FAQs Archive

Q: Can I increase efficiency using Ascent ELM's flexible tools like Report Builder™, Legal Holds, AFAs, etc?

Ascent ELM allows any authorized users to easily manage their workload for Legal Holds, budgeting, reports, vendor approvals, as well as create AFAs (alternative fee arrangements). Ascent ELM's Legal Hold module effectively manages all aspects of your Legal Holds to include communications, scheduling, notifications, and custodian compliance. Ascent ELM's AFA-Wizard™ module provides near real-time tracking and watches the "shadow spend" against the expected business. Expanded capabilities grow with you. The Report-Builder™ module allows teams to easily ask complex questions and get immediate answers without requesting customs reports from support reps.

Q: Can I manage matters and documents directly from Outlook® without switching between other programs?

ASCENT® SmartLink ™ connects your legal teams to the Microsoft Office® products that they're already familiar with using every day. Integrating the security and functionality of ASCENT® into your inbox, you can easily add documents to any matter, and handle most tasks without leaving Outlook. You can also create, edit, and add documents to a matter directly from Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Allow your teams to work the way they always have with ASCENT® SmartLink™ to increase efficiency.

Q: Will I see our entire operation in one place with SmartView's graphical data dashboards and analytics?

Are you not able to see the matter information you need to make decisions in one place? You're not alone. ASCENT's SmartView ™ eliminates that problem by placing all matter data and analytics on one user-friendly dashboard. We provide most reports you'll ever need to track and manage your matters, and they are all available to populate your secure dashboard. You may also request custom reports to match your needs, and most will be free of charge. Experts can help your team build it and place it on your role-based dashboards. SmartView™ is built on the Power BI platform, giving you easy, graphical access to all your data at your fingertips.

Q: Out-of-the-box reports don't always give us the answers we need. How easily can I create a report or query without asking for help?

Our included reports fit most legal operations' needs, but unique company needs happen every day. Have you ever thought of a question you want to ask, but not sure how to get the answer you need? No more waiting for someone's help to create and pull a report for you. The new Report Builder ™ lets you easily create your own reports by using drag and drop fields to get immediate answers. Reports can be scheduled and automatically distributed or made instantly available to everyone using the new SmartView™ dashboard. If you do need help, our experts are ready to step in and get it done. You can also output to Excel® with a simple mouse-click for further formatting and mixing with other data. Combining this with the new Search Page enhancements makes your information even more useful. Also, our new Query Builder™ lets you target every piece of information the system captures. New features like dynamic filters and user-created calculated fields let you customize your results.

Q: Right now, my data is all over the place, which makes my decision-making more difficult. Can Ascent ELM give me a complete and consistent view of all my business drivers regardless of origin?

Viewing your most critical information in one place, in a way that makes sense to you, isn’t always easy. You may be spending hours poring over lengthy reports simply to find the information you need. The new Ascent ELM SmartView ™ dashboard provides graphical views of key matter information so you can see all your legal data at a glance. Analyzing data from disparate sources into one place allows Ascent ELM to intelligently deliver the information you need to make critical decisions faster. You can easily compare matter, spend, and law firm data in the same view.

Q: Can Ascent ELM be completely configured to how we manage our legal operations, and can it change as we evolve?

Absolutely. The completely configurable solutions doeLEGAL offers are an essential part of our business model. Our experts get to know your business first and then configure the solutions to match your needs. We realize that needs change over time, so we ensure that our system changes with you. We continue to enhance our solutions over time, but we also offer self-service options to alleviate your needs to request support assistance. Configurable solutions are where the technology truly sets itself apart. Ascent ELM's Flex-System ™ gives users the most control over their legal operations. The redesigned user interface allows you navigate more simply, customize what you see and how you see it, and offer you new ways to manage your tool configuration. doeLEGAL clients rely on us to help them work smarter, not harder.