A plain-language guide to everything the Actionstep MCP Server can do — written for the people who use it, not the people who build it. New here? Start with the Setup Guide to connect, then come back.
You don't need special commands. Ask the way you'd ask a colleague — your assistant works out which action to take.
A few habits get you faster, more precise answers:
If you have the matter number, use it. Asking about "matter 2026/00123" goes straight to the right file. If you only have a name or an address, that's fine too — your assistant will search.
Start broad, then drill in. A request like "summarise matter 2026/00123" gives you the whole picture; you can then ask follow-ups like "show me the file notes" or "who's the other side?" without repeating the number.
It confirms before it changes anything. When you ask to open a matter, record time, add a disbursement, update details, or add a contact, you'll be shown the details and asked to confirm first.
Plugins are ready-made workflows that sit on top of the MCP Server and your Microsoft 365 connection to handle a whole task end-to-end — not just a single look-up. Download one below, add it in Claude, and it's there for your whole team.
Each plugin comes as a .zip file. Installation is the same for every plugin and takes a minute — download the file, then add it under Claude's settings. The steps are at the bottom of this section.
A guided conflict-of-interest screen for a proposed new client or matter. You answer a few short questions about the client, the other side, and the strata scheme; the plugin then searches your firm's history across Actionstep, Outlook, SharePoint and Teams — open, closed, and historical files — for any matching party. It classifies what it finds against the relevant professional conduct rules and produces a branded preliminary conflict report you can save to the matter and send to a qualified person to sign off.
It is deliberately cautious: it biases toward flagging anything worth a second look, and it never makes the final "safe to act" call — that stays with a lawyer.
The two variants run exactly the same workflow. They differ only in the law and the local identifiers they screen against. The Australian variant assesses matches against the Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules — applied by state or territory, and flagging Northern Territory matters, which sit outside that framework — and expects Australian strata identifiers (such as CTS, SP, or Plan of Subdivision numbers). The New Zealand variant screens against New Zealand's lawyers' professional conduct rules and expects New Zealand unit-title and body-corporate identifiers. Install the variant that matches your office; firms operating in both countries can install both.
Turns any SharePoint folder into a branded, on-brand document index. Point it at a folder — by link or by name — and it catalogues every file across the folder and all its subfolders, with each entry linking straight to the real file in SharePoint. You choose the format: an interactive, searchable HTML page (filter and sort by category or folder) or a traditional printable PDF. Optionally, it reads each document and adds a one-line summary, so the index doubles as a quick guide to what's in the file.
The process is the same for every plugin above.
Click the download button for the plugin you want and save the .zip file somewhere you can find it. There's no need to unzip it.
In Claude, open Settings, then Capabilities.
Under the plugins area, add the .zip file you just downloaded. Claude installs it and the plugin becomes available in your chats.
Make sure the connectors the plugin relies on are connected — the Actionstep MCP Server (see the Setup Guide) and, for these plugins, your firm's Microsoft 365 connection. The plugin will let you know if something it needs isn't connected.
Open a new chat and just ask — for example, "Run a conflict check on a new client" or "Index the documents in this SharePoint folder."
Installing for the whole firm? Whoever manages your firm's Claude workspace can add a plugin once so it's available to everyone — individuals then don't need to install it themselves.
Locate a matter or a contact, and pull up the details and the people involved.
Searches for matters by client name, address, reference, or any partial text. Use this when you don't have the matter number to hand.
Finds every matter a person or organisation is connected to — across open, closed, and historical files — so you can screen for conflicts before taking on new work. Because it looks past just the open matters, you see the full picture, not only what's currently active.
A single, consolidated brief on one matter — the key details, the people involved, the current stage, and recent activity. The best place to start when you want to get across a file quickly.
The core details of a single matter — its type, status, key dates, and reference.
Lists everyone connected to a matter and their role — client, other side, agent, and so on.
Searches your Actionstep contacts — people and organisations — whether or not they're linked to a matter.
Full details for one contact — phone, email, and address.
Changes the details on an existing contact — phone, email, address, and other fields. You'll be shown the change and asked to confirm before it's saved.
Can't find a matter? If you searched by number and it didn't work, try the client's name or the property address. If you searched by name, check the spelling or try just part of it.
