Reviews
Review legal documents against playbooks with source-grounded findings and approval-gated redlines.
Reviews is Ardela's document-review product. Upload or choose a document, run it against a playbook, and keep findings connected to the source. A review stays private until you explicitly save it to a Matter.
Document review requires a Pro or Enterprise plan.
Open Reviews
Select Reviews in the sidebar. The list shows reviews you started, including work later saved to a matter. Search and filters apply to that personal list.
You can also start a review from Clara.
Start a review
- Open Reviews.
- Upload one PDF or DOCX (up to 25 MiB), or choose an existing document you can access.
- Select the playbook. The playbook sets the review perspective and jurisdiction.
- Optionally choose a matter as the save destination. This preference does not publish the draft.
- Run the review.
- Check each finding against the cited source text.
- Review each proposed tracked change individually.
Choosing a document that already belongs to a matter keeps that matter as the destination. Saving still requires an explicit Save to matter step.
Findings and sources
Each finding identifies the relevant issue and links to supporting text where the review found evidence. Open the citation to assess the clause in context, including definitions, schedules, and related provisions.
A citation shows where the review found support. It does not establish that the legal conclusion is complete or correct.
Accept or reject changes
Proposed redlines are shown as tracked changes. You can accept or reject each change individually, so no amendment is applied without a decision.
Check the effect of every accepted change across the whole document. In particular, review defined terms, cross-references, numbering, negotiation position, and any consequential amendments.
Save to a matter
When the team should continue from the same review:
- Select Save to matter.
- Confirm the matter and audience if asked.
- Publish the selected saved version.
The review keeps its identity. Earlier private preparation stays private. Saving does not accept remaining redlines, rerun the playbook, or mark the review as legally approved.
Saved reviews appear in the matter's Shared work. Private reviews for that matter appear in My work.
Export to Word
Export the reviewed document as a DOCX file when you need to continue in Microsoft Word. The export preserves supported tracked changes from the review.
Open the exported file and check its formatting, numbering, and tracked changes before circulating it.
Playbooks and skills
A playbook sets the points to review and can produce findings and proposed redlines. A Clara skill shapes a chat response for work such as a summary, chronology, or risk table.
Use Reviews when you need a source-grounded review with tracked changes. Use a skill when you need a structured answer in Clara.
Responsible use
Document review output is a draft and is not legal advice. A qualified reviewer remains responsible for the legal analysis, the negotiation position, and every change applied to the document.