Manage legal cases and deadlines

Docket the incoming writ for the construction dispute, open the case timeline spreadsheet, add the new deadline for the defendant's statement on 12 August, assign follow-up to Priya in litigation support and to Daniel the junior for evidence collation, and ask Priya to confirm service receipt by Tuesday — check the dates don't clash with the arbitration hearing already in the file.

Before I send the case summary to the partner, make it easy for them to approve litigation steps — put upcoming deadlines in the top-left, list only the next three actions with responsible names and estimated hours, flag any missing service confirmations, and surface any statute-of-limitations risks so a reviewer can greenlight the plan in under two minutes.

We were served a claim today and the defence deadline falls two days before an arbitration hearing already scheduled. The people involved are Priya in litigation support who handles service, Daniel the junior who prepares bundles, and me as counsel responsible for deadlines. I'm worried we will miss an essential filing or prejudice the arbitration schedule, but I don't know whether to seek an extension now or adjust the hearing logistics. What's the best immediate move to protect the client and preserve options?

Over the last six files we keep having deadline clashes and late filings that force expensive adjournments. We waste junior time redoing bundles and partners lose faith in our diary control. What single change to how we track case dates — stricter central diary ownership, a pre-weekly triage meeting, or mandatory client confirmations on service dates — will most reduce missed deadlines and last-minute rushes?