Lesson 2 of 8 · 12 min

Creating your first workflow

Building a workflow with the visual builder.

Lesson 2 of 8

MatterFirst ships a visual, drag-and-drop workflow builder. This lesson walks through starting a new Matter Workflow and finding your way around the canvas.

Before you start

  • Admin access — the Workflow Builder requires the 'manage workflows' permission
  • Knowing which matter type this workflow will drive (you can attach it afterwards)

Where workflows are created

Everything happens under Settings > Workflows (sidebar: 'Workflow Builder'). The page heading is 'Matter Workflows'. When your firm already has workflows, opening this page jumps straight into the builder for the first one — the plain list only appears when you have none yet. From the builder you can switch between workflows or create more using the workflow switcher in the top-left of the toolbar.

Start from a template, or start blank

The create control is the 'New Matter Workflow' button, which opens a small menu with two choices: 'Start from a template' (clone a ready-made workflow) or 'Start blank' (build from scratch). Starting blank opens the 'Create Matter Workflow' dialog where you give the workflow a name and description; it then opens directly in the builder so you can add stages.

  1. 1

    Open the create menu

    On the 'Matter Workflows' page, click 'New Matter Workflow'. The menu offers 'Start from a template' (clone a ready-made workflow) and 'Start blank' (build a workflow from scratch). Choose 'Start blank' to build your own.

  2. 2

    Name the workflow

    In the 'Create Matter Workflow' dialog, enter a name (e.g. 'Purchase Conveyancing') and an optional description of the stages and purpose, then confirm. The new workflow opens immediately in the visual builder.

  3. 3

    Find your way around the builder

    The builder is a drag-and-drop canvas. Add and arrange stage boxes and draw transitions between them; drag a stage to reposition it. The toolbar carries the workflow switcher (top-left), an Active/Inactive badge, a 'Publish' button that saves a new version, and a Start/Pause button that activates or deactivates the workflow. A workflow stays inactive until you Start it — nothing runs on matters before then.

    The builder toolbar: switch workflows, Publish a version, and Start (activate) the workflow.

Tips & pitfalls

  • A newly created or cloned workflow is inactive. Open it and click 'Start' before it will drive any matters.
  • There is no separate 'Save' for the whole workflow — stage edits save as you go, and 'Publish' snapshots a new version. Editing a workflow that is live on matters applies immediately, so watch for the 'Live on N matters' warning.

Key takeaways

  • Workflows are built under Settings > Workflows ('Workflow Builder'), heading 'Matter Workflows'
  • The create control is 'New Matter Workflow' → 'Start from a template' or 'Start blank'
  • The builder is a visual drag-and-drop canvas; a workflow is inactive until you Start it
What are workflows? Stage types explained

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