The Problem
You keep re-explaining the same matter to Claude. Every new conversation starts from nothing, and each session begins with the transaction, the jurisdiction and your role.
The Solution
A Claude project is a workspace with its own instructions, its own files and its own chats. Set one up for a matter and every chat inside it starts with the background already in place.
Projects are on every Claude plan, including the free one. That does not make every plan suitable for client documents. Read the next section before you upload anything.
Before You Upload Any Client Document
Every fact about Claude in this section was checked against Anthropic's own pages on 29 September 2026. The pages are listed under "Sources" at the end. Anthropic changes its plans and terms, so read the pages again before you rely on them.
The plan: Team or Enterprise
Use a Team or Enterprise plan, which Anthropic calls Claude for Work. For these plans Anthropic says:
- By default it will not use your inputs or outputs to train its models.
- Your firm is the controller of the data its users submit, and Anthropic acts as processor on the firm's behalf.
- Its Data Processing Addendum, with Standard Contractual Clauses, is incorporated into its Commercial Terms of Service.
Do not upload client documents to a Free, Pro or Max account. Anthropic treats these as consumer plans. On them, Anthropic uses chats to improve its models when the "Help improve our AI models" setting is on, and it may then keep that data, de-identified, for up to five years. Switching the setting off changes what Anthropic does with new chats. It does not give your firm the terms that come with a Team or Enterprise plan.
The settings
Set these before the first document goes in. The first two need an Owner of your firm's Claude account.
- Turn off "Rate chats". When a user clicks thumbs up or thumbs down, Anthropic stores the whole conversation for up to five years and may use it to train its models. This applies on Team and Enterprise plans too. An Owner can switch the buttons off with the "Rate chats" setting, which Anthropic places under "Organization settings", then "Data and Privacy".
- Decide who may share projects. An Owner can turn off project sharing, or turn off projects that are visible to the whole organisation.
- Make each matter project Private. A Private project can be seen and used only by the members you invite. A Public project can be seen and used by everyone in the organisation. Invite the matter team and nobody else, and give "Can edit" only to those who need to change the instructions or files.
- Decide how long the project is kept. Anthropic says it retains chats in the product and that you can delete them at any time. A deleted conversation leaves your history at once and Anthropic's back-end storage within 30 days. Anthropic lists exceptions, including conversations flagged under its Usage Policy. On an Enterprise plan an Owner can set a retention period for the organisation, with a minimum of 30 days, after which projects and the chats inside them are deleted.
What Anthropic's terms do not decide
The plan and the settings are the least you need. They do not answer these questions, which are for your firm:
- Does your firm's policy allow client documents in Claude at all?
- Has the client agreed, in the engagement terms or otherwise, to its documents being handled this way?
- Anthropic says data is stored in the United States. Has your firm's data protection lead approved that transfer under UK GDPR?
- Anthropic says the Primary Owner of the account can request exports that may contain conversations and uploaded files. Does that fit the information barriers your firm has in place?
- Is any of the material privileged, and what does your firm's policy say about putting privileged material into an outside tool?
Paragraph 6.3 of the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs and RSLs requires you to keep the affairs of current and former clients confidential unless disclosure is required or permitted by law or the client consents. This guide explains how to set up a tool. It does not advise on how that duty applies to your matter: ask your firm's compliance officer before you start.
How Projects Work
A project holds:
- Project instructions that apply to every chat in it
- Files you have added, which Claude can refer to
- The chats you have had inside it
Anthropic is rolling out a new version of projects in beta. This guide describes the version in general use on 29 September 2026.
Step-by-Step Setup
1. Create a New Project
In Claude:
- Open "Projects"
- Click "+ New Project"
- Give it a name and a description
Name it with the matter reference from your practice management system and the type of work:
[Matter reference] - [Work type]
Example names:
M-2026-0142 - Share saleM-2026-0187 - Employment tribunal claimM-2026-0203 - Software licence negotiation
Never put a client's name, or the other side's, in a project name. The name shows on your screen and to everyone the project is shared with. A name such as "Company A - sale to Company B" tells anyone who sees it who your client is and what it is doing.
