Prepare a clear first draft of a legal document for qualified lawyer review and export-ready PDF formatting. Do not treat this as legal advice to a client, and do not invent facts, authority, procedural history, signatures, service details, or jurisdiction-specific requirements. Document type and purpose: [DOCUMENT TYPE AND PURPOSE] Jurisdiction, court or governing law, and procedural posture: [JURISDICTION AND POSTURE] Verified facts and available evidence: [VERIFIED FACTS] Parties, defined terms, and requested relief or transaction terms: [PARTIES AND TERMS] Authorities, rules, template requirements, and deadline: [AUTHORITIES AND REQUIREMENTS] First, list missing facts and legal issues that require attorney confirmation. Then draft the document in a professional, court- or transaction-appropriate structure. Use bracketed placeholders for every unknown name, date, amount, exhibit reference, signature block, filing detail, citation, and factual assertion that needs support. If I supply authority, cite it exactly as supplied; otherwise create a “research required” placeholder rather than fabricating a citation. For litigation documents, include a caption placeholder, preliminary statement or introduction where appropriate, numbered factual allegations or argument sections, requested relief, and verification/service placeholders only when applicable. For transactional documents, include definitions, operative provisions, conditions, representations only if supplied, execution blocks, and schedules/exhibits placeholders. Return: a document-ready draft, then a separate review memo with factual gaps, citation checks, jurisdictional or procedural questions, and formatting items needed before PDF filing or execution. Keep the draft internally consistent. Before answering, check defined terms, cross-references, dates, and every claim of law or fact for support. Ask up to 3 clarifying questions only if a required input is missing.
Fill in
| Placeholder | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| [DOCUMENT TYPE AND PURPOSE] | Identify the document you need and the practical outcome it is meant to achieve. | Demand letter seeking return of a $4,800 security deposit and an itemized statement. |
| [JURISDICTION AND POSTURE] | State the governing jurisdiction and, if relevant, court, case stage, and filing posture. | Ohio residential tenancy matter; pre-suit; Franklin County property. |
| [VERIFIED FACTS] | Provide only facts and evidence you have confirmed, with sources where available. | Lease ended Aug. 31, 2026; tenant returned keys that day; landlord received forwarding address Sept. 1; no itemization received as of Sept. 24. |
| [PARTIES AND TERMS] | List the parties, key defined terms, and requested relief or agreed transaction terms. | Tenant: Jordan Lee; landlord: Oakview Properties LLC; request return of deposit and any remedies available after attorney research. |
| [AUTHORITIES AND REQUIREMENTS] | Provide known statutes, cases, rules, client instructions, template requirements, and the relevant deadline. | Use only Ohio authorities supplied by counsel; send by Sept. 29; do not assert damages or statutes until verified. |
How to use
- Provide a document type, jurisdiction, and only verified facts; label any uncertain fact as uncertain rather than letting the model fill it in.
- Paste the output into your approved document system, then have a qualified lawyer verify law, procedure, factual assertions, citations, and signature or filing requirements.
- Apply your firm’s PDF formatting rules, including caption, pagination, bookmarks, exhibits, accessibility, and redaction checks where applicable.
- For a useful follow-up, send: “Convert the draft into a two-page demand letter with a neutral tone and preserve all bracketed research-required items.”
Variations
Motion outline
Use this before drafting a jurisdiction-specific motion.
Create a lawyer-reviewable outline for a [MOTION TYPE] in [COURT AND JURISDICTION]. Procedural posture: [POSTURE]. Verified record facts: [FACTS]. Authorities supplied by counsel: [AUTHORITIES]. Produce sections for issue, relief sought, governing standard, record facts, argument headings, counterarguments, requested order, and research gaps. Do not invent citations, rules, exhibits, filing deadlines, or facts. Mark every unsupported proposition with [RESEARCH REQUIRED] or [RECORD CITE REQUIRED], and include a filing-compliance checklist.
Contract first draft
Use this to organize a basic agreement from negotiated terms.
Draft a first version of a [AGREEMENT TYPE] governed by [GOVERNING LAW] from these agreed commercial terms: [TERMS]. Parties and signing entities: [PARTIES]. Include definitions, obligations, payment and timing terms, conditions, notices, confidentiality or IP terms only if supplied, term, termination, and execution blocks. Use brackets for missing provisions and flag terms needing legal or tax review. Do not invent representations, liability caps, insurance requirements, compliance duties, or boilerplate preferences that were not provided. End with an issues list for counsel.
Client chronology
Use this to turn source material into a reviewable case timeline.
Create a litigation-ready factual chronology from these source notes and documents: [SOURCE MATERIAL]. Matter and jurisdiction: [MATTER]. Organize rows by date, event, actor, source reference, verified fact, disputed fact, and follow-up needed. Preserve uncertainty and contradictions; do not resolve them or add facts. Then identify missing date ranges, potential limitations or notice issues for attorney research, and documents that should be requested. This is a case-preparation aid, not a legal conclusion or a substitute for counsel review.
Tips
- Give the model source labels for each fact, such as “Exhibit B, email dated May 4,” so the lawyer can trace assertions back to the record.
- Ask for bracketed research flags instead of plausible-looking citations; fabricated authority is harder to catch once it is embedded in a polished draft.
- Redact client identifiers, privileged strategy, and sensitive attachments unless the firm has approved the AI environment and matter workflow.
- Treat PDF generation as a separate quality step: inspect page breaks, exhibits, headings, searchable text, redactions, and signature blocks after rendering.
FAQ
Can AI draft a court filing that I submit unchanged?
No. A qualified lawyer must verify the law, facts, court rules, citations, deadlines, and filing format. AI output is a first-draft aid, not a filed document.
Can AI cite legal cases for me?
It can help identify research questions, but do not rely on generated citations without checking them in an authoritative legal research source. This prompt intentionally asks it to flag missing authority.
Can I upload client documents to an AI tool?
Only if your firm has approved the specific tool and data-handling arrangement. Confidentiality, privilege, privacy, retention, and jurisdictional obligations should be assessed before uploading material.