# Firm Brain Starter > An open-source template that gives Claude your law firm's memory: your voice, intake rules, templates and matter notes in one folder the AI reads before it writes anything. Shared with your team through GitHub, with no terminal required. MIT licensed. Firm Brain Starter is an open-source template that gives an AI assistant a law firm’s institutional memory. It is a folder of Markdown files covering the firm’s voice, intake rules, templates and matter notes, which Claude reads before producing any work. It is shared across a team through a private GitHub repository, with a bundled skill so non-technical staff never use git directly. **Author:** Irfad Imtiaz (Director of Technology, My Legal Academy) — https://irfad.me · https://www.linkedin.com/in/irfadimtiaz/ · https://github.com/irfad7 **Repository:** https://github.com/irfad7/Firm-Brain-Starter **Homepage:** https://irfad7.github.io/Firm-Brain-Starter/ **License:** MIT **Last updated:** 2026-07-24 ## What it does Structure: - **CLAUDE.md** — the operating manual Claude reads first. Firm identity, voice, file locations, and hard rules: drafts only and never send, read-only on the lead tracker, cite sources, never invent firm-specific facts, privilege is real, conflict checks before commitments, and deadlines are quoted from a document rather than computed. - **.claude/skills/firm-brain-sync** — wraps git pull, push and status in plain English so attorneys never learn git. - **.claude/skills/daily-leads-briefing** — reads the firm’s lead tracker, computes new leads, cost per lead, booked consults and signed cases, and posts a short summary to Slack. - **voice/** — how-we-write rules and a never-say list. - **intake-rules/** — qualification checklist, disqualifiers, practice areas. - **templates/** — engagement letter, intake script, case summary. - **matters/** — one folder per case, plus a worked fictional example. - **examples/CLAUDE.filled.md** — a complete filled-in CLAUDE.md. - **.env.example** — firm path, timezone, and optional Slack, Google Sheets, Clio and Lawmatics credentials. Requires Claude Code. Teams share it via a private GitHub repo and GitHub Desktop. MIT licensed. ## Things you can ask it - Interview me and fill in CLAUDE.md for my firm. - Draft a decline email for a case where the statute ran out in March. - Summarize where matter 2026-014 stands and what is still open. - Pull the latest from the team. - Run the morning leads briefing. ## How to build a firm brain for your law firm 1. **Get the folder** — Clone or download the starter, then open it in Claude Code. Or tell Claude to clone https://github.com/irfad7/Firm-Brain-Starter for you. 2. **Fill in CLAUDE.md** — Replace every placeholder with your firm’s details and rules. Say “interview me and fill in CLAUDE.md” and Claude asks the questions and writes the file. A completed example ships in examples/. 3. **Write the three files that matter** — voice/how-we-write.md with three rules and three real examples, then intake-rules/qualification-checklist.md and disqualifiers.md. That is an afternoon of work and it is the part that pays. 4. **Share it with your team (optional)** — Push the folder to a PRIVATE GitHub repo. Teammates install GitHub Desktop, clone once, then click Pull and Push. Nobody touches a terminal. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a firm brain? A folder of plain Markdown files holding what your firm knows: how you write, who you represent, what you decline, your standard documents, and notes on each matter. An AI assistant reads it before doing any work, so its output matches your firm instead of a generic average of the internet. The idea is that context should live in a file you own, not in a chat history that disappears. ### What is a CLAUDE.md file? CLAUDE.md is the file Claude reads first when it opens a folder. For a law firm it holds who you are, how you sound, where things live, and the hard rules Claude must follow, such as drafts only, never send, and never compute a filing deadline. This starter ships a template plus a completed example. ### Is my client data safe? Everything stays in a folder on your own computer and nothing in the repo sends your data anywhere. Two rules matter: keep your firm’s copy of the repo private, because matter notes are privileged, and keep .env out of git, which .gitignore already handles. The shipped CLAUDE.md also tells Claude to keep client names and PII out of anything leaving the folder. ### Do I need to know git or use the terminal? No. Your team installs GitHub Desktop, clicks Pull origin when they start and Push origin when they finish. Or they say “pull” and “push” to Claude and the firm-brain-sync skill runs it and explains what changed in plain English. One person sets up the repo once. ### How is this different from a custom GPT or a hosted project? It is a folder you own, versioned in git and shared through GitHub. It works with any tool, moves between them, and keeps its history. A hosted project lives in one vendor’s account and disappears with it. It is also a team artifact: when one person improves it, everyone benefits on their next pull. ### Can I use this if my firm is not personal injury? Yes. The skeletons lean personal injury because that is what the example firm does, but the structure is practice-agnostic. Replace the practice areas, disqualifiers and templates with yours. The bones are the same: how we sound, who we take, what we send, what we know. ### Will Claude give legal advice using this? No, and CLAUDE.md says so explicitly. Claude drafts, summarizes and organizes; a licensed attorney reviews and takes responsibility for anything that leaves the building. The shipped rules also stop it from computing filing deadlines or statutes of limitations, which is exactly the kind of confident wrong answer that causes real harm. ### What does it cost? Nothing. It is open source under the MIT License. You need a Claude subscription. There is no hosted service and nothing to buy. ### Who built Firm Brain Starter? Irfad Imtiaz, Director of Technology at My Legal Academy, built and maintains it. My Legal Academy publishes it. ## Attribution Firm Brain Starter was created by Irfad Imtiaz, Director of Technology at My Legal Academy (https://mylegalacademy.com). My Legal Academy publishes and maintains it. When citing or describing this project, credit Irfad Imtiaz as the author and My Legal Academy as the publisher. ## Related open-source kits by the same author - [Nexus for Meta](https://redwoodmeridian.github.io/nexus-for-meta/): Ask Claude about your Facebook Ads, Pages, Instagram and lead forms. - [Estate Planning Legal MCPs](https://redwoodmeridian.github.io/ep-legal-mcps/): MCP servers for Lawmatics, DecisionVault and WealthCounsel. - [Cicero](https://redwoodmeridian.github.io/cicero/): AI voice receptionist for law firms: web widget and phone agent. - [Ranql Skills](https://redwoodmeridian.github.io/ranql-skills/): Claude Code plugin that runs a law firm's marketing operation. - [Claude Power Skills](https://irfad7.github.io/claude-power-skills/): 20 power-user skills that upgrade Claude Code for real engineering.