Configuring Grants (Funding Codes) to Prompt Users with Additional Questions


Grants often require collecting specific information that does not apply to all cases. LegalServer can be configured to collect specific information only if the funding code related to a grant is selected at the end of an intake or after a case is opened. You can also prevent a case from being closed unless this information has been entered.


User Experience

In a typical setup, if a user selects a configured grant at the end of an intake they will be shown a special form that prompts for relevant information before being taken to the case profile.


The user can avoid completing the form by clicking the Case ID in the breadcrumbs, but administrators can configure a "Required Tasks" section to appear in the case's Actions menu until the form is completed. Users may also get a warning, and be unable to close a case, if the closing form is configured to require completing the form.


Mildly tested: Administrators can skip showing the form when the intake is completed using a special configuration on the form that is the last step of the intake. See below.


Administrative Setup

There are three steps needed to use this feature:

  • Create an auxiliary form that contains the additional questions needed when a particular funding code is selected, and an auxiliary process to create a link to that form.

  • Configure the grant to use the auxiliary process.

  • Configure one or more forms where funding code is selected to "flag" a case as requiring additional information.


Create the Auxiliary Form and Process

Create the auxiliary form(s) and process in Admin > Processes, Forms, and Profiles. The form(s) can contain as many fields, blocks, and other elements as needed. There is typically only one form used in this process, but there can be as many forms as needed.


The auxiliary form must also contain a special field called Funding Code Changed that will track completion of the process. If there is more than one form, place this field on the last form in the process. Configure it to have Value = No, the checkbox selected for Default Overrides Existing Value, and the Hidden option selected. This hidden field will turn off the "flag" indicating that additional information is needed on the case.


Configure the Grant

Configure the grant in Admin > Grant Management. Click the edit link for the desired grant. At the bottom of the page is a dropdown field to select a Dynamic Process. Select the auxiliary process you created from the list and click the continue button to save.

Configure Additional Forms

Which forms to configure to "flag" a case as needing additional information depends on a site's configuration and when you want the prompting to happen.


A common setup involves configuring two forms:


(1) the form that is the last step of intake and contains the Disposition block; and


(2) the form that is called when a user clicks the Funding Code in the snapshot of a case. (To determine which form will be displayed when the funding code is clicked, find the name of the process in Admin / Process Settings.


The forms configured to flag a case as needing additional information need the Funding Code Changed field. Configure this field to have Value = Yes, the checkbox selected for Default Overrides Existing Value, and the Hidden option selected. The hidden field will turn on the "flag" indicating that additional information is needed on the case.


Skipping showing the form immediately after intake: This has only been mildly tested. On the last form of the intake, in addition to adding the Funding Code Change field, make two changes: 1) Disable the standard Continue button; and 2) Add a "Submit (Configurable)" block and configure it by checking the "Module Dynamic Profile" option. In this context, the button will try to load the case profile.


Displaying the Required Tasks Link

When a case is flagged as needing additional information, a "Required Tasks" category can appear in the Actions menu. It will contain a link to the auxiliary process created above. The category and link will disappear after the process is completed. The Required Tasks category can only be displayed with a Link Boxes element. Many sites use a separate, Custom Link Boxes element for Actions menu links. If so, add a Link Box element and configure it to only show the Required Tasks. Here is an example showing the Actions menu and the configuration:

Preventing a Case from being Closed

You can prevent a case from being closed unless the auxiliary process you created has been completed by using the Force Completion of Outstanding Processes block. Place this block on the form used to close cases. It is a hidden block so nothing new will appear on the form. But if a user attempts to close a case and they changed the funding code without completing the associated process, a message will appear at the top of the form and the Continue button is hidden.