AI for Legal Professionals (Self-Paced)

Module 1: Getting Started with Claude AI

• Explain how Claude works in plain language and identify the model tiers, plans, and interface
• Understand the context window, how Claude processes information, and when to start new conversations
• Practice your first Claude conversation using a legal-specific prompt
• Identify what Claude does well, what it doesn’t, and when human judgment is essential

Module 2: Prompting Fundamentals

• Apply the five-part prompt framework: context, task, format, constraints, and examples
• Write effective prompts across five use cases: writing, summarization, analysis, research, and creative problem-solving
• Recognize and fix common prompting mistakes that produce vague or unusable output
• Practice prompting with legal scenarios: drafting a contract clause, summarizing a court opinion, and writing a client status update

Module 3: Working with Files & Documents

• Upload and analyze images, PDFs, spreadsheets, and documents directly in Claude
• Use Claude to extract, compare, and summarize information from uploaded files
• Work with legal-specific file types: contracts, court opinions, pleadings, discovery documents, and compliance reports
• Complete a hands-on document analysis exercise using provided legal sample files

Module 4: Projects & Knowledge Bases

• Explain how Projects use custom instructions and knowledge bases to organize ongoing work
• Write effective Project instructions that encode your role, audience, format preferences, and rules
• Upload reference documents and understand how RAG retrieves relevant content
• Create a legal Project for a transaction or litigation matter using provided sample contracts, case summaries, and templates

Module 5: Artifacts, Styles, Memory & Usage Management

• Create reusable deliverables with Artifacts and edit them directly or through conversation
• Build custom Styles that match your professional communication voice
• Configure Memory to retain key context about you and your work across conversations
• Apply usage management techniques to extend your plan value

Module 6: Introduction to Claude Cowork

• Explain what Cowork is and how it differs from the claude.ai chat interface
• Read, write, and manage files from your desktop environment
• Configure guardrails, file permissions, and network settings for safe use
• Understand prompt injection risks and how to protect against them

Module 7: Advanced Prompting & AI Tool Selection

• Use role-based prompting, chain-of-thought reasoning, and multi-step workflows
• Apply Extended Thinking, web search, and the You Ask Me technique for complex tasks
• Compare Claude with ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini to choose the right tool for each task
• Practice advanced prompting with legal scenarios: identifying risks in a contract, building a legal research memorandum step by step, and preparing deposition questions from witness statements

Module 8: Context System, Connectors & Integrations

• Build foundational context files and set Global Instructions that apply to every Cowork session
• Connect Claude to Slack, Google Drive, Gmail, and other workplace tools
• Use Claude natively in Excel and PowerPoint with the Office add-ins
• Configure your context system and connections for legal workflows, including document comparison in Excel and case presentations in PowerPoint

Module 9: AI for Legal — Core Workflows

• Use Claude to draft, review, and redline contracts with clause-level analysis and risk identification
• Summarize case law, statutes, and regulatory guidance into structured research memoranda
• Prepare brief outlines, motion drafts, and argument frameworks from case materials
• Extract key terms, dates, obligations, and parties from large document sets for review and analysis
• Complete a hands-on lab producing a multi-document legal work product package

Module 10: Capstone — Build Your Legal Claude System

• Audit your legal tasks and identify the highest-value opportunities for Claude assistance
• Configure a personalized legal Claude system: Projects, context files, Styles, and connected tools
• Run a complete end-to-end matter preparation workflow: contract review summary, research memo, client communication, and matter status brief
• Create a Week 1 action plan for applying what you’ve learned to your legal practice