Hona works alongside the case management software your firm already uses. Your case management software stays the system of record. Hona is the system of action: its AI case agent, Lia, runs your firm's playbooks to do the follow-up work of pre-litigation, from intake through treatment, records, settlement and payout, and writes what happened back to the case.
What happens in pre-litigation in a personal injury case?
Pre-litigation is everything that happens before a lawsuit is filed, and it is where most personal injury cases are resolved. In an Insurance Research Council study of auto injury claims published in July 2026, about 4 in 5 claimants resolved their claims without a lawsuit, and claims with an attorney took a median of about 440 days to close.
The jobs in pre-litigation fall into ten stages:
- Intake and sign-up
- Onboarding the client
- Opening the claims
- Getting the client through medical treatment
- Collecting bills and records from providers
- Keeping the client informed
- Building the demand
- Negotiation
- Settlement and payout
- Closing out
Most of that work is follow-up with the client and their providers. That is the work Hona does.
Why isn't case management software enough on its own?
Case management software records the work. It does not do the work. It can remind a case manager to call a client. It cannot call the client, notice that the client has gone quiet, or follow up a third time.
Pre-litigation is mostly follow-up, and follow-up is what slips when one case manager carries 100 or more active cases. The cost is concrete. A missed appointment becomes a gap in treatment. A gap in treatment becomes the insurer's argument that the injury was not serious. A client who hears nothing for six weeks starts calling other firms.
In a contingency practice, that cost lands twice. The hours your team spends chasing are hours not spent moving cases, and a case that loses treatment loses value.
How does Hona work with your case management software?
Hona connects to your case management software, reads the case, works it with the client and their providers, and writes the results back.
- From your case management software to Hona: contacts, cases, phases, team assignments, and any fields you map.
- From Hona to your case management software: message logs, notification logs, and documents saved to the case folder, plus form answers mapped to case fields.
- When a case changes phase: Hona updates the client's case tracker, sends the matching update, and starts the playbook for that phase.
Hona connects to Clio, Filevine, Litify, SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, MyCase and more. Your team keeps working in the software they know, and the case record gets more complete, because every client conversation lands on the case.
Some new AI tools are built to replace your case management software. Hona is built to make the one you already have more valuable.
What is a Hona playbook?
A Hona playbook is your firm's standard operating procedure, written so Lia can run it. Every playbook has three parts:
- When it starts. A case enters a phase, a task lands in your case management software, a medical provider sends an appointment request, a client texts, or Lia notices something in a conversation.
- What Lia does. Plain-language instructions: who to contact, whether to text, email or call, what to ask, how often to follow up, and what to record on the case.
- When it stops. The goal is met, such as records received or treatment complete, or a person on your team takes over.
Escalation rules live inside the playbook, written the way you would say them: "Escalate to the case owner, high priority, when the client mentions a new injury."
Most firms already have their playbooks written down. They are the task templates in your case management software: call the client after intake, confirm the first appointment, request records when treatment ends. Hona turns those steps into work Lia does instead of reminders your team has to act on.
Hona ships standard playbooks for care coordination, provider follow-up and escalations. Hona's forward-deployed team builds custom playbooks with your firm for the procedures that make your firm different, such as handling appointment requests from a medical provider network. Your team can read every playbook and change it in plain language.
Every pre-litigation job, and how Hona does it
| Stage | What your case management software does | What Hona does |
|---|---|---|
| Intake | Stores the lead and the signed retainer | Answers every call, collects intake details and documents, sends forms for e-signature |
| Onboarding | Holds the case facts | Collects details and documents by text and maps them to case fields |
| Claims | Tracks claims, carriers and letters of representation | Gets your team the client information faster and explains the step to the client |
| Treatment | Stores providers and appointment dates | Reminds, confirms, checks in, catches gaps and new providers, escalates |
| Bills and records | Stores bills and records once they arrive | Follows up with provider offices until bills and records come in |
| Client updates | Holds the phase | Sends phase updates and answers client questions at any hour |
| Demand | Holds the demand and its exhibits | Confirms treatment is complete and chases what is still missing |
| Negotiation | Tracks offers | Keeps the client informed and routes value questions to your attorney |
| Settlement | Holds the settlement statement | Pays the client, medical providers and lien holders |
| Close-out | Closes the case | Sends review requests and satisfaction surveys |
1. Intake and sign-up
The jobs are to answer every call, qualify the lead, capture the facts, get the retainer signed, and collect an ID and insurance card.
- Hona's AI Receptionist answers inbound calls around the clock, including nights, weekends and overflow. It screens new injury callers, recognizes existing clients, routes calls by your call flow, and sends your team a transcript and summary of every call.
- Intake forms go out by text with e-signature.
- Lia's intake playbook asks the new client for the documents you need, checks what comes back, and follows up until it arrives.
2. Onboarding the client
The jobs are to explain what happens next, gather the accident details, photos, police report, insurance information and list of providers, and get authorizations signed.
- Forms collect the details and map answers straight into fields in your case management software.
- Every case gets a case tracker that shows the client where things stand and what each phase means, with FAQs at each step. No app is required. Updates arrive by text with a link.
- Documents land in the case folder in your case management software.
3. Opening the claims
The jobs are to send letters of representation, open claims with the carriers, set up PIP or MedPay, and handle property damage.
- This is your team's work in your case management software, and it stays there.
- Hona makes it faster. Lia collects the client information your team needs, and when the phase changes, the client gets a plain-language explanation of the step by text.
4. Getting the client through medical treatment
The jobs are to remind clients about appointments, confirm they went, catch new providers, check in between visits, catch gaps before they form, and know when treatment ends.
