Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Client Communications Log agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The client-comms-log skill is a plug-in for an AI agent that keeps a dated, append-only record of every contact with a client on a law clinic case, including calls, emails, texts, letters, in-person meetings and voicemails. It is aimed at law school clinic students, supervising clinical professors and students picking up a case mid-semester. After this guide you will know how to install the skill, log a contact, read back a case history and run a pattern check.
Client Communications Loganthropics/claude-for-legal · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download and unzip. Download the skill ZIP from the directory page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ or a project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 2Or upload in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill.
- 3Confirm file access. Make sure your agent can read and write to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/legal-clinic/client-comms/.
- 4Log a contact. Describe the contact, give the case ID and answer the prompts for direction, medium, summary and action items.
- 5Confirm the entry. Review the formatted entry the agent shows you. Only after you confirm is it appended to the case log.
- 6Read or summarise. Use --read for recent entries or --summary for a one-paragraph condensed view before a client call.
- 7Run a pattern check. Use --patterns to flag unanswered messages, missed follow-ups, language gaps, tone shifts and contact gaps.
What is an agent skill and what does this one do?
An agent skill is a folder containing a SKILL.md file that tells a compatible AI agent how to perform a specific task. This skill is the one shipped as legal-clinic/skills/client-comms-log in the anthropics/claude-for-legal repository, licensed Apache-2.0. Its only file is SKILL.md.
You describe a contact in plain language. The agent formats it into a dated entry, shows you the entry for confirmation, and only then adds it to a per-case log file. It can also read back recent entries, write a short summary, or scan the log for unanswered messages, missed follow-ups, language gaps, tone shifts and long gaps in contact.
Install the client-comms-log skill
Download the ZIP for the skill from the directory page and unzip it. You can install it in one of two places. For a personal setup, put the unzipped folder in ~/.claude/skills/. For a single project, put it in that project's .claude/skills/ folder.
If you use the Claude apps instead, open Settings, go to Capabilities, then Skills, and upload the skill there.
- Personal install: ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: the project's .claude/skills/ folder
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload
Check the requirements before you start
The skill needs Claude Code or another SKILL.md-compatible agent with file read and write access to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/legal-clinic/client-comms/. The log files are stored there, so the agent must be able to write to that location.
Some integrations described in the skill depend on companion skills from the claude-for-legal plugin: /client-letter, /status, /deadlines and /semester-handoff. The log works without them, but those hand-offs will not be offered.
- Claude Code or a SKILL.md-compatible agent
- File read and write access to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/legal-clinic/client-comms/
- Optional: companion skills from the claude-for-legal plugin for the integrations
Log a client contact
Ask in plain language, for example: log a call with the client on case 2024-clinic-17. Use the case ID you already use for the file. If you leave it out, the skill will ask for it. The default mode is --add.
The agent will ask for the direction (in for client to clinic, out for clinic to client), the medium, who was involved, a duration, a summary of two to four sentences, action items on both sides, any follow-up date and notes on language or tone. Before anything is written, you see the formatted entry and must confirm it. New entries are added at the top of the log, most recent first.
- Direction: in or out
- Medium: call, email, text, letter, in-person, video, voicemail-left or voicemail-received
- Summary: two to four sentences on what was substantive
- Action items: what you owe the client and by when, and what the client owes you
log a call with the client on case [case-id]Read back and summarise a case
Use --read to see the most recent entries (the default is five). This is useful before a client call or when you pick up a case mid-semester.
Use --summary for a one-paragraph condensed read. It covers the most recent contact, total entries, the most common medium, open action items on the student side and any unanswered communications.
- --read: shows the most recent N entries, default 5
- --summary: one paragraph covering recent contact, totals and open items
what did we tell [client] last time? (uses --read or --summary)Scan for patterns (supervision mode)
Use --patterns to scan a log for five things: unanswered communications from the client, missed follow-ups, language or accommodation issues, escalation in client tone across entries, and long gaps in contact on an active case. The skill describes this as a supervision tool, so clinical professors can run it across their cases to see which students may need support.
Note that the scan can only see what was logged.
- Unanswered communications from client
- Missed follow-up with a due date and no later resolving entry
- Language or accommodation issues
- Escalation in client tone
- Gaps in contact on active cases
--patternsSafety notes: scripts and network
According to the skill's listing, it runs no scripts and uses no network. Everything it does is reading and writing log files in the client-comms folder on your machine.
The skill is not a place for legal strategy. Privileged or attorney-only notes belong in the case's internal analysis file. The skill also cannot edit past entries; if an entry is wrong, you write a new entry that references and corrects it.
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Keep privileged analysis out of the comms log
- Past entries are not edited; add a correcting entry instead
What people use it for
- A clinic student logs a 10-minute call with a client and records the follow-up date for a document request.
- A student picking up a case mid-semester runs --read or --summary to see what the client was already told.
- A supervising professor runs --patterns across several students' cases to find unreturned voicemails or long gaps in contact.
- A student logs an outgoing email to a third party, such as opposing counsel or a family member, using the third-party field.
- After sending a client letter, the student logs it as an outgoing communication when the companion /client-letter skill offers to.
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the client-comms-log skill?
Download the ZIP from the directory page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for a personal install, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, you can instead upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
What do I need to run the client-comms-log skill?
You need Claude Code or another SKILL.md-compatible agent with file read and write access to ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/legal-clinic/client-comms/. Some integrations also need companion skills from the claude-for-legal plugin, such as /client-letter, /status, /deadlines and /semester-handoff.
Is the client-comms-log skill free to use?
The skill is licensed under Apache-2.0, as stated on its listing. Check the repository's licence file for the full terms before you use or redistribute it.
Does the skill pull calls and emails automatically from my case management system?
No. The skill states that automatic logging from a case management system such as Clio is not included in v1. Every entry must be written by a person describing the contact.
Can the skill make a student log every client contact?
No. The skill cannot know about contacts that were never logged, and log discipline is a clinic-culture matter. The skill only makes logging easier.
Can I edit or delete an entry I got wrong?
The log is append-only and past entries are not rewritten. To correct a mistake, write a new entry that references the earlier one and states the correction.
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Our verdict
Use this skill if you are a law clinic student or supervising professor who wants a structured, confirmed, append-only record of client contact on a case, with a pattern check for supervision. Pick something else if you need automatic capture from a case management system, a place to store privileged legal analysis, or a tool that forces logging to happen.
Download the skill