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Clerk AI Assistant

Clerk is Recall's AI-powered writing assistant. It helps you edit text, generate outlines, draft content, and answer questions about your research — all grounded in your matter's documents.

Accessing Clerk

  1. Switch to Write mode
  2. The right pane shows the Clerk panel
  3. If Notes is shown instead, click the Clerk tab

Clerk Modes

Clerk operates in two primary modes: Edit and Assist.

Edit Mode

Edit mode helps you improve selected text in your document.

How to use:

  1. Select text in the editor
  2. The Clerk panel shows editing options
  3. Choose a preset or enter a custom instruction
  4. Clerk generates an improved version
  5. Click Insert to replace your selection

Built-in presets:

Preset What it does
Make more persuasive Strengthens arguments and rhetoric
Fix grammar/clarity Corrects errors and improves readability
Shorten/tighten Reduces wordiness while preserving meaning
Expand with reasoning Adds detail and clearer explanation

Custom instructions:

Type your own editing instruction, such as:

  • "Make this more formal"
  • "Add a topic sentence"
  • "Convert to passive voice"
  • "Simplify for a non-lawyer audience"

Assist Mode

Assist mode provides AI help for larger writing tasks, grounded in your matter's documents.

Sub-modes:

Outline Mode

Generate structured outlines for legal documents.

  1. Click Outline in the Assist section
  2. Describe what you want to outline (e.g., "motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction")
  3. Clerk generates a structured outline based on your matter documents
  4. Insert the outline into your document or use it as a guide

Draft Mode

Generate draft prose grounded in your research.

  1. Click Draft in the Assist section
  2. Describe what you want drafted (e.g., "argument that defendant waived the statute of limitations defense")
  3. Clerk drafts content using relevant passages from your documents
  4. Review, edit, and insert into your document

Chat Mode

Ask questions about your documents and get contextual answers.

  1. Click Chat in the Assist section
  2. Ask a question (e.g., "What did the court in Smith v. Jones say about implied consent?")
  3. Clerk searches your documents and provides an answer with citations
  4. Continue the conversation to explore further

Parenthetical Generation

Clerk can generate explanatory parentheticals for citations — the brief descriptions that explain how a source supports your argument.

How to use:

  1. Have a pin or excerpt selected
  2. Right-click and select Generate Parenthetical
  3. Enter the proposition the excerpt supports
  4. Clerk generates a parenthetical following legal writing conventions

Parenthetical style:

  • 8–20 words
  • Present tense
  • Neutral, descriptive tone
  • Explains relevance to your argument

Example:

(holding that implied consent may be withdrawn at any time before the search begins)

Using Clerk Effectively

Provide Context

The more specific your instructions, the better Clerk performs:

  • Vague: "Make this better"
  • Better: "Make this more persuasive by emphasizing the defendant's inconsistent statements"

Review and Edit

Clerk's output is a starting point, not a final product:

  • Always review generated content for accuracy
  • Check that citations are correct
  • Ensure the tone matches your document
  • Edit to fit your argument's flow

Iterate

You can refine Clerk's output:

  1. Generate an initial draft
  2. Insert it into your document
  3. Select portions that need improvement
  4. Use Edit mode to refine specific sections

Grounding in Documents

Clerk's Assist mode searches your matter documents for relevant content. For best results:

  • Upload all relevant authorities before using Clerk
  • Ensure documents are fully indexed
  • Use descriptive queries that match the content in your documents

Model Selection

Clerk uses the generation model configured in Settings. Available options:

  • Llama 3.1 8B Instruct — Bundled, good balance of speed and quality
  • Phi-3.5 Mini Instruct — Bundled, faster but less capable
  • ChatQA — Optional download, best for question-answering

Change models in Settings → Model Settings → Generation.