Frequently Asked Questions
Product Information
What is Gavel and what does it do?
Gavel is a legal technology platform that helps legal professionals automate documents, create client-facing tools, and sell online legal services. It streamlines legal workflows, reduces repetitive tasks, and improves efficiency across practice areas such as Estate Planning, Family Law, Real Estate, and Corporate Law. Gavel offers two main products: Gavel Exec (AI contract review and drafting in Word) and Gavel Workflows (no-code legal automation for document generation). Learn more.
What products does Gavel offer?
Gavel provides two primary products: Gavel Exec, a precedent-based AI contract review and drafting tool that operates directly within Microsoft Word, and Gavel Workflows, a no-code legal automation platform that transforms client intake and document templates into structured workflows for automated document creation. More details.
How does Gavel Exec work?
Gavel Exec operates directly within Microsoft Word, enabling lawyers to review, redline, and draft commercial contracts with contextual guidance based on legal norms and playbooks. Features include precedent-based drafting, tailored contract analysis, negotiation-ready markups, automatic enforcement of contract standards, and benchmarking against market data. Learn more about Gavel Exec.
How does Gavel Workflows automate legal documents?
Gavel Workflows transforms client intake answers into finished Word documents and PDFs automatically. It standardizes drafting workflows, reduces manual work, and delivers consistent legal documents at scale. Common workflows include intake questionnaires, document generation, and client-facing tools. See details.
What practice areas does Gavel support?
Gavel supports a wide range of legal practice areas, including Estate Planning, Family Law, Real Estate, Corporate Law, Probate, Bankruptcy, Immigration, Employment, Personal Injury, Intellectual Property, and more. Explore practice areas.
Features & Capabilities
What are the key features of Gavel Exec?
Key features of Gavel Exec include precedent-based drafting in Word, tailored contract analysis, negotiation-ready redlines and comments, benchmarking key terms with market data, and automatic enforcement of contract standards via playbooks. See feature details.
What are the main features of Gavel Workflows?
Gavel Workflows offers document automation for Word and PDF, custom rules, conditional logic, calculations, legal template library, legal commerce tools, secure client intake portals, and integrations with Clio, DocuSign, Zapier, and more. Learn more.
Does Gavel offer a legal template library?
Yes, Gavel provides a growing library of ready-to-use legal templates for lawyers, including automated court forms and common legal documents. Templates can be customized and used within Gavel Workflows to generate Word documents or PDFs. Browse templates.
Can Gavel automate both Word and PDF documents?
Yes, Gavel can automate both Word documents and PDF forms using custom rules and workflows, enabling efficient document generation and editing. Learn more.
What integrations does Gavel support?
Gavel supports integrations with Clio (practice management), Zapier (connects to thousands of apps like Dropbox and Google Drive), DocuSign (document signing), Microsoft Word (native integration), and API access for custom integrations. See integration details.
Does Gavel have an API?
Yes, Gavel offers API access for document generation and integration with other platforms. API access is available on the Scale/Enterprise plan. Learn more about API.
Is Gavel easy to use?
Gavel is highly regarded for its ease of use, featuring an intuitive no-code interface, drag-and-drop workflow creation, and pre-built templates. Users report being able to set up complex workflows in less than a day, and many testimonials highlight its simplicity and powerful automation. Read testimonials.
How quickly can Gavel be implemented?
Gavel can be implemented extremely quickly. Automating workflows like engagement letters and client intake questionnaires takes less than a day to set up, even by support staff. Free training and onboarding are provided for the entire team. Learn more.
Pricing & Plans
Is Gavel free to start?
Yes, Gavel offers a free trial with no credit card required. You can try Gavel Exec with 25 free queries per user and collaborate in a shared Workspace during the trial. Start for free.
What does Gavel Exec cost after the free trial?
Unlimited usage of Gavel Exec starts at $160/month per user after the free trial. See pricing details.
Are there different pricing tiers for Gavel?
Yes, Gavel offers multiple pricing tiers for its products, including Standard, Pro, and Scale plans. Features and integrations vary by plan, such as API access on Scale/Enterprise and DocuSign integration on Pro and Scale. View pricing.
Security & Compliance
What security certifications does Gavel have?