- Lia's care coordination playbook texts and emails clients appointment reminders, follows up after each visit to confirm attendance and pick up any new providers, checks in between visits, and can call a client to schedule an appointment.
- If a client misses an appointment and cannot be reached, or mentions symptoms nobody is treating, Lia escalates to your team with the reason, what she already tried, and a priority.
- When a client texts "I'm done treating" or "I have a new doctor," Lia records it on the case.
- The Treatment tab shows every visit: attended, billed, bills and records.
Treatment is where case value is built. In the same Insurance Research Council study, total payments on auto injury claims ran about $2 for every $1 of medical bills. In Lia's beta, appointments Lia tracked to resolution had 86% attendance, against a typical healthcare rate of about 70%. How Lia works through treatment.
5. Collecting bills and records from providers
The jobs are to confirm visits with provider offices, request itemized bills, balances and codes, check letter of protection status, request records, and follow up until they arrive.
- Lia's provider follow-up playbook emails provider offices for attendance, itemized charges, balances, CPT and ICD codes, LOP status and medical records, using the client's signed HIPAA authorization.
- Lia keeps following up until the office answers, and the results land on the Treatment tab.
6. Keeping the client informed
The jobs are to answer "where's my case?", tell the client when the case moves, and keep them engaged through the long quiet stretches.
- Lia answers client texts at any hour from your FAQs and phase descriptions: where the case is, what comes next, who owns it, and appointment logistics.
- Phase changes in your case management software send the client an update automatically.
- Drip messages keep clients engaged while a case sits in one phase.
- Clients can follow along by text, in the browser portal, or in the Hona iOS and Android apps.
More on cutting "where's my case?" calls.
7. Building the demand
The jobs are to confirm treatment is complete, gather final bills and records, and collect wage-loss documents, photos, and anything else the demand needs.
- Lia records on the case when a client finishes treating.
- The provider follow-up playbook collects final bills and records.
- Lia's document requests chase the client for whatever is still missing.
- Everything lands on the case for whoever drafts the demand.
8. Negotiation
The jobs are to keep the client informed while offers go back and forth, set expectations, and get the client's decision on each offer.
- Phase updates keep the client informed without a phone call.
- Questions about case value, settlement or timing go to your attorney every time. Lia escalates them and does not answer them.
- Your attorney talks the client through each offer in the same text thread the client has used all case long.
9. Settlement and payout
The jobs are to pay the client, pay medical providers and lien holders, and answer "where's my money?"
- Hona Disbursements, powered by Confido Legal, pays everyone on the case from Hona: your client, medical providers, lien holders, and other vendors.
- Drafting and approving a payout are separate permissions, and an approver at your firm releases every payout.
- The client gets a secure link in the same text thread, verifies their identity, and chooses an instant payout to a debit card or free direct deposit.
- Payout status lands on the case, so "where's my money?" calls answer themselves.
10. Closing out
The jobs are to ask for a review and measure how the client felt about the case.
- Review requests and NPS surveys go out automatically when a case reaches the phase you choose.
- A reputation dashboard tracks the results.
How does Hona keep your team in control?
Lia works alongside your staff, never around them.
- Lia tells clients she is an AI.
- Lia reaches clients by text and email, and she can call a client to schedule an appointment when your firm turns calling on.
- She never gives legal advice, medical advice, or an opinion on case value or settlement. She escalates those questions, and she escalates any client who is in distress.
- Proactive messages go out only between 9am and 7pm in your firm's time zone. Lia answers incoming texts at any hour.
- Your team can review Lia's work, pause her, or take over any conversation.
- Staff can ask Lia for a case summary, or give her a job in plain language. Nothing goes out without a person's approval.
- Your team can ask questions about the caseload from Claude or ChatGPT through the Hona MCP Server.
- Hona is SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliant.
The takeaway
Keep your case management software. It is the record of the case, and it is good at that. Add Hona to do the work a record cannot: reach out first, follow up, notice when a client goes quiet, and hand your team what needs a person. Your playbooks already describe that work. Lia runs them.
Book a demo to see Lia run your playbooks on cases from your case management software.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hona replace my case management software?
No. Your case management software stays the system of record for the case. Hona connects to it, does the client and provider follow-up through its AI case agent Lia, and writes message logs, notifications and documents back to the case.
Which case management systems does Hona work with?
Hona connects to Clio, Filevine, Litify, SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, MyCase and more.
What syncs between Hona and my case management software?
Hona pulls contacts, cases, phases, team assignments and mapped fields. It pushes message logs, notification logs, documents saved to the case folder, and mapped form answers back. A phase change in your case management software updates the client's case tracker and starts the matching playbook.
What is a Hona playbook?
A playbook is your firm's standard operating procedure written so Lia can run it: when it starts, what Lia does, and when it stops, with escalation rules inside. Hona ships standard playbooks and builds custom ones with your firm, and your team can change them in plain language.
What does Lia do during medical treatment?
Lia texts and emails clients appointment reminders, confirms attendance after each visit, picks up new providers, checks in between visits, can call to schedule an appointment, and escalates missed appointments and untreated symptoms to your team. She also follows up with provider offices for bills and records.
Does Lia give legal or medical advice?
No. Lia never gives legal advice, medical advice, or an opinion on case value or settlement. She escalates those questions to your team, and she tells clients she is an AI.
Can Hona pay medical providers and lien holders?
Yes. Hona Disbursements, powered by Confido Legal, pays your client, medical providers, lien holders and other vendors from Hona. An approver at your firm releases every payout, and clients verify their identity before they accept.
