Overview

We call CoCounsel an AI legal assistant because it:

Focuses on your information,
Does what you ask, and
Shows its work.

To work with CoCounsel you will do two things:

Identify a source of information, and
Request assistance by giving instructions.

CoCounsel uses this information to understand your intent and identify which of its capabilities to use. We call these capabilities "skills" and each skill uses a different combination of instructions and sources of information. What is CoCounsel? | CoCounsel Core Skills

Below, we will consider what type of skills CoCounsel Core has, the sources of information that each skill uses, the instructions that each skill can receive, the responses each skill can provide, how each skill's results can be exported, and how skills and instructions work together.

What kinds of skills does CoCounsel Core have?

CoCounsel Core has the following types of skills:

Research skills answer a single question across a large dataset
Review skills read files word-for-word to find user-specified content
Summarize skills read files word-for-word to provide fixed answers
Draft skills use a description to create user-specified content

Skill	Research	Review	Summarize	Draft
AI-Assisted Research	✅
Search a Database	✅
Review Documents		✅
Extract Contract Data		✅
Contract Policy Compliance		✅
Summarize			✅
Timeline			✅
Prepare for a Deposition				✅
Draft Correspondence				✅

What source of information does each CoCounsel Core skill use?

CoCounsel Core can use the following sources of information:

Westlaw Precision's legal content
Database of your files
Files in the chat from your device, from a list of recent files, or from a database
Your descriptions

Skill	Westlaw Precision's legal content	Database of your files	Files in the chat	Your description
AI-Assisted Research	✅
Search a Database		✅
Summarize			✅
Timeline			✅
Review Documents			✅
Extract Contract Data			✅
Contract Policy Compliance			✅
Prepare for a Deposition				✅
Draft Correspondence				✅

What instructions can each CoCounsel Core skill receive?

CoCounsel Core can receive the following instructions:

A Research Request is a single question that is answered by searching an entire database of information
Questions and Policies are used to identify relevant content while working with file-based skills with focus
Other Requests and Choices are used to describe how the task should be completed

Skill	Research Request	Questions and Policies	Other Requests and Choices
AI-Assisted Research	✅
Search a Database	✅
Review Documents		✅
Extract Contract Data		✅
Contract Policy Compliance		✅
Prepare for a Deposition			Describe the deposition
Draft Correspondence			Describe the correspondence
Summarize			Select a summary length
Timeline*

* Skill does not receive any instruction other than a request to begin.

What response does each CoCounsel Core skill provide?

CoCounsel Core provides the following responses:

A Memo is a narrative answer to a research question with a list of sources
An Answer Table provides a response for every question for every file
Other Response are provided for particular skills

Skill	Memo	Answer Table	Other Responses
AI-Assisted Research	✅
Search a Database	✅
Review Documents		✅
Extract Contract Data		✅
Contract Policy Compliance			Analysis of relevant terms with redlines
Prepare for a Deposition			Draft of relevant topics and questions
Draft Correspondence			Draft of letter, email, memo, etc.
Summarize			Various summary lengths
Timeline			List of identified events

How can I export results from CoCounsel Core skills?

The results of CoCounsel Core skills can be exported in various formats:

Word Documents
The Copy option allows you to copy the results to paste somewhere else
Excel Spreadsheets
Use Download Redlined Docs to download the original .doc or .docx file with CoCounsel's suggested redlines as tracked changes, and with CoCounsel's differences analysis as a comment that explains why the change should be made
Other export options are available for particular skills

Skill	Word Document	Copy	Excel Spreadsheet	Download Redlined Docs	Other
AI-Assisted Research	✅	✅
Search a Database	✅	✅
Deposition Questions	✅	✅
Draft Correspondence	✅	✅
Summarize	✅	✅
Contract Policy Compliance	✅	✅	✅	✅
Review Documents	✅ *		✅
Extract Contract Data	✅ *		✅
Timeline	✅		✅		Download select events to CSV or Excel, or print them

*There are two download options: "With Explanations and Sources" or "Short Answers Only."

How do skills, sources of information, and instructions work together?

You may begin your work with CoCounsel by selecting a skill or a source of information, or by giving CoCounsel an instruction.

Select a skill first

If you select a skill first, CoCounsel will ask for the additional information it needs to begin its work. For example, when you select the "Summarize" skill, CoCounsel will ask you to upload files to the chat. How do I access CoCounsel Core's skills?

Select a source of information first

If you select a source of information first, CoCounsel will expect additional instructions so it knows how to help. For example, if you select a database, CoCounsel will expect you to explain the query it should use to search the database. Or, if you upload files to the chat, CoCounsel will expect you to provide additional instructions, like "I need a summary," or "please review these files to tell me if [insert questions]." How do I add files to the chat in CoCounsel Core?

Give CoCounsel an instruction first

If you give CoCounsel an instruction first, CoCounsel will provide next steps. Clearer instructions lead to clearer next steps. For example, if you indicate "I need to summarize some files," then CoCounsel will ask you to upload the files. Once the files are uploaded, CoCounsel will ask you to confirm the length of the summary. But if you indicate "I need a comprehensive summary," CoCounsel will preselect that length.

Get the most out of CoCounsel