# Guide for empanelled advocates

## Getting access

Apply at `/lawyer/register`. An administrator reviews the application against
the state bar council roll. You cannot sign in until the account is approved.

## Your cases

`/lawyer/dashboard` shows only cases currently assigned to you. Cases are routed
by state, city and current load. If a case is not on your dashboard you cannot
open it, and attempting to reach it by URL returns a 404.

## Documents

You can open only the documents the customer uploaded for a case assigned to
you, and only those types the workflow requires.

**Every document you open is recorded** against your account, with the time.
This protects you as much as the customer: the record shows exactly what you
accessed and when.

Do not download documents to a shared or public machine, and do not forward them
outside the matter.

## Updating a case

Set the status honestly and promptly. The statuses are:

`assigned` · `documents_pending` · `documents_received` · `filed_in_court` ·
`hearing_scheduled` · `adjourned` · `order_passed` · `closed` · `cancelled` ·
`on_hold`

Two fields control what the customer sees:

- **Note with "Show this note to the customer" ticked** — appears on their order
  timeline. Write it in plain language, without legal shorthand.
- **Note with the box unticked** — internal only. The customer never sees it.

Record the **actual cost incurred** when you know it. This is how the business
reconciles what each case really cost.

## What not to promise

Never tell a customer a challan will be reduced or cancelled. It may not be.
Describe what you have done and what happens next, and let the outcome be the
outcome. The site says plainly that nobody can guarantee a result, and your
updates should be consistent with that.