile devices.
Primafact: Mobility Suite Functionality
Conclusion
Version 5 is a major update to Primafact’s litigation document management capabilities. With enhanced analytic features, improved document processing and production functions, better integration with Outlook, task management, and new mobility apps, it’s likely all Primafact users will find something worth upgrading for.
Find out how to upgrade at Primafact.com.
