A client portal should include five things: the current status of the client's matter, the documents they are entitled to see, a way to send and receive messages, anything waiting for their signature, and a clear next step. Leave out internal notes, staff task lists, and any feature the client did not ask for.
We built a client portal as part of the AZLG Case Hub, a system for a personal injury practice. A new client fills out a case review on the firm's website, the firm generates documents and sends them for signature, and the client gets a portal to follow along.
"Follow along" is the whole brief. A client portal is not a second copy of the firm's case system with a friendlier color. It is a small window onto the few things a client wants to know, and most of the design work is deciding what not to show.
The examples here come from legal work, but the same list applies to an accountant, a contractor on a long job, or any business where a customer waits while work happens out of sight.
What should a client portal include?
A client portal should include status, documents, messages, signatures, and next steps. Each one answers a question the client would otherwise phone the office to ask. If a feature does not replace a phone call or an email the client was going to send anyway, it probably does not belong.
| Feature | The question it answers | How to keep it simple |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Where does my matter stand | One plain sentence and the date it was last updated |
| Documents | Can I get a copy of that | Only the files the client should have, newest first |
| Messages | Did you get my question | One thread per matter, with replies in the same place |
| Signatures | What do you need me to sign | A clear list of what is waiting, with one button each |
| Next steps | What happens now, and what do I do | A single item at the top of the page |
The order of that table is roughly the order of the page. Next steps and status go at the top, because they are why the client logged in.
What should a client portal leave out?
A client portal should leave out everything written for staff: internal notes, task assignments, time entries, draft documents, and the full activity log. Showing a client the inside of the firm's process creates questions instead of answering them, and some of that material should never be visible to them at all.
This is easier to get wrong than it sounds. The quickest way to build a portal is to expose the existing case record with some fields hidden. That approach fails the first time someone adds a new internal field and forgets to hide it. Build the portal the other way around. Start with nothing visible and add each item on purpose.
Leave out features, too. A calendar, a knowledge base, a payment history, and a chat assistant can each be justified alone. Together they turn a page with one clear message into a dashboard the client has to learn.
How should clients sign in to a portal?
Clients should sign in the easiest way that is still safe, and for most portals that is an emailed link instead of a password. A client may visit only a few times during a matter, weeks apart. Most will not remember a password they created for a site they open that rarely.
We use this pattern in our own products. Seal My Record Now has passwordless accounts, and on another product business owners edit their profile through an emailed link. The person types their email, receives a link, and is in. The link should expire quickly and work only once. We go through the details in passwordless login with magic links.
The trade-off is that access to the portal becomes only as secure as the client's email account. For most client portals that is acceptable, since the firm is already emailing that address. For more sensitive material, add a second step.
How do signatures fit into a client portal?
Signatures fit into a portal as a short list of documents waiting for the client, each opened and signed in place. The client should not have to print, scan, or install anything. When they sign, the completed copy should appear in their documents and attach to the matter on the firm's side.
In the case hub, documents are generated from the case record and sent for signature from the same system. That matters for the client's experience. When the document and the portal are filled from one record, the client sees the same name and details in both places.
What makes a signature record trustworthy is covered in how e-signatures work. Requirements for electronic signatures vary by document type and state, so check the rules that apply to yours.
What makes clients use a portal instead of calling?
Clients use a portal when it is more current than a phone call. If the status line was last updated a month ago, the client learns that the portal is not where the truth lives, and goes back to calling. A portal has to be fed by the same system staff work in.
That is the real requirement, and it is an organizational one. If updating the portal is a separate chore, it will not get done on a busy week. The status the client sees should come from the record the firm already keeps. CaseCobra, our practice management product, keeps cases, clients, calendar, chat, and billing in one place for the same reason: one record, read by everyone who needs it.
Two smaller things help. Send an email when something changes, so the client has a reason to look. And write status in plain words. "Waiting for records from the hospital" tells a client something. An internal stage name does not.
Frequently asked questions
Is a client portal more secure than email?
It can be. Documents stay on the firm's system behind a sign-in instead of sitting in an inbox. The portal still has to be built with care, with each client able to see only their own matter.
Do clients need to install an app to use a portal?
No. A portal should be a web page that works in the browser on a phone. Asking a client to install an app for something they open a few times is a reason for them not to use it.
Should clients be able to upload documents?
Yes, if the firm regularly asks clients for records, photos, or forms. An upload that goes straight to the matter saves staff from sorting attachments out of email. Say clearly what is being asked for.
Does a small firm need a client portal?
Not always. A small firm that answers the phone and returns email the same day already gives clients what a portal provides. A portal earns its cost when status questions take up real staff time.
Can a portal be added to software a firm already has?
Sometimes. It depends on whether the existing system lets other software read from it. Ask the vendor whether it offers an API. If it does not, the portal would need its own copy of the data, which then has to be kept current.
If your clients call to ask where things stand, tell us what they ask most. That list is the first draft of your portal.