Once you're on a matter, look at where it's up to, what's outstanding, and what's been filed against it.
Shows where a matter sits in its workflow and what comes next.
Shows the steps a matter can move to, and exactly what each one requires — tasks that must be completed first, anyone missing an email address, data fields you can set, and the tasks, messages and documents that will fire when the step happens. Read-only, so you can check before committing.
Advances a matter through its workflow. If something's blocking the change — like an outstanding mandatory task — you'll be told what it is, and can clear it (for example by completing the task) and try again. Confirmed with you before it happens.
Lists the tasks on a matter. You can ask for outstanding, completed, or all of them.
Adds a task to a matter — give it a task name, a due date, and who it's assigned to (someone already on the matter), with an optional priority and a longer description. New tasks start as incomplete and appear in Actionstep straight away.
Changes an existing task — mark it complete (or incomplete), reassign it, move the due date, rename it, or change its priority. Completing a task is also how you clear a step's mandatory tasks before a workflow step change.
Shows the extra information captured against a matter — the fields specific to that type of matter.
Lists the documents saved against a matter.
Shows the emails linked to a matter.
Read what's already on file, and record new notes as you go.
Shows all the file notes recorded on a matter.
Opens a single file note in full — handy as a follow-up after seeing a list.
Records a new file note against a matter.
Check what's been recorded against a matter financially — and record time and costs as you work. Anything that changes a record is shown to you and confirmed first.
Shows the time recorded against a matter.
Adds a new time entry to a matter — duration, description, and whether it's billable. Tell it the time in plain language (e.g. "18 minutes" or "0.3 hours") and it records it correctly.
Adjusts an existing time entry — its duration, description, or billable status.
Lists the disbursements and expenses charged to a matter, with amounts and GST.
Records a new disbursement or expense against a matter — description and amount, with GST handled the way your firm expects.
Adjusts an existing disbursement — its description, amount, or quantity.
Shows the invoices raised on a matter, with each bill's total, amount paid, and amount outstanding — so "has this been billed?" and "what does the client still owe?" are one question away.
Shows how a matter is set up to bill — its billing mode, tax treatment, default rate, and related settings.
Lists any rate overrides on a matter, or confirms it's using your firm's default rates.
Changes a matter's billing settings — billing mode, quote or discount, tax, default rate, and billing email. Shown and confirmed before it's saved.
Adds a rate override to a matter, or changes an existing one.
Retrieves your firm's billing reference lists — rates, tax codes, units, activity codes, and similar — so the right one can be used when recording time or costs.
Set up new files and contacts, update existing matters, and link people to a matter. Your assistant always shows you the details and asks you to confirm before anything is created or changed.
Lists the matter types your firm uses, so you can pick the right one.
Shows the fields and people required for a particular matter type, before you open it — so you can gather what you need first.
Creates a new matter, using the correct matter type and fields for your firm. Your assistant confirms the details with you before it's created.
Changes details on an existing matter — its name, status, reference, or who it's assigned to. Shown and confirmed before it's saved.
Sets the custom data fields captured against a matter — key dates, property details, and the other fields specific to that matter type. Shown and confirmed before it's saved.
Where a matter type allows multiple records of the same kind — a second property, say — this adds the extra record so its fields can be filled in.
Links an existing contact to a matter in a role — client, other side, agent, and so on.
Creates a new person or organisation in Actionstep. Your assistant checks for an existing record first to avoid duplicates.
A catch-all for the occasional request the everyday actions don't cover.
A flexible, look-up-only action used to retrieve information the everyday tools don't cover — for example, reference lists like tax codes. You won't usually ask for it by name; your assistant reaches for it when it's the right fit. It can only read information — it can't change anything.
A few things worth keeping in mind as you work.
The server can look things up, create new records, and update existing ones — matters, contacts, tasks, file notes, time, and disbursements. It cannot delete records.
Whenever you ask to create or update something — open a matter, record time, add a disbursement, change details — you'll see the details and be asked to confirm first.
Your firm has its own dedicated server, connecting to your Actionstep account through a secure, authorised connection set up by LegalCollect.
Your assistant is a helpful tool, not a substitute for your own judgement. Confirm anything important against the matter itself before you rely on it.