Law firms decide scope with their own counsel.

Internal know-how, not client files

The records AI labs care about reveal how strong legal practice is organized. Much of that lives beyond any single client matter:

• Precedent banks and templates, with the thinking behind each clause
• Research memos, checklists and training written for the firm's own lawyers
• Intake, staffing and matter workflow records from your practice management system
• Billing narratives with every name and identifier taken out

You keep your precedents

The originals stay right where they are, with no passwords requested. A buyer licenses a prepared copy of what you approved, to train and test AI models. You can withhold any template set, practice group or period that you consider central to the firm.

Privileged material is removed

The copy has privileged and confidential material removed. The firm and its counsel decide whether anything linked to clients has a place in scope, and legal advice on it is not ours to give. You can keep client matters out in full. For many firms, internal know-how is the whole scope.

When in doubt about a folder or practice group, the easy choice is to exclude it.

Names and matters are swapped for placeholders

For material left in scope, every client, opposing party, lawyer and staff member becomes a placeholder. Matter numbers and similar identifiers get the same treatment. You review and approve a sample before anything goes out, so you see just what a buyer would.

A sensible first step for a firm

Start with the estimate, then use the first short call to ask the questions your counsel will want answered. Many firms bring a list: which systems are being discussed, how placeholders are applied, and how the sample review works. Your counsel can review the prepared sample before anything goes out, and the firm can stop at any point before it approves. Nothing about the estimate requires a client name or a document, and the range itself never depends on your practice area.