Frequently Asked

General

What is Altorney?
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Altorney is an online marketplace that brings clients with legal document review needs together with reviewers who perform the work, removing the go-between from the equation.

Who do I contact if I have more questions?
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Please send an email to info@altorney.com.

Who are the clients that use Altorney?
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Altorney was founded by Rachi and Shimmy Messing. They both have years of experience in the document review and ediscovery industry and were looking for a way to change the industry for the better. They’d be happy to hear from you at rachi@altorney.com and shimmy@altorney.com  - let them know how they’re doing!

Client

How is Altorney different from the staffing agency I already work with?
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Altorney was created to allow both clients and reviewers to interact in a self-service mode with minimal back and forth. We do not place candidates on a project, but rather candidates apply directly to your projects based on the criteria and filters you setup.  One of the goals of Altorney is to automate as much as possible, including conflicts checking, project history updates, and more. By removing much of the back and forth that typically takes place at the start of a project, we can reduce our costs and return those savings to both you and the reviewers.

What happens after a reviewer applies for a project?
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When a reviewer applies for a project, you will be notified that there are available Pending Reviewers. You will be able to view profiles of applied candidates and see the answers to any project specific questions you may have asked. During this time, all reviewers will appear on your Pending Reviewers page. Once you accept a candidate, they will receive an invite notification. After they confirm the invitation more details such as contact information for the review manager and any review guidelines or other project documents, will be made available to them. All accepted reviewers are listed under the Active Reviewers tab.  

I am looking to engage a specific reviewer.  Can I do that?
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There are 3 ways to engage specific reviewers.

1. You can Invite Existing to select from those that you have had on prior projects.

2. You have the ability to ‘Favorite’ reviewers you have worked with in the past. You can then invite all of your favorites to join future projects even if they are not an exact match.  

3. You can Invite By Email to ask a specific reviewer to join a specific project. Reviewers who already have an Altorney account will receive a project invite, and new reviewers will first be prompted to sign up, then complete their profile, and then to join the project.

What is the difference between Total Hours and Pending Hours on my dashboard?
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Total Hours are the submitted time entries that you have approved.  They represent amounts that you have been invoiced or will be invoiced shortly.  Pending Hours are the submitted time that has yet to be approved.

How do I find reviewers for a project?
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After contacting us to setup an account on the Altorney platform, log in and create a project.  Then create one or more Review Types with the various parameters you need to see how many reviewers are available.  Altorney reviewers will begin to apply and once you review and accept them, they can begin work right away.

What is a Review Type?
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A review type is a subset of a case that is the method for defining requirements including skills, availability and pay rates which reviewers are recruited, apply and log time.   A case may have 1 or more Review Type.  For example, one for First Pass review at rate X, another for Priv at rate Y, and a third for Japanese docs in the case at rate Z.

How is time tracked and approved?
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Reviewers log their time directly in the Altorney platform.  The system will only let reviewers log time during periods that they are active on a project. Once time is entered, you will be notified that there is time logged needing approval. Note that time must be approved no later than Tuesday night after the week when the reviewer worked or it will be automatically approved by the platform. Once approved, it will be available for the reviewer to be paid. The system will automatically generate payment to the reviewer and an invoice sent to you.

What is coming next to Altorney?
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Lots of stuff!  Some highlights include collaboration tools to make communicating on projects easier, and secure infrastructure for reviewers to log into if you don’t have your own! If you have an idea of something that you think will be beneficial to you and the rest of the community we would love to hear it – email us at feedback@altorney.com

How do Notifications work?
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In your Settings you can choose the different methods that are used to contact you. You will receive a notification when there are new pending reviewers available that have applied to your project, when time is pending for approval, or for invoicing and profile related events.

Does Altorney have resources outside the U.S.?
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Currently for our launch all reviewers are US based.  We have plans to expand to additional countries in Q3 2023

Can I setup a Review Type before I am ready to start recruiting attorney?
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Yes, you sure can.  When you set up a Review Type with all your requirements you can get a sense of the available population. On the third ‘recruit’ screen, use the Start\Stop Recruit button to set the status of the Review Type to not yet be recruiting.  Come back to it at any time to change the status to Start Recruiting and candidates will begin to apply.

Graphic Element Depicting Start RecruitingGraphic Element Depicting Stop Recruiting
What is Premium time and is it available on all projects?
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A client can offer Premium time if they would like to offer a higher rate for hours worked beyond an average expected weekly schedule. We encourage clients to add an incentive if they expect reviewers to work longer than normal hours in a week. This is optional for the client, and not every project will offer Premium time. Those that do will have it noted in the project details available for the reviewers to see and filter.

What types of projects are available on Altorney?
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Use of the platform for as many users as you need for your organization is free.  You pay a simple and easy to understand percentage markup for every hour reviewers work in the system. We believe in complete transparency.  You will see and set the hourly rate for the reviewers and be able to see and view your direct costs at every step of the process.

Are all reviewers on the Altorney platform attorneys? Passed the bar?
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While many reviewers have graduated from law school and may be barred in at least one US state (or sometimes more than one), there are many reviewers that are not and are still eligible for certain projects. During the setup of a Review Type you can specify what you need – attorney or not, barred in any state or a specific one(s), all based on the type of review project you have.  Please note that the default search only presents projects that reviewers qualify for based on their profile. Thus, if a reviewer does not have a law degree and a project requires it, it would not appear in the search results without unchecking the default search criteria box, and they are not likely to apply for it.

