Support · File notes

File notes

A file note is a short written record of something that happened on a matter – a phone call, a conference, an instruction from your client. LexBrief keeps them on a File notes tab inside each matter, with the date and time they happened, so you always have a contemporaneous record you can rely on later. This guide shows you how to add one, edit it, keep a history of any changes, and find a note again. You do not need to be technical to follow it – every step has a picture, and the thing to click is circled in it.

Last updated: 04/07/2026

If at any point your screen does not look like the picture, stop and email support@lexbrief.au – we would rather help than have you guess.

Before you start

File notes live inside a matter, so you need a matter open first. If you have not created one yet, the Matters guide walks you through it. That is the only thing you need before you begin.

A note on wording: the dark strip of links down the left-hand side of the screen is the menu. A matter is a single file or brief you are working on. The row of words across the top of an open matter (Detail, Rates, Tasks, and so on) are the tabs – clicking one shows a different part of that matter.

What a file note is

A file note is simply a note-to-file: your own written record of an interaction on a matter. For example:

  • “Client called and said she is happy to settle in the $40,000–$55,000 range.”
  • “Instructor confirmed the discovery deadline is 30 June.”
  • “Conference with counsel opposite – agreed to exchange outlines by Friday.”

Each note records when it happened, what kind of interaction it was (a phone call, a conference, an instruction, or something else), an optional short title, and the note itself in your own words.

How file notes differ from the other two dated lists. It is easy to mix these up, so keep them straight:
  • File notes record what has already happened – your interactions on the file.
  • The Court Diary (a matter’s Key dates) records future court dates and deadlines – what is coming up.
  • The Chronology tab records the events of the dispute itself (who did what, when) – the story of the case, for a document you can produce.

Opening a matter’s File notes

Open the matter you want (click Matters in the left-hand menu, then click the matter’s name). Along the top of the matter you will see a row of tabs. Click the File notes tab.

An open matter with its row of tabs across the top; the File notes tab is circled

What you should see. The File notes area opens. Any notes already on this matter appear as a list, newest first. If there are none yet, you will see a short “No file notes yet” message instead – that is fine, you are about to add one.

The File notes tab showing a list of notes, each with its date, time, type, title and text, newest first

Adding a file note

1. Click the Add file note button at the top-right of the File notes area.

The Add file note button at the top-right of the File notes area, circled

A small form opens on the same page. There is no separate page to go to – you fill it in right here.

2. Check the Date and Time. LexBrief fills them in with the current date and time for you, so if you are writing the note as the call ends you can leave them. The date and time are your record of when the interaction happened, not when you typed it up – so if you are writing up yesterday’s call, just change the date to yesterday. The Time is optional; clear it if it does not matter.

The add-note form with the Date box, already filled with today's date, circled; the Time box beside it is filled with the current time

3. In the Type box, choose what kind of interaction this was – a Phone call, a Conference, an Instruction, or Other. Click the box and pick from the short list that appears.

The Type box on the add-note form, circled, offering Phone call, Conference, Instruction and Other

4. In the Title box, type an optional short heading – something you would recognise at a glance later, like “Call with instructor re discovery”. You can leave this blank if you like.

The optional Title box on the add-note form, circled

5. In the Note box, type the note itself – what was said, agreed, or instructed, in your own words. This is the only part you must fill in.

The Note box on the add-note form, circled, ready for the text of the note

6. Click the Save file note button at the bottom of the form.

What you should see. The form closes and your new note appears at the top of the list, showing its date, time, type and text.

Tip. The Note and the Date are the only required parts. If you try to save with one of them empty, LexBrief keeps the form open so nothing blank is stored.

Editing or deleting a note

Every note in the list has an Edit button and a Delete button on its right.

A note in the list with its Edit and Delete buttons on the right; the Edit button is circled

  • Click Edit to open that note in a small form (the same form as when you added it) so you can change the date, time, type, title or text. Then click Save changes.
  • Click Delete to remove the note. LexBrief asks you to confirm first, so you cannot delete one by accident.
Why this matters. A file note is a contemporaneous record, so a note that has been quietly changed is worth less than one where the change is on the record. LexBrief can keep that change on the record for you automatically – that is what the two edit modes below are about.

The two edit modes

LexBrief can handle edits to your file notes in one of two ways. You choose which, once, and it applies to every matter.

  • Keep an edit history (the recommended setting, and the one you start with). Every time you edit or delete a note, LexBrief quietly keeps a copy of the previous version. Each note shows when it was created and when it was last edited, and an expandable Edit history line lets you see exactly what it said before. Nothing is lost.
  • Plain editing. Edits and deletions are made with no history kept. Simpler, but there is no record of what a note used to say.

When the edit history is on, an edited note looks like this – note the “Edit history” line, opened here to show the previous wording:

An edited file note with its Edit history opened, showing the earlier version of the text before the change was made

Where to switch the edit mode

1. Click Settings in the left-hand menu.

2. Click the Matter Defaults tab across the top, then the File notes tab in the second row of tabs beneath it.

3. In the Edit policy box, choose Keep an edit history (recommended) or Plain editing (no history), then click Save.

The File notes section of Settings, Matter Defaults, with the Edit policy box circled

Good to know. Switching to plain editing only changes things going forward – any history LexBrief has already kept is never deleted.

Once a matter has a few notes, you can search them. At the top of the File notes area is a Search file notes box.

The Search file notes box at the top of the File notes area, circled

Type a word or two – a name, a topic, a deadline – and click Search. LexBrief looks through the title and the text of every note on this matter and shows the closest matches first. Click Clear to go back to the full list.

What next

File notes are one of three dated lists on a matter. The others are worth knowing:

Stuck on anything at all? Email support@lexbrief.au – a real person reads it, usually the same working day.