How does AI contract review work with Actionstep?
Actionstep law firms can use Qanooni to review and redline contracts in Microsoft Word using authorised matter context and the firm’s playbooks. The connected workflow brings together legal research, clause review, drafting and the response in Outlook, with approved work saved back to the Actionstep matter. The lawyer controls sign-off.
We mapped one contract review: 17 steps, 16 context switches and seven separate systems, spanning email, Word, document management, research, precedents, practice management and browser-based AI. Each switch required the lawyer to carry information between systems.
Here is the same review in one connected Qanooni and Actionstep workflow. The fictional example is a customer-side master services agreement (MSA) for a SaaS platform, governed by Delaware law.
How we counted a context switch: each time the lawyer had to leave the active document or matter workspace to find, re-enter or reconcile information in another system.
| Workflow element | Disconnected review | Qanooni with Actionstep |
|---|---|---|
| Process | 17 manual steps | Four connected legal stages |
| Matter context | The lawyer repeatedly finds and re-enters it | Actionstep context remains connected to the work |
| Working environment | Seven separate systems | Actionstep, Word and Outlook connected around the same matter |
| Review standard | Precedents and preferred positions found manually | The firm's playbook is applied directly to the agreement |
| Matter record | Finished work is filed manually | Approved work is saved back to the Actionstep matter |
Identify contract risks using Actionstep matter context
The lawyer selects the matter and asks a plain-English question about the agreement. In this review: what is the client's total exposure if the vendor suffers a security incident, how does that compare with what is recoverable under the agreement, and which clauses create the gap?
QCounsel answers from the documents already on the matter, the liability exposure analysis, the order form, the vendor diligence summary and the firm's own customer-side playbook, together with the sources relevant to the governing jurisdiction. Here it identifies approximately $1.4 million in estimated exposure and traces the contractual recovery gap to the clauses responsible. Sources appear alongside each material proposition so the lawyer can verify the answer before relying on it.
When the question depends on jurisdiction, QCounsel asks before it assumes. On a breach-notification question in the same matter it asks whether to research all affected states, one state, or one state with a nationwide overview.
Review and redline the contract in Microsoft Word
The lawyer opens the agreement in Word and runs QRedline.
How does AI apply the firm’s contract review playbook?
QRedline checks the document against the firm’s contract review playbook and the connected matter context, flags departures from the firm's preferred positions, explains why they matter and suggests alternative wording.
In this review, QRedline identified 48 points in the agreement and grouped them by severity and clause, including provisions the playbook expects that the agreement is missing altogether: access restrictions and change notification. Instead of reconstructing the firm's position from memory, the lawyer begins with the exceptions already organised and the reasoning attached.
Each finding carries the playbook rationale and the position under the governing law. On the fees clause, for example: the playbook treats unilateral price increases as unacceptable, the clause lets the vendor raise renewal fees at its discretion, and even if enforceable under Delaware law, the lack of an objective cap is a material customer objection.
What changes for the supervising lawyer?
A junior can begin from the firm's documented positions. The supervising lawyer can concentrate on the exceptions, risk decisions and negotiation strategy instead of rereading every clause from a blank starting point.
Draft revised clauses in Word and the response in Outlook
Once the review positions are settled, QDraft produces a revised limitation-of-liability article from the firm's customer-side template, using the cap, super-cap, confidentiality, indemnity and wilful-misconduct positions agreed during the review.
Qanooni then drafts the response to the counterparty in Outlook. The reply draws on the client's instructions, earlier correspondence, research and completed review. It is not a generic summary of the agreement. It is the response this matter requires, drafted in the firm's style and inserted into the open email thread.
Approve the work and save it back to Actionstep
Nothing leaves the firm without lawyer sign-off.
The lawyer checks the redline, verifies the material legal conclusions, makes the final decisions and approves the response. The redlined agreement, the drafted article and the correspondence are then saved back to the Actionstep matter, alongside the research notes QCounsel saved as it worked.
The matter record remains complete without someone re-keying the work into another system. The next task begins with the work that has just been completed already connected to the same matter.
Does the workflow change between UK and US matters?
The workflow remains the same. The governing law, legal sources, firm positions and drafting conventions change with the matter.
Qanooni follows the jurisdiction governing the matter rather than treating "UK" or "US" as a single body of law. For UK work, the relevant jurisdiction may be England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. For US work, the analysis may require governing state law, applicable federal law or both. The relevant sources, the firm's playbook and its drafting conventions then shape the work.
In this example, the agreement was governed by Delaware law, while the breach-notification question required a separate state-by-state analysis.
Qanooni does not apply one generic global answer to every contract. It connects the governing law and the firm's own knowledge to the matter being worked on.
What happened at the firms that switched it on?
Qanooni launched inside Actionstep at the end of April. Every Actionstep firm that has completed a trial has gone on to a paid subscription. Lawyers at those firms now use it almost four times as often as they did in the month it launched, and every firm followed the same path: they began by asking it legal questions about their matters, and within weeks the same lawyers were checking agreements against the firm's own rules and drafting documents straight from the matter.
Frequently asked questions
Do we have to upload documents for Qanooni to review an Actionstep matter?
No separate upload is required for documents and information already held against the selected Actionstep matter. Qanooni uses the authorised matter context while the lawyer works in Word and Outlook.
Do lawyers work in Actionstep or Microsoft Word?
Both. The lawyer selects the relevant Actionstep matter, carries out the legal work with Qanooni in Word or Outlook, and saves the approved output back to the same matter. It is one connected system built around the Actionstep matter record.
Can Qanooni review a contract against our firm's playbook?
Yes. QRedline checks the document against the firm's preferred positions and playbook, identifies departures and missing provisions, and suggests alternative wording.
Does Qanooni support both UK solicitors and US attorneys?
Yes. The connected Actionstep workflow is the same across both markets. Qanooni works from the selected matter, the applicable jurisdiction, the firm's playbooks and the legal sources relevant to the work.
How does Qanooni relate to Actionstep Intelligence?
They are complementary. Actionstep Intelligence applies AI to the operation and performance of the firm. Qanooni uses Actionstep matter context to perform bespoke legal work. Actionstep remains the system of record.
Read more about how Actionstep Intelligence and Qanooni work together.
How are Qanooni's legal answers checked?
QCounsel shows the sources relevant to the governing jurisdiction supporting each answer, and asks a scoping question when the jurisdiction is ambiguous, giving the lawyer a direct route to the source material. Read more about how Qanooni grounds legal AI.
How does Qanooni protect client data?
Qanooni is SOC 2 Type II audited, ISO 27001 certified and GDPR compliant. Customer data is logically separated by firm and is never used to train models. Read the full security and data-handling overview.
How long does Qanooni take to set up with Actionstep?
Qanooni connects to authorised Actionstep matters without a data migration. Firms typically begin working on live matters within days while their playbooks, precedents and drafting style are configured during onboarding.
See the same workflow on one of your matters
The fastest way to understand connected matter context is to see Qanooni work against a matter and review process relevant to your firm.