A useful client update says what has happened, what remains outstanding and what is proposed next. A polished email still needs to stay within the facts you have supplied.
Use this structure for a first draft from an approved fact pack. Set the audience and a sensible length so that the response is easy for the responsible solicitor to review.
This is a communication draft. It cannot establish the current case position or authorise a proposed next step.
The prompt and example response
See what the brief asks for.
You can copy the prompt, including its fictional facts, to practise in a suitable tool. The response shown here is manually authored; this page is not a live AI chat.
03 / CLIENT COMMUNICATION
Writing a client update
Give the model the facts, the audience and the limits on what it can promise.
Illustrative conversation
You
Your prompt
Draft a plain-English client email, under 130 words, for a solicitor to review. Use only this fictional fact pack:
Client: Alex Morgan.
6 May 2026: We asked the other party for copies of the delivery records.
8 May 2026: Alex sent us two photographs, which we received.
As at 13 May 2026: No reply to the request has been received; no hearing has been listed.
Proposed next step: Follow up the records request, subject to the responsible solicitor’s approval.
Use a calm, professional tone. Include a subject line. Do not predict the outcome, invent a hearing date or promise a response deadline.
LE
Example assistant
Illustrative response
Subject: Update on the delivery records request
Dear Alex,
We asked the other party for copies of the delivery records on 6 May. As at 13 May, we have not received a reply.
Thank you for the two photographs you sent on 8 May. We have received them.
No hearing has been listed. Our proposed next step is to follow up the records request once the responsible solicitor has approved it.
Kind regards, The legal team
Check the response against the supplied sources.
Why this prompt works
The draft separates the current position from a proposed next step and adds no unsupported promises.
Confirm the fact pack is current at the point the email will be sent.
Check that receiving the photographs is not presented as verifying what they show.
Keep the proposed follow-up subject to the stated approval.
Remove any prediction, deadline or assurance that you have not authorised.
Adapt the brief
Use it with your own task.
Specify the recipient’s preferred form of address and the tone your firm uses.
Provide an approved next step and distinguish it from options still being considered.
Ask for a shorter or more detailed version without adding new case facts.
Before sending, the responsible professional should check the draft against the live file and confirm that any proposed action is still appropriate.
For real work, use a tool approved for the information involved and keep the responsible professional’s review. A prompt cannot guarantee an accurate answer. This example is training material, not legal advice.