Legal Services Management

Legal Services Management is a powerful, all-in-one WordPress plugin designed specifically for law firms, solo attorneys, and legal service providers. Manage your entire practice workflow without leaving your WordPress dashboard.

Whether you’re a solo practitioner or managing a multi-attorney firm, this plugin gives you everything you need: client records, case tracking, appointment scheduling, document templates, invoicing, and frontend portals for both clients and attorneys.

Core Features

Client Management
* Complete client database with contact details, status tracking, and activity history
* Auto-link WordPress user accounts to client records
* Supports guest and logged-in client bookings

Case Management
* Track cases with case numbers, types (civil, criminal, family, corporate, immigration, real estate), priorities, and statuses
* Assign lawyers and link clients to each case
* Store court info and full case descriptions with the WordPress editor

Appointment Scheduling
* Book in-person, video call, and phone appointments
* Interactive monthly calendar view in the admin dashboard
* Automated email reminders via WP-Cron
* Frontend booking form via shortcode

Invoice & Billing
* Create professional invoices with subtotals, tax rates, and balance tracking
* Track invoice status: Draft, Sent, Paid, Overdue, and Cancelled
* Link invoices to specific cases and clients
* Stripe payment integration (configurable via settings)

Document Templates
* Create reusable document templates with placeholders ({client_name}, {case_number}, {date})
* Manage uploaded files linked to cases and clients

Client Portal (Frontend)
* Logged-in clients can view their cases, appointments, and invoices
* Accessible via [lsm_client_portal] shortcode on any page or post

Attorney/Lawyer Dashboard (Frontend)
* Attorneys can view their assigned cases, appointment calendar, and invoices
* Accessible via [lsm_lawyer_dashboard] shortcode

REST API
* Full RESTful API (/wp-json/lsm/v1/) for integration with external tools
* Permission-controlled endpoints for clients, cases, and appointments

Cron Automation
* Hourly appointment reminder emails
* Daily cleanup of old activity logs and expired sessions

Activity Logging
* Records all create/update operations for audit trail purposes

Available Shortcodes

Shortcode
Description

[lsm_booking_form]
Frontend appointment booking form

[lsm_client_portal]
Client self-service portal

[lsm_lawyer_dashboard]
Lawyer/attorney frontend dashboard

[lsm_lawyer_list]
Display all active lawyers

[lsm_service_list]
Display all available services

[lsm_appointment_calendar]
Client appointment calendar view

Custom Roles & Capabilities

The plugin registers the following custom WordPress roles and capabilities:

• LSM Lawyer – Can manage cases, appointments, and view clients
• LSM Client – Can access the client portal

Custom capabilities: manage_clients, manage_cases, manage_appointments, manage_invoices

Security

• All form submissions protected with nonces (CSRF protection)
• All input sanitized with appropriate WordPress functions (sanitize_text_field, sanitize_email, wp_kses_post, etc.)
• All output escaped before rendering (esc_html, esc_attr, esc_url)
• Database queries use $wpdb->prepare() with placeholders to prevent SQL injection
• Direct file access protection on all PHP files
• Safe redirects via wp_safe_redirect()

Automatic Installation

1. Log in to your WordPress admin panel.
2. Go to Plugins → Add New.
3. Search for Legal Services Management.
4. Click Install Now, then Activate.

Manual Installation

1. Download the plugin ZIP file.
2. Go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin.
3. Upload the ZIP file and click Install Now.
4. After installation, click Activate Plugin.

After Activation

1. Navigate to LSM → Settings to configure your company name, Stripe keys, and Twilio SMS integration.
2. Create your first service under LSM → Services.
3. Add client records under LSM → Clients.
4. Add the [lsm_booking_form] shortcode to any page to enable online bookings.
5. Add the [lsm_client_portal] shortcode to a members-only page for client self-service.

1. 

   Admin Dashboard – Overview with stats cards and monthly appointment calendar.

2. 

   Client Management – Full client database with add/edit/delete support.

3. 

   Case Management – Track cases with types, priorities, and statuses.

4. 

   Appointment Scheduling – Schedule appointments with calendar integration.

5. 

   Invoice System – Create and manage invoices with tax calculations.

2.0.0

• Major release: Complete rewrite with improved architecture and security hardening
• Added custom capabilities and role management (manage_clients, manage_cases, manage_appointments, manage_invoices)
• Added interactive monthly calendar view in admin dashboard
• Added lawyer frontend dashboard ([lsm_lawyer_dashboard] shortcode)
• Added appointment calendar shortcode ([lsm_appointment_calendar])
• Added service list shortcode ([lsm_service_list])
• Added lawyer list shortcode ([lsm_lawyer_list])
• Added full REST API with permission callbacks
• Added WP-Cron for automated appointment reminders and log cleanup
• Added activity logging for audit trails
• Added Stripe and Twilio settings fields
• Replaced all wp_redirect() with wp_safe_redirect()
• Added nonce verification to all form submissions
• Added wp_unslash() + sanitization to all $_POST/$_GET inputs
• Added $wpdb->prepare() for all dynamic database queries
• Added wp_cache_get/set for all list-view database queries
• Replaced date() with gmdate() throughout for timezone safety
• Added ABSPATH direct file access protection to all PHP files
• Added sanitize_callback to register_setting()
• Removed discouraged load_plugin_textdomain() call (translations auto-load for WP.org plugins)

1.0.0

• Initial release