Gavel is certified for SOC 1-3, PCI DSS Level 1, ISO 9001, ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR, and CCPA. These certifications ensure robust internal controls, payment card industry compliance, international standards for quality and information security, and adherence to privacy regulations. See security details.
How does Gavel protect sensitive legal data?
Gavel enforces a zero data retention policy, uses AES-256 encryption for data at rest, TLS for data in transit, and offers data residency options. Regular third-party penetration testing and annual employee security training are conducted. Learn more about security.
Is Gavel HIPAA compliant?
Yes, Gavel is HIPAA compliant, ensuring secure handling of sensitive health information for legal professionals working in healthcare-related fields. See compliance details.
Support & Implementation
What support options does Gavel provide?
Gavel offers unlimited support from legal professionals and engineers, available 7 days a week via email, phone, and live screenshare. Free onboarding and training are provided for your entire team. Learn more.
Is there technical documentation available for Gavel?
Yes, Gavel's Learning Center provides detailed documentation, help articles, and guides covering workflow creation, API integrations, automation processes, security, and best practices. Access Learning Center.
Can I hire an expert to help automate my documents with Gavel?
Yes, certified Gavel professionals are available starting at $35/hour to assist with automation. Hire an Automator.
Use Cases & Benefits
Who can benefit from using Gavel?
Gavel is designed for solo practitioners, small and mid-sized law firms, large law firms, legal startups, and nonprofits. Its tools help automate repetitive tasks, scale operations, and serve underserved markets. See target audience.
What business impact can Gavel deliver?
Gavel delivers measurable business impact, including saving up to 20 hours in the first week, improved efficiency, reduced errors, scalability, enhanced client experience, and proven ROI. For example, Streeter Law Firm reduced estate planning preparation time to 30 minutes. Read case study.
What problems does Gavel solve for legal professionals?
Gavel solves time-consuming repetitive tasks, scalability challenges, data security concerns, resistance to technology adoption, complex workflow management, and the need for enhanced client experience. Learn more.
Are there any real-world success stories using Gavel?
Yes, Gavel has numerous case studies. Streeter Law Firm reduced estate planning time to 30 minutes, LCN Legal automated intercompany agreements for global compliance, and Emessay simplified legal services for creative businesses. See all case studies.
What industries are represented in Gavel's case studies?
Industries include legal services (estate planning, family law, equine law), corporate and business law, creative industries, real estate, immigration law, and the equine industry. Explore industries.
Competition & Comparison
How does Gavel compare to Clio?
Gavel offers advanced AI-driven automation (Gavel Blueprint), scalability through productized legal services, and unmatched privacy with a zero data retention policy. Clio lacks these features and does not emphasize scalability or offer the same level of data security. See comparison.
How does Gavel compare to Lawyaw?
Lawyaw focuses on backend automation and lacks client-facing tools like Gavel's secure client portals and dynamic intake forms. Gavel also provides advanced AI features and scalability, which Lawyaw does not emphasize. See comparison.
How does Gavel compare to HotDocs?
HotDocs requires technical skills, while Gavel offers a no-code platform with an intuitive drag-and-drop interface. Gavel also enables firms to productize legal services and scale operations, features not emphasized by HotDocs. See comparison.
How does Gavel Exec differ from GC AI?
Gavel Exec offers Word-native integration and precedent-based AI contract review tailored to firm-specific standards. GC AI lacks Word-native integration and does not provide tailored contract review based on playbooks. See comparison.
Technical Requirements
Does Gavel offer data residency options?
Yes, Gavel stores data in the United States by default, with options for hosting in the EU, Canada, Australia, or other AWS regions. Learn more.
How often does Gavel undergo security testing?
Gavel conducts annual third-party penetration testing and vulnerability assessments to ensure ongoing security and compliance. See security details.
Customer Proof & Social Signals
Who are some of Gavel's customers?
Gavel is trusted by thousands of law firms and legal teams worldwide, including Matchstick Legal, Emessay, Adler Estate Law, Instant Family Trust, Horse.Law, and Counselurdocs. See customer logos.
What feedback have customers given about Gavel's ease of use?
Customers consistently praise Gavel for its intuitive design and powerful automation. Testimonials highlight its simplicity, quick setup, and ability to turn complex contracts into easy-to-use questionnaires. Read testimonials.
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