Hona works alongside SmartAdvocate. SmartAdvocate stays the system of record for every case. Hona is the system of action: its AI case agent, Lia, runs your firm's playbooks to do the follow-up work of personal injury pre-litigation, from intake through treatment, records, settlement and payout, and logs what happened back to the SmartAdvocate case.
How does Hona work with SmartAdvocate?
Hona connects to SmartAdvocate, reads each case, works it with the client and their medical providers, and writes the results back to the case. When a case's status changes, Hona moves the client's case tracker, sends the update you wrote for that phase, and starts the playbook for that phase.
SmartAdvocate stays the source of truth for case and contact data. Your team keeps working in SmartAdvocate, and the case gets more complete, because every client conversation lands on it as a note. Most firms keep Hona's default mapping: case type sets the project type, case status sets the phase, and the main plaintiff becomes the main contact.
For intake, a Hona automation can create a new case in SmartAdvocate from a new lead.
What syncs between SmartAdvocate and Hona?
| Direction | What moves | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | Cases where No Auto-Communication is unchecked on the main contact | Hona projects, with the project type set by case type |
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | Case status | Hona phases and the client's case tracker |
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | The main plaintiff | The main contact in Hona |
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | Other plaintiffs and case contacts, by role or contact type | Hona contacts with matching roles |
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | Case staff | The team on the Hona project, with Primary Attorney as primary |
| SmartAdvocate to Hona | User-defined fields you map | Custom fields in Hona |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Each text with the client, Lia's included | A note on the case, using your Hona Text note type if you have one |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Notification history: phase updates, form, e-signature and review requests | Notes on the case |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Completed form answers | A note on the case |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Client files from texts, forms and e-signatures | Documents on the case, each with a description |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | AI Receptionist call summaries, when the caller matches a case | A note on the case |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Form answers you map | Fields on the case |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | New leads from the AI Receptionist or website chatbot | New SmartAdvocate cases, with the client's name, phone, email and a case summary |
| Hona to SmartAdvocate | Updates Lia makes in a playbook, when your firm wants them | SmartAdvocate records |
How does Hona map SmartAdvocate fields?
Hona reads these SmartAdvocate fields by default.
| SmartAdvocate field | Hona field | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Case Type | Project type | Matched to the mapped project types on each Hona project type. Capital letters and spaces are ignored. |
| Case Status | Phase | Matched to the trigger names on each phase. Spelling and capital letters must match exactly. |
| No Auto-Communication, on the main contact | Hona Enabled | Checked means the case does not sync. Unchecked means it does. |
| Case ID | External ID | Links the case to its Hona project. The case number is also saved as a Case Number custom field. |
| Case number and main contact name | Project name | For example, 2300111 - Jane Smith. A project type can set its own name format. |
| Main plaintiff | Main contact | If no plaintiff is marked main, Hona uses the first plaintiff on the case. |
| Role on other plaintiffs, or Contact Type on case contacts | Contact role | Matched to the CRM Name of a Hona contact role. |
| Date of Death, or a Date of Birth under 18 | Automatic updates off | The contact does not get automatic updates. |
| Case Staff | Team members | The staff role becomes the project role. Inactive staff are skipped. |
What is a Hona playbook?
A Hona playbook is your firm's standard operating procedure, written so Lia can run it. It says when it starts, such as a case entering a status; what Lia does, in plain language; and when it stops, such as records received or a person on your team taking 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."
Hona ships standard playbooks for care coordination, provider follow-up and escalations. Hona's forward-deployed team builds custom playbooks with your firm, and your team can read and change any playbook in plain language.
How does Hona work alongside SmartAdvocate at each stage of pre-litigation?
1. Intake and sign-up
The jobs are to answer every call, qualify the lead, capture the facts, get the retainer signed, and open the case.
- Hona's AI Receptionist answers calls around the clock in 31 languages, screens new injury callers, and sends your team a transcript and summary of every call. When the caller is an existing client, the call summary is logged as a note on the SmartAdvocate case.
