CounselLink Answer Center for Clients

User Personas

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The User Persona feature allows you to apply office-level roles to multiple users consistently. Personas function as templates that can be assigned to users with similar responsibilities within your organization.

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to create and assign User Personas.

This article covers the following:

System-Based Personas

System-based user personas are available for all clients. These personas come pre-made based on best practices and common role configurations for users that perform similar tasks.

Use of these personas is optional. However, they can serve as a helpful starting point when creating custom personas for your organization.

To apply a System-based persona, you must first copy it. The copied version can then be customized and assigned.

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to manage User Personas.

If your organization does not need system-based personas, you can hide them from the Personas list by clicking Hide System Personas.

There are six system-based personas available. They cannot be inactivated but do not need to be assigned.

Persona Details Roles
Matter Contact - Invoice Reviewer (WF1)

Within the assigned office, this user can create and view matters, assign law firms, and create budgets. The user participates in invoice review under Workflow Task 1.

 Document Admin, Budget Contact, Budget Setup, View Fee Offer, Matter View Admin, Matter Assign, Matter Contact, Matter Setup, WF Task 1
Invoice Contact - Invoice Reviewer (WF2)

Within the assigned office, this user can create and view matters, assign law firms, and create budgets. The user participates in invoice review under Workflow Task 2.

 Document Admin, Budget Contact, View Fee Offer, Invoice Contact, WF Task 2
GC \ C-Level - Invoice Reviewer (WF3)

Within the assigned office, this user can review all matters and associated data, including calendar events and documents. The user serves as the final invoice reviewer.

 Document Admin, Calendar Admin, View Fee Offer, Approve Fee Offer, Matter View Admin, WF Task 3
Office Admin

Within the assigned office, this user can fully manage matters (create, assign, delete, reopen), manage budgets and invoices, administer users, and configure workflows. This persona does not participate in invoice review.

 User Admin, Workflow Admin, Edit Custom Data, Document Admin, Calendar Admin, Corporate Admin, Finance Admin, Budget Template Admin, Budget Setup, View Fee Offer, Approve Fee Offer, Override Rejected Invoices, Matter View Admin, Matter Delete Admin, Matter Assign, Matter Setup, Matter Reopen
Paralegal - Invoice Reviewer - WF1

Within the assigned office, this user can create and view matters, assign law firms, manage documents, and create budgets. The user participates in invoice review under Workflow Task 1.

 Document Admin, Budget Contact, Budget Setup, View Fee Offer, Invoice Contact, Matter View Admin, Matter Assign, Matter Contact, Matter Setup, WF Task 1
Paralegal - No Invoice Review

Within the assigned office, this user can create and view matters, assign law firms, manage documents, and create budgets. This persona does not participate in invoice review.

 Document Admin, Budget Contact, Budget Setup, View Fee Offer, Matter View Admin, Matter Assign, Matter Setup

Creating a User Persona

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User Personas act as role templates for users. Once created, they can be applied on a user's profile page or via mass action on the Profile Search page.

Things to remember about User Persona:

  • You can create as many User Personas as needed.
  • Personas are created at the Corporate level but apply to the Office level only.
  • Personas need at least one role assigned to them in order to work.
  1. Access the Create Persona page from one of two places:
    • From the Corporate Profile Page

      1. Click Manage Personas from the QuickLinks section of your Corporate Profile page, or

        Click Personas in the Administration panel on the homepage.

        The Manage Personas page displays.

      2. Click Create Persona. The Create Persona page displays.

    • From the Persona Overview Page

      1. Click a User Persona name on the Manage Personas page.

        The User Persona Overview page displays.

      2. Click the plus sign in the upper-right hand corner.

        The Create Persona page displays.

  2. Enter a name in the Persona Name field.
  3. Enter a description if needed.
  4. Place a check mark next to the roles included with the persona.

  5. Optional: Set a User Customized View for the persona. This view specifies which pages are available in the top navigation bar for the user. For example, if you are creating a persona that only reviews invoices, that user may not need the Fees or Tasks pages.

    1. Place a check mark next to Set User Persona for Customized View.
    2. Select all pages you wish to include. 
  6. Click Save.

The new persona is activated and displays on your Manage Personas page.

Copying a User Persona

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Copying a persona streamlines the creation process when roles are similar.

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to copy a persona. System-based personas must be copied first in order to assign them.

  1. Click Manage Personas from the QuickLinks section of your Corporate Profile page or the Personas link in the Administration panel on the homepage. The Manage Personas page displays.

  2. Place a check mark next to the name of a persona under the Persona column.

  3. Click Copy Persona. The Copy Persona Template window displays.

  4. Enter a name for the new persona.
  5. Click Save. The new persona is added to the list.

Click on the new persona name and make any edits as necessary. 

