How does the Client Decisions Summary work?
The Client Decisions Summary is a Word document that DecisionVault generates for a matter. It lists the roles the client has chosen, for example trustees, executors, and guardians, any specific gifts, and a written summary of how the estate plan will work. Many attorneys send it to the client after the design meeting (the meeting where you and the client decide how the plan should work), so the client can confirm the decisions before you sync the information to your drafting platform and start drafting.
Building and exporting the summary takes five steps:
- Add the proposed roles
- Add any specific gifts
- Build up the summary of how the plan will work
- Export the Client Decisions Summary
- Customize the templates for next time
1. Add the proposed roles
Open the matter and go to the Roles tab on the Matter Details screen. DecisionVault already knows the contacts on the matter, so you only need to assign each person to a role, for example Successor Trustee, Executor, or Guardian. Expand a role and click Add next to the contact who will fill it:
2. Add any specific gifts
Go to the Plan Summary tab on the Matter Details screen and enter any specific gifts in the Specific Gifts table: who receives the gift, which property or amount it is, and when it is given:
3. Build up the summary
Still on the Plan Summary tab, write the description of how the estate will be distributed in the Residual Beneficiaries and Contingent Beneficiaries sections. To save time, click the green plus button below the text editor to insert one of your reusable templates, then adjust the wording for this client. Step 5 explains how to set up those templates:
4. Export the Client Decisions Summary
On the Matter Details screen, click the Export dropdown and choose Client Decisions Summary:
DecisionVault downloads a Word document with the roles, the specific gifts, and the plan summary text you wrote. You can edit it in Word before you send it to the client:
5. Customize the templates
To edit the reusable templates, go to Settings > Customization, open the questionnaire, and click the Summary tab:
The Summary tab has two sections, one for each part of the plan summary:
- Residual Beneficiaries
- (Remote) Contingent Beneficiaries
Expand a section, give each template a short name (for example Outright or Lifetime Trust), and write the reusable text. These templates then appear behind the green plus button on the Plan Summary tab of every matter:
Here is a quick video of how you can create a Client Summary using these tools:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Client Decisions Summary for?
It gives the client a plain language record of the decisions made in the design meeting: who fills each role, which specific gifts were agreed, and how the rest of the estate will be distributed. The client can confirm everything before you start drafting, which avoids rework later. It is a summary for the client, not a legal document.
Can I edit the exported document?
Yes. The export is a regular Word document, so you can change the wording, add your letterhead, or remove sections before you send it to the client.
A role or person is missing from the summary. How do I fix it?
The summary only includes what is on the Roles and Plan Summary tabs of the matter. Add the missing role or gift there, then export the summary again. Each export reflects the current information on the matter.
Do I have to use templates for the plan summary?
No. You can type the summary from scratch on the Plan Summary tab. Templates simply save time when you use the same language across many matters, for example a standard paragraph for outright distributions or lifetime trusts.
Who can export the Client Decisions Summary?
Any staff user who can open the matter can export it from the Export dropdown on the Matter Details screen. Clients do not see the export option; you send them the document yourself.