Who are the clients that use Altorney?
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Our clients are law firms, service providers (ALSPs), consulting firms, government agencies, and corporate legal departments.

Can I create more than one project at a time?
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Of course, create as many projects as you need.  Each project contains one or more Review Types for the specific type of review needing to be done for a project.

Who are the clients that use Altorney?
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Our clients are law firms, service providers (ALSPs), consulting firms, government agencies, and corporate legal departments.

Who handles payment of the reviewers?
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Altorney does.  We handle all the back office nitty gritty so you can concentrate on the review at hand with the best possible candidates.

How am I invoiced?
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Based on the terms of our contract, invoices will be automatically generated and emailed to you for the time period applicable and due on the terms set forth.

Reviewer

How is Altorney different from the staffing agency I already work with?
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Altorney was created to allow both clients and reviewers to interact in a self-service mode with minimal back and forth. We do not place candidates on a project, but rather candidates apply directly to your projects based on the criteria and filters you setup.  One of the goals of Altorney is to automate as much as possible, including conflicts checking, project history updates, and more. By removing much of the back and forth that typically takes place at the start of a project, we can reduce our costs and return those savings to both you and the clients.

I heard there was a project available, but I'm not seeing it in Find Projects. Why not?
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The first thing to check is if the filters you are using on the search are restricting that project from your search results. There are a few other reasons that a project may not appear for you; the project may have already reached the number of reviewers needed, it may be overlapping with a project that you are already working on, or it may be that there is a conflict that prevents you from working on it.

What is Premium time and is it available on all projects?
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A client can offer premium time if they would like to offer a higher rate for hours worked beyond an average expected weekly schedule. As a contractor you do not receive an overtime rate, however we encourage clients to add an incentive if they expect you to work longer than normal hours in a week. This is optional for the client, and not every project will offer Premium time. Those that do will have it noted in the project details.

What is the difference between Total Hours and Pending Hours on my dashboard?
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Total Hours are the submitted time entries that have been approved by the client.  They represent earnings you have collected or are currently available to collect. Pending Hours are the submitted time that has yet to be approved by the client.

How do I find and apply to a project?
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When a reviewer applies for a project, you will be notified that there are available Pending Reviewers. You will be able to view profiles of applied candidates and see the answers to any project specific questions you may have asked. During this time, all reviewers will appear on your Pending Reviewers page. Once you accept a candidate, they will receive an invite notification. After they confirm the invitation more details such as contact information for the review manager and any review guidelines or other project documents, will be made available to them. All accepted reviewers are listed under the Active Reviewers tab.  

What happens after I apply for a project?
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When you apply for a project, the client is notified that you are available as a Pending Reviewer. They will be able to view your profile and see the answers to any project specific questions they may have asked. During this time, the project will appear on your Pending Projects page. Once the client accepts you, you will receive a notification, and more details such as contact information for the review manager and any review guidelines, will be made available to you.

How do I track my time?
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From the left menu go to “Time Entries” and use the form to “Log Your Work.” The system will only let you log time during periods that you are active on a project. Once time is entered, it will go to the client for approval. Once approved, it will be available for you to be paid. The system will generate an invoice automatically for the time.

What is coming next to Altorney?
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Lots of stuff! Some highlights include collaboration tools to make communicating on projects easier and integrating payroll directly into the Altorney! If you have an idea of something that you think will be beneficial to you and the rest of the reviewer community we would love to hear it – email us at feedback@altorney.com

Do I need to be an attorney to use Altorney? Passed the bar?
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While many projects do require the reviewer to have graduated from law school or to be barred in at least one US state (or sometimes in a specific one), there are many projects that do not have these requirements. Use the Advanced Search in the Find Projects section to filter projects to identify only that match your specific requirements and skills. Please note that the default search only presents projects that you qualify based on your profile. Thus, if you do not have a law degree and a project requires it, it would not appear in the search results without unchecking the default search criteria box.

I was a W2 employee but on Altorney I signed a contractor agreement – what’s the difference?
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The difference has to do with control – is the agency in control of what projects you can work on and defining your pay rates or are you. Altorney believes that as a professional you can determine what you want to work on and when you want to work. Clients may have specific requirements for a project, but it is up to you to decide if that works for you.

What types of projects are available on Altorney?
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Our current focus is on all types of legal document review – everything from general litigation and employment to antitrust and privacy matters. We also support contract review. In the future we plan to expand into other legal related areas such as project management.

AM I ABLE TO apply for more than one project at a time?
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You can apply for as many projects as you wish, but please keep in mind that some projects may have restrictions against working on more than one project at a time. These projects will have that restriction listed under the “Allows concurrent work” field in the project listing.

Who are the clients that use Altorney?
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Our clients are law firms, service providers (ALSPs), government agencies, and corporations directly.

How do I get paid?
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The first time you are accepted to a project, you will receive an onboarding email from our payroll partner, Gusto. Once you complete the onboarding process, you will start to receive payment for any outstanding invoices. Payroll runs on the 15th and last day of each month. In the next few months, we intend to add the capability to request a payment for outstanding approved time outside of the regular payroll dates.

What about benefits?
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We are happy to offer various perks to all of our reviewers. Details are available on the Reviewer Perks page from the left menu. We are always looking to partner with different organizations to make additional opportunities available to you that will make your life easier. If you have any suggestions please let us know at feedback@altorney.com

How do Notifications work?
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In your Settings you can choose the different methods that are used to contact you. You will receive a notification when there is a new project available that matches your criteria, when there is new documentation or a change to a project that you are currently working on, or for payroll and profile related events.