WhatsApp Time Capture for Law Firms: Messages, Voice Notes and Documents — onto the File

Most firms have the same problem:

• clients message on WhatsApp;
• the file lives somewhere else; and
• time gets recorded later (if it gets recorded at all).

That gap creates three headaches at once: leakage of billable time, messy file notes, and risk (because supervision and audit trails are harder when the “real” conversation lives on a phone).

A WhatsApp-first workflow fixes the gap by treating the WhatsApp thread as a capture layer — and OrdoLux as the place where the message becomes a proper matter record.

What a WhatsApp-first workflow looks like

In practice, a good integration does four things reliably:

1. Put every message onto the right matter
2. Turn voice notes into usable attendance notes
3. File documents into the right place (without “I’ll do it later”)
4. Create time entries from activity, with the fee earner in control

Here’s how that plays out day-to-day.

1) “Message the file”

Instead of thinking “I need to remember to write a file note”, you message as normal — and the system creates a dated attendance note on the matter.

That matters because it makes supervision easier:

• the note lands in a consistent format;
• it’s time-stamped;
• and it sits alongside emails, documents and billing.

2) Voice notes become attendance notes (properly)

Voice notes are convenient, but they’re terrible as a record.

A good workflow:

• transcribes the voice note;
• structures it as an attendance note (who / what / next steps);
• and saves it to the file so it can be reviewed later.

If you want to go further, you can also link the note to the next task (for example, “draft LBA”, “request bank statements”, “take instructions on offer”).

3) Upload documents straight into SharePoint from WhatsApp

The real win is removing the “download to phone → email to myself → upload later” chain.

When a client sends:

• a screenshot;
• a PDF;
• a photo of a letter; or
• a bank statement,

…those files should land straight into the matter’s document repository (for most firms, that’s SharePoint/OneDrive).

That keeps firms in control of data location, retention and access.

4) Automatic time capture from WhatsApp activity

Time recording fails when the user has to stop working and do admin.

WhatsApp-first time capture uses simple, defensible triggers:

• messages sent and handled;
• documents received/forwarded/processed (including screenshots);
• voice notes listened to and converted into notes; and
• discrete bursts of activity in the thread.

The key is that the fee earner stays in charge: OrdoLux can propose an entry (matter + time + narrative) and the fee earner can accept/edit/reject in seconds.

And when you want to be explicit, you can also time record directly from the WhatsApp chat (with a short “time” message in the thread) so the entry is created on the right matter immediately.

Common “matter questions” (and why they matter)

Once WhatsApp messages and uploads are linked to the matter, you can answer practical questions quickly:

• “What’s the client address / phone number?”
• “What’s the current WIP?”
• “What invoices are outstanding?”
• “Have we received the signed ID documents?”

That isn’t just convenience — it reduces mistakes when people are working fast on mobile.

Security, supervision and audit

If you’re thinking “this sounds useful but risky”, you’re right to be cautious.

A firm-grade WhatsApp workflow needs:

• strong access controls (including 2FA if you want it);
• audit trails on messages, uploads and transcripts;
• clear matter linkage (and a fallback where the system asks “which matter?” if there are multiple matches);
• data minimisation: documents should end up in your document system of record, not trapped in a chat tool.

Want to see it?

If you’re curious what this looks like in a real workflow, see our dedicated overview: WhatsApp integration for solicitors.

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WhatsApp is a third‑party service. OrdoLux is not endorsed by, affiliated with, or sponsored by WhatsApp or Meta.