CRCS Legal runs a consultant-led practice across corporate law, litigation and complaints management. As the firm grew, its systems didn't grow with it — case work, time, billing and documents sat in separate tools, and sensitive client data wasn't restricted by role. Here's how that changed.
In a consultant-model firm, data control isn't an IT preference — it's a duty to the client.
Case work, consultant time, billing and documents — unified from four disconnected systems
Consultant, client and sub-client invoicing, generated automatically from the firm's own pricing models
Every consultant, administrator and partner sees only what their role requires — nothing more
CRCS Legal is a mid-sized firm handling diverse practice areas — corporate law, litigation and complaints management — through a mix of employed staff and consultants. It's a model with real advantages: flexibility, specialist depth, and reach. But it makes two things unusually hard: knowing exactly what every hour of work costs the firm, and making sure confidential client data is seen only by the people entitled to see it.
Before SpineLegal, neither was reliably true. Case management, billing, timesheets and document generation lived in separate systems, consultant hours weren't connected to case costs, and invoicing followed no single standard across consultants, clients and sub-clients.
Each operational challenge looked different day to day — but every one of them traced back to the same root: the firm's data was scattered, and scattered data can't be controlled.
Case management, billing, timesheets and document generation were siloed — every handover between them a chance for error and delay.
Sensitive client information wasn't securely managed, and access to confidential data wasn't properly restricted to the people who needed it.
Invoices for consultants, clients and sub-clients were produced without a consistent approach — manual errors, wasted time, inconsistent formats.
Consultant timesheet entries weren't linked to case costs, so billing accuracy and cost management ran on estimates rather than fact.
A consultant-led firm holding sensitive corporate and litigation files could not say, with certainty, who could see what — or what any piece of work truly cost. Both answers had to come from the same place: one system, with control built in.
Working directly with the firm's managing partner, SpineLegal was customised to CRCS Legal's specific needs — not configured from a generic template. The implementation centred on five capabilities:
Role-based access control means case views and data are restricted by user role. Consultants, administrators and partners each see the case details relevant to them — enhancing data privacy without slowing anyone down.
Consultants log billable hours that are automatically associated with the relevant case's cost — accurate costing, and transparent tracking of consultant performance.
Administrators gained a real-time, holistic view of all entries — timesheets, costs, billing and ongoing cases — improving internal controls and regulatory compliance.
Billing and cost visible together at firm pricing level, with every entry captured correctly — a significant improvement in how the firm manages cash flow and profitability.
The most transformative change: invoices generated at every level the firm's model demands —
One unified platform replaced four disconnected systems. Timesheets, invoicing and billing run automated — freeing time for client work.
User entitlements mean sensitive client data is securely managed, with access granted only to authorised personnel.
Timesheets integrated with case costing improved financial tracking; invoicing at every level became efficient, customisable and error-resistant.
The managing partner shaped the implementation throughout — so the platform fits the firm's model, and the firm trusts the platform.
"Nothing is too much trouble — they have listened to what I want from the system and they have tailor-made it for my specific purpose. The system is simple and easy to use and has everything I need to manage the business."
Barbara Spoor — CRCS Legal
From a public Google review of Spine Legal Software · Rated 5.0
Since this implementation, SpineLegal has become an AI-native platform — and the principle CRCS Legal's setup was built on now governs every AI capability in it: access follows role, and nothing acts without a human decision.
Every matter carries an AI assistant that drafts, summarises and finds — working only from that matter's own file. Crucially, the assistant inherits the user's entitlements: it can only see what the person asking is authorised to see. Role-based access doesn't stop at people.
Workflow stages can generate documents, chase outstanding items and prepare drafts using AI — each step badged for human review before anything is released, sent or filed. Speed with control, not automation without accountability.
Client data is never used to train AI models. Documents live in the firm's own Microsoft environment with enterprise SharePoint storage, full version history and strict tenant isolation — and every AI output is attributable and reviewable.
A firm choosing SpineLegal for the control described in this case study gets that control carried through into AI — not traded away for it.
If your firm bills at more than one level, or holds data that not everyone should see, this is the configuration to look at — now with the same control extended to AI. We'll show you SpineLegal set up the way CRCS Legal runs it — on workflows that look like yours.
SpineLegal — the AI-powered platform that runs your firm
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