Common Law (Federal & State Jurisdictions)
United States legal matter plans cover federal regulatory workflows, transactional practice, and federal court litigation across the nation's dual court system. Our US library includes practitioner-grade checklists for USPTO trademark and patent prosecution, SEC corporate filings, federal district court litigation, commercial real estate transactions, and cross-border M&A. Each plan is structured around federal procedural rules, statutory deadlines, and agency-specific filing requirements - giving US practitioners a step-by-step roadmap from matter intake through to resolution. More state jurisdictions and practice areas are added continuously by community contributors.
The Open Matter Plans Network gives United States legal practitioners 2 free, practitioner-grade matter plan templates spanning 2 practice areas. Each plan is a structured checklist that walks your team through every stage of a matter - from initial instructions to file closure - with estimated time units, key dates, and role assignments built in. Use them directly or export to CSV for your practice management system.
Every plan in the United States library is maintained by verified legal practitioners and aligned to the SALI Alliance Legal Matter Standard Specification, making them compatible with legal AI workflows and PMS integrations. Plans are community-reviewed, version-controlled, and updated when legislation or court rules change - so you can trust they reflect current United States procedural requirements.
Browse the full plan library above to find the matter type your practice needs.
What United States legal matter plan templates are available?
The Open Matter Plans Network provides 2 free United States legal matter plan templates across 2 practice areas. Areas covered include Real Estate, Intellectual Property, and more. Each plan is a structured, step-by-step checklist aligned to United States's court rules and SALI taxonomy.
Are the United States legal matter plans free to use?
Yes. All United States legal matter plans on the Open Matter Plans Network are free to access and use. Plans can be browsed online, exported to CSV, or accessed via the JSON API for direct integration with your practice management system.
How are United States matter plans structured?
Each United States matter plan contains multiple stages (e.g., instructions, investigation, preparation, finalisation), with individual tasks under each stage. Tasks include estimated time units, role assignments, and key date fields - giving you a complete workflow from first instruction through to matter closure.
When a practice-management system opens a matter at this level, these are the canonical fields it receives - resolved through the field-set hierarchy (base β area of law β geography β plan). Fields added at this levelare shown below, with inherited tiers beneath; each set's page has the full resolved table. How this works.
matter.matterNumbertextrequiredmatter.titletextmatter.matterTypetextmatter.statustextmatter.clientNametextrequiredmatter.clientEmailemailmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.phonephonematter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addresstextmatter.fieldValues.client_date_of_birthdatematter.ourFirmNametextrequiredmatter.ourFirmAddresstextmatter.ourFirmPhonephonematter.ourFirmEmailemailmatter.ourFirmAddressStreettextmatter.ourFirmAddressSuburbtextmatter.user.firstNametextmatter.user.surnametextmatter.user.nametextmatter.user.emailemailmatter.user.addresstextmatter.user.phonephonematter.currentDatedatematter.fieldValues.matter_open_datedatematter.fieldValues.limitation_datedatematter.fieldValues.next_key_datedatematter.fieldValues.opponent_nametextmatter.fieldValues.opponent_solicitor_nametextmatter.fieldValues.opponent_solicitor_emailemailmatter.fieldValues.opponent_solicitor_phonephonematter.fieldValues.opponent_emailemailmatter.fieldValues.opponent_phonematter.fieldValues.court_nametextmatter.fieldValues.court_file_numbertextmatter.fieldValues.court_datedatematter.fieldValues.hearing_typetextmatter.fieldValues.estimated_feescurrencymatter.fieldValues.costs_agreement_signedbooleanmatter.fieldValues.professional_feescurrencymatter.fieldValues.disbursements_estimatecurrencymatter.fieldValues.total_disbursementscurrencymatter.user.signatureimagematter.fieldValues.client_abn_acnmatter.fieldValues.client_entity_typeselectmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addressStreettextmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addressSuburbtextmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addressStatetextmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addressPostcodetextmatter.linkedContacts.CLIENT.addressLocalitytextmatter.ourFirmAddressStatematter.ourFirmAddressPostcodetextmatter.ourFirmAddressLocalitytextmatter.user.addressStreetmatter.user.addressSuburbtextmatter.user.addressStatetextmatter.user.addressPostcodetextmatter.user.addressLocalitytext