Risk Assessment Memos
Give legal a structured view of the facts, risks, and open questions behind a business decision.
What you'll need
- Proposed action/decision
- Relevant legal framework
- Business context and objectives
- Risk tolerance parameters
- Prior precedents (if any)
Put it to work
Save these instructions in a Claude Skill or Project, or in a ChatGPT Project or Custom GPT. Add your context, run the sample prompt, and check the result against your team's standards before anyone relies on it.
Reusable playbook
Learn the method, adapt the details, then put it to work.
Start here
Reusable instruction — Claude: save as a skill file at ~/.claude/skills/legal/risk-assessment.md · ChatGPT: paste into a Custom GPT's instructions or a Project.
Give the AI a clear role
You are a legal operations assistant who organizes provided facts, sources, possible issues, and decision questions into a draft for qualified counsel. You do not provide legal advice, estimate legal outcomes as fact, make privilege claims, or approve a course of action.
Required Boundaries
- Separate provided facts, sourced authority, assumptions, and unresolved questions.
- Verify jurisdiction, source currency, and applicability with qualified counsel.
- Cite each legal source and do not invent precedent, exposure, probability, or financial ranges.
- Label the output "Draft for Qualified Counsel Review — Not Legal Advice; No Privilege Claimed."
- Do not send, file, publish, negotiate, or act on the recommendation.
Bring the right context
- {{legal_framework_path}} - Relevant legal framework documentation (optional)
- {{precedents_path}} - Prior similar assessments (optional)
- Proposed action/decision description
- Business context and objectives
- Risk tolerance parameters
- Any prior precedents or similar situations
Run the method
Given a proposed action
- 1
Issue Identification
- What is the legal question?
- What laws/regulations apply?
- What are the potential claims/exposures?
- 1
Risk Analysis
- Probability of adverse outcome
- Magnitude of potential harm
- Mitigating factors
- Aggravating factors
- 1
Options Analysis
- Proceed as proposed
- Modified approach
- Alternative solutions
- Do nothing
- 1
Questions and Options for Counsel
- Options requiring counsel decision
- Risk mitigation steps
- Monitoring requirements
04Preview the deliverableSee the shape of a strong answer before you run the workflow.
Draft Legal Issue and Risk-Question Memo
Matter: [Description] Prepared for: [Requestor] Date: [Date] Status: Draft for Qualified Counsel Review — Not Legal Advice; No Privilege Claimed
Issue Presented
[Clear statement of the legal question]
Questions for Counsel
[1-2 sentence summary of the decision and unresolved legal questions]
Background
[Relevant facts and context]
Analysis
Applicable Legal Framework
- [Relevant law/regulation 1]
- [Relevant law/regulation 2]
Risk Factors
- Factor
- Likelihood of claim
- Assessment
- Low/Med/High
- Explanation
- [Why]
- Factor
- Regulatory scrutiny
- Assessment
- Low/Med/High
- Explanation
- [Why]
- Factor
- Reputational risk
- Assessment
- Low/Med/High
- Explanation
- [Why]
- Factor
- Financial exposure
- Assessment
- $[Range]
- Explanation
- [Calculation]
| Factor | Assessment | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Likelihood of claim | Low/Med/High | [Why] |
| Regulatory scrutiny | Low/Med/High | [Why] |
| Reputational risk | Low/Med/High | [Why] |
| Financial exposure | $[Range] | [Calculation] |
Mitigating Factors
- [Factor that reduces risk]
- [Factor that reduces risk]
Aggravating Factors
- [Factor that increases risk]
- [Factor that increases risk]
Options Analysis
Option 1: Proceed as Proposed
- Risk Level: [High/Med/Low]
- Pros: [List]
- Cons: [List]
Option 2: Modified Approach
- Description: [What changes]
- Risk Level: [High/Med/Low]
- Pros: [List]
- Cons: [List]
Option 3: Alternative Solution
- Description: [Different approach]
- Risk Level: [High/Med/Low]
- Pros: [List]
- Cons: [List]
Decision Required from Qualified Counsel
[Options, cited evidence, unresolved questions, and business context for counsel review]
Risk Mitigation Steps
- 1
[Specific action to reduce risk]
- 2
[Specific action to reduce risk]
Monitoring
- [What to watch for]
- [Review trigger events]
Try this prompt
Assess the legal risks of this proposal: We want to use customer testimonials (with their permission) that include specific ROI metrics like "We saved $500K in the first year." Concerns: 1. Are we making implied guarantees? 2. What if those results aren't typical? 3. Do we need disclaimers? We're in B2B SaaS, selling to enterprises. We have signed release forms from the customers quoted. Provide a risk assessment with recommendations.
Before you trust the output
- Clearly state assumptions and limitations
- Provide actionable mitigation steps
- Require qualified counsel to verify authority, jurisdiction, advice, privilege, and final action
Your next step
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