- A Hona automation can create a new SmartAdvocate case from each new lead the AI Receptionist or website chatbot captures, with the client's name, phone, email and a case summary, so nobody types it in twice. Hona links the lead to the new case.
- Intake forms go out by text with e-signature, and Lia's intake playbook follows up until the documents you need arrive.
- Once the case is open in SmartAdvocate with No Auto-Communication unchecked on the main contact, it syncs into Hona under the project type for its case type.
2. Onboarding the client
The jobs are to explain what happens next, gather the accident details, insurance information and list of providers, and get authorizations signed.
- Forms collect the details by text. Answers you map update fields on the SmartAdvocate case, and each completed form is logged as a note.
- Photos, police reports and signed documents upload to the case. Uploads run in the background, so a file can take a few minutes to appear in SmartAdvocate.
- Other plaintiffs and representatives, such as a parent on a minor's case, sync in as their own contacts with the roles you set up, and you choose which roles get automatic updates.
- The client gets a case tracker that shows their case status in plain language. No app is required. Updates arrive by text with a link.
3. Getting the client through medical treatment
The jobs are to remind clients about appointments, confirm they went, catch new providers, check in between visits, and catch gaps before they form.
- Lia's care coordination playbook texts and emails clients appointment reminders, follows up after each visit to confirm attendance and pick up new providers, checks in between visits, and can call a client to schedule an appointment when your firm turns calling on.
- 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.
- Every text Lia sends and receives is logged as a note on the SmartAdvocate case, so anyone who opens it sees the conversation.
- In Lia's beta, appointments Lia tracked to resolution had 86% attendance, against a typical healthcare rate of about 70%.
4. Collecting bills and records from providers
The jobs are to confirm visits, request itemized bills and records, and follow up until everything arrives.
- Lia's provider follow-up playbook emails provider offices for attendance, itemized bills, balances, CPT and ICD codes, letter of protection status and medical records, using the client's signed HIPAA authorization.
- She keeps following up until the office answers. Results land on the Treatment tab in Hona, and when your firm wants, the playbook has Lia update the SmartAdvocate record too.
5. Client updates when a case changes status
The jobs are to tell the client when the case moves, answer "where's my case?", and keep them engaged through the long quiet stretches.
- When a case moves to a new status in SmartAdvocate, the nightly sync picks it up. Hona moves the client's case tracker, sends the update you wrote for that phase, and starts the playbook for that phase.
- When a client should hear right away, staff can open the project in Hona and choose Actions, then Sync Updates, for an immediate update.
- Lia answers client texts at any hour from your FAQs and phase descriptions.
- Drip messages keep clients engaged while a case sits in one status.
6. Building the demand
The jobs are to confirm treatment is complete, gather final bills and records, and collect anything else the demand needs.
- When a client texts that they are done treating, Lia records it, and the text is logged to the case.
- The provider follow-up playbook collects final bills and records.
- Lia chases the client for what is still missing, and the files upload to the SmartAdvocate case.
7. Negotiation
The jobs are to keep the client informed while offers go back and forth, and get the client's decision on each offer.
- Status 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, which is logged to the case.
8. Settlement payouts
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 your client, medical providers, lien holders and other vendors from Hona.
- 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.
9. 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.
Why does the follow-up matter so much?
Most personal injury claims are won or lost before anyone files a lawsuit. An Insurance Research Council study of auto injury claims, published in July 2026, found that about 4 in 5 claimants resolved without a lawsuit. Represented claims took a median of about 440 days, and total payments ran about $2 for every $1 of medical bills.
That makes the treatment record the center of the case, and it takes more than a year of steady follow-up to build. SmartAdvocate holds the record. Lia does the follow-up that fills it in.
How do you set up Hona with SmartAdvocate?
A Hona admin sets up the integration with SmartAdvocate login details.