Editing a User Persona

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You can edit a persona's details after it is created, including its name, description, and roles.

Changes made to an existing persona will apply to any users that have that persona assigned to them. For example, if you add the Budget Setup role to an existing persona, any user with that persona will now have the Budget Setup role.

  1. Click a Persona name on the Manage Personas page.

    The Persona Overview page displays.

  2. Click the pencil icon in the upper-right hand corner. The Edit Persona page displays.
  3. Make any edits as necessary. 
  4. Click Save.

Inactivating or Activating a User Persona

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If a persona is no longer needed, you may inactivate it. Inactive personas remain available for future use.

Users assigned to an inactive persona retain their roles.

Inactivating or Activating a User Persona on the Manage Personas Page

  1. Click Manage Personas from the QuickLinks section of your Corporate Profile page or the Personas link in the Administration panel on the homepage. The Manage Personas page displays.

  2. Place a check mark next to the persona(s) you'd like to inactivate or activate.
  3. Click Inactivate or Activate.
  4. Click Yes, Continue on the confirmation window. A confirmation message displays confirming the persona(s) you've selected are inactivated or activated.

Inactivating or Activating a User Persona on the Persona Overview Page

  1. Click the Persona name from the Manage Personas page. The Persona Overview page displays.

  2. Click the vertical ellipses in the upper-right corner.

  3. Select Inactivate or Activate.
  4. Click Yes, Continue on the confirmation window. A confirmation message displays.

Deleting a User Persona

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If a persona is no longer needed, you may delete it. If you wish to apply the persona in the future, but don't have an immediate need, you may want to inactivate it instead.

Deleting a persona does not remove roles from users who were previously assigned to it.

  1. Click Manage Personas from the QuickLinks section of your Corporate Profile page or the Personas link in the Administration panel on the homepage. The Manage Personas page displays.

  2. Place a check mark next to the persona(s) you'd like to delete.
  3. Click Delete Persona.
  4. Click Yes, Continue on the confirmation window. A confirmation message displays.

Persona Overview Page

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The Persona Overview page contains all relevant information about that persona. You can view its status and all roles currently associated and not associated with it.

Viewing the Persona Overview Page Top Section

The top section of the overview page contains the description for the User Persona and its status (active or inactive). You can also perform quick actions from the buttons in the top right corner.

Action Description
Create User Persona Click the plus sign.
Edit User Persona Click the pencil icon.
Inactivate/Activate User Persona Click the vertical ellipses.

Viewing the Persona Overview Page Bottom Tabs

The tabs at the bottom of the page contain information about the roles associated with and changes made to the persona.

Tab Description
Roles This tab displays two collapsible categories: Assigned and Available. Assigned roles are the roles associated to the persona. Available displays the roles not associated with it.
History This tab displays a history log of all changes made to the User Persona since its inception.

Assigning a User Persona

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You can assign a User Persona from their Profile Overview page. You can also assign a User Persona to multiple users at the same time (see the later section on this page for more information).

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to perform this action. Only client-created personas can be assigned to a user (not system-based personas).

  1. Navigate to the user's User Profile Overview page.

  2. Find the Office Roles section under the Roles tab.

  3. Place a check mark next to the office(s).
  4. Click the More Actions button.

  5. Select Assign Persona from the drop-down list.

    The Edit Persona window displays.

  6. Select a persona from the drop-down for each office you've selected. 
  7. Click Save. 

A success message displays, and the roles and Persona are now added to the user.

Removing a User Persona

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Removing a persona detaches it from the user but does not remove the associated roles.

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to perform this action.

  1. Navigate to the user's User Profile Overview page.

  2. Find the Office Roles section under the Roles tab.

  3. Place a check mark next to the office(s).
  4. Click the More Actions button.

  5. Select Remove Persona from the drop-down list.

    If the persona is not assigned for the selected office(s), this option will be unavailalbe.

  6. Click Confirm on the Remove Persona window.
  7. Click Save. 

A success message displays, and the roles and persona are now removed on the selected office(s).

Assigning a User Persona to Multiple Users

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You can assign a User Persona to multiple users from the Profile Search page.

You must have the User Administrator role at the Corporate level to perform this action.

  1. Navigate to the Profile Search page.

  2. Place a check mark next to the users.

    You can add the Persona column to the search page by selecting it from the Columns drop down.

  3. Click the More Actions button.

  4. Select Assign Persona from the drop-down list.

    The Assign Persona window displays.

  5. Select a persona from the drop-down for each office you've selected.
  6. Click Save. 

A success message displays and the roles and Persona are now added to the user.