Verified: The AI Workflow and Policy System for Small Law Firms

Every citation checked, client confidences protected, clients and courts told what they need to know. For solo practitioners and firms under 20 lawyers. Courts are not sanctioning lawyers for using AI. They are sanctioning lawyers for filing what they did not check. A public tracker listed 2,096 court decisions involving AI-fabricated content worldwide by 30 September 2026. Sanctions have ranged from fines and fee awards to dismissed claims and suspensions from practice before a court. ABA Formal Opinion 512 expects firms to set clear policies, protect client confidences and bill fairly. This manual turns those duties into procedures a small firm can run. What it covers • What goes wrong, and what the rules say: verified cases (Mata, Park, Noland, Couvrette, Lnu v. Blanche), ABA Opinion 512, and a summary of state guidance, checked 30 September 2026. • The verified workflow: four task tiers (Green, Amber, Red, Never), AI as a lead not a source, safer prompts, supervision. • The cite-check procedure: seven checks for every authority, a second check for filings, internal sign-off, and what to do when something is wrong. • Client confidences: what regulators say about public tools, a tool approval checklist, what business plans say about your data, and when you need consent. • The firm AI policy: a two-page template with schedules and notes on each choice. • Clients, fees and courts: engagement-letter clause, specific consent, billing rules, and court disclosure and certification examples. • The matter log and training: a matter AI log, a 60-minute session and a 10-question quiz. • Notes for England and Wales: Ayinde, the SRA warning notice, Law Society, Bar Council and judicial guidance. What you get • The manual: 38-page fillable PDF with 6 worksheets • Firm AI Register (Excel): approved tools, matter AI log, cite-check log with a ready-to-file check per document, court requirements and training record. Includes a filled example • Firm AI Policy (Word) • Client and Court Language (Word) • Cite-Check Procedure and Training Pack (Word) Not legal advice. This is an operational toolkit, not an ethics opinion. Rules, opinions and court orders vary by jurisdiction and change often. Have your final policy and client language reviewed by a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction. FAQ Which jurisdictions does it cover? The United States (ABA and a selection of state guidance), with a section on England and Wales. The procedures work in any common-law practice. Is it legal advice? No. It gives templates and procedures to adapt with your own professional judgement and a review against your rules. Does it recommend specific AI products? No. It gives a checklist for approving any tool and summarises what major vendors publicly state about business data. Will it stay current? Every point is dated. We update the manual when opinions, rules or court orders change. By Lucidens. Version 1.0, September 2026. Instant download: PDF plus editable Excel and Word files in one ZIP.