- Connect. In Hona, open Company Settings, then Integrations, and click Connect on the SmartAdvocate tile. Enter your login URL ending in .com, such as https://yourfirm.smartadvocate.com, without /sa at the end. Enter the username without .com at the end, such as user@yourfirm, and the password, then save.
- Check the required fields. Click Map Fields on the SmartAdvocate tile and confirm the three required fields: Project Type is Case Type, Phase Name is Case Status, and Hona Enabled is No Auto-Communication. Change one only if your firm tracks it somewhere else, such as a user-defined field.
- Map case types to project types. Under Company Settings, then Project Types, edit each project type and add the SmartAdvocate case types it covers under Mapped Project Types. Each case type can belong to only one project type.
- Map case statuses to phases. In each project type, open each phase and add the SmartAdvocate case statuses that belong to it as trigger names, spelled exactly as they appear in SmartAdvocate. A case status can belong to only one phase in a project type.
- Map contact roles. Under Company Settings, then Contact Roles, add a role for each plaintiff role or contact type you want in Hona, with a CRM Name that matches SmartAdvocate exactly, such as (P)-Representative. Choose whether each role gets automatic updates.
- Test a few cases. For each case type, open a test project in Hona, choose Actions, then Sync Updates, and check the project type, phase, contacts and team members.
- Go live. When you are ready, your Hona account manager activates the integration, and nightly syncs begin.
How does Hona keep your team in control?
Lia works alongside your staff, never around them.
- Lia tells clients she is an AI.
- Lia texts and emails clients, 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 any client in distress.
- Proactive messages go out only between 9am and 7pm in your firm's time zone. Lia answers incoming texts at any hour.
- Hona sends no automatic updates to contacts with a Date of Death or to contacts under 18, and none on cases where No Auto-Communication is checked.
- Your team can review Lia's work, pause her, or take over any conversation.
- Lia updates SmartAdvocate records only as part of a playbook, and only when your firm wants her to.
- Every text, Lia's included, is logged as a note on the SmartAdvocate case, so the record shows what was said.
- Hona is SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliant.
The takeaway
Keep SmartAdvocate. It is the record of every 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. Every text, note and file lands back on the SmartAdvocate case. Your playbooks already describe the work. Lia runs them.
Book a demo to see Lia run your playbooks on cases from your SmartAdvocate account.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hona replace SmartAdvocate?
No. SmartAdvocate stays the system of record for every case. Hona connects to SmartAdvocate, does the client and provider follow-up through its AI case agent Lia, and logs texts, notifications and client files back to the case.
What does Hona write back to SmartAdvocate?
A note on the case for every text with the client, Lia's included. Notification history and completed form answers are logged as notes, client files upload to the case, and form answers you map update case fields. Lia can also update SmartAdvocate records as part of a playbook when your firm wants her to.
Which SmartAdvocate cases sync to Hona?
Cases where No Auto-Communication is unchecked on the main contact, with a case type that is mapped to a Hona project type. The case status sets the Hona phase and the client's case tracker.
Which note type do Hona notes use?
Text message notes use a SmartAdvocate note type named Hona Text, if your firm has one. Your Hona account manager can set separate note types for incoming texts, outgoing texts, form submissions, e-signatures and other updates.
Can Hona create cases in SmartAdvocate?
Yes. The SmartAdvocate: Create Case automation creates a new case from a lead, filled in with the client's first and last name, phone, email and a case summary, and links the lead in Hona to that case.
Do sub-statuses change the Hona phase?
Not by default. Hona sets the phase from Case Status. If your firm tracks progress in another field, your Hona account manager can map it.
Can I map a SmartAdvocate user-defined field?
Yes. User-defined fields appear in Map Fields, and only the ones you map come into Hona as custom fields.
How quickly does a status change in SmartAdvocate reach the client?
Hona picks up changed cases on its nightly sync, and the update goes to the client the next day. Staff can sync one case right away from Actions, then Sync Updates.
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.