2. Add Project Instructions
Click "Set project instructions" and add:
PROJECT: [Matter reference] - [Work type]
ROLE: You are assisting a solicitor in England and Wales with
[describe the work]
CONTEXT:
- Jurisdiction: England and Wales
- We act for: [the Seller / the Buyer / the Claimant / the Respondent]
- Matter type: [M&A / litigation / employment / etc.]
- Stage: [where the matter has reached]
- Key dates: [deadlines, completion date, hearing date]
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Apply the law of England and Wales unless told otherwise
- Refer to the parties by role (the Seller, the Buyer), not by name
- Be concise but thorough
- Give the clause number or document name for every point you take
from the files
- Flag any information gaps or assumptions you're making
DOCUMENTS ADDED:
- [e.g., Share purchase agreement (draft 3)]
- [e.g., Due diligence report]
An instruction telling Claude to treat the project as confidential or privileged changes nothing about where the data goes. Confidentiality comes from the plan, the settings and your firm's policy.
3. Add Key Documents
Use the "+" button in the project to add files:
- Contracts
- Correspondence
- Due diligence reports
- Court documents
- Precedents
Limits (checked 29 September 2026): each file can be up to 30MB. There is no limit on the number of files, but the total must fit within Claude's context window. On paid plans, Anthropic says a project that approaches that limit switches to a retrieval mode that expands its capacity by up to ten times.
File names: use the matter reference here too, for example M-2026-0142_SPA_draft-4.pdf.
The documents themselves will name the parties. That is why the plan and the settings come first. Keeping names out of titles, instructions and file names limits what shows on screen and in lists of projects. It does not anonymise the documents.
4. Use the Project
Every time you work on the matter:
- Open the project, not a new chat outside it
- Ask your question
- Check the answer against the documents
Example Use Cases
The matters below are made up. They show the format.
Example 1: Share Sale
Project name: M-2026-0142 - Share sale
Project instructions:
PROJECT: M-2026-0142 - Share sale
CONTEXT:
- Jurisdiction: England and Wales
- We act for: the Seller
- Transaction: sale of the entire issued share capital of the Target
- Stage: negotiating the share purchase agreement (draft 4)
- Key concerns: warranties, W&I insurance, management rollover
DOCUMENTS ADDED:
- Share purchase agreement (drafts 3 and 4)
- Due diligence reports
- Correspondence with the Buyer's solicitors
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Focus on protecting the Seller's position
- Flag any unusual or aggressive provisions
- Refer to the parties by role, not by name
- Commercial focus: no academic analysis
- Flag anything that needs the client's approval
Usage:
Compare draft 4 of the share purchase agreement with draft 3.
List each change with its clause number.
Which of those changes weaken the Seller's position?
Check every change Claude reports against the two drafts. A document comparison from your firm's own software is the record of what changed.
Example 2: Employment Tribunal Claim
Project name: M-2026-0187 - Employment tribunal claim
Project instructions:
PROJECT: M-2026-0187 - Employment tribunal claim
CONTEXT:
- Jurisdiction: England and Wales
- We act for: the Claimant
- Claim: unfair dismissal and discrimination
- Stage: witness statements exchanged
- Hearing: [date]
DOCUMENTS ADDED:
- Claim form (ET1) and grounds of claim
- Response (ET3)
- Witness statements (both parties)
- Key employment documents
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Focus on the Claimant's case
- Flag weaknesses we need to address
- Refer to the parties and witnesses by role, not by name
- Give the paragraph number for every point taken from a statement
- Practical points, not academic analysis
Usage:
Review the Respondent's witness statement. Where is it inconsistent
with the documents in this project? Give paragraph numbers.
Draft a chronology of key events from the documents, with the source
of each entry.
Example 3: Software Licence Negotiation
Project name: M-2026-0203 - Software licence negotiation
Project instructions:
PROJECT: M-2026-0203 - Software licence negotiation
CONTEXT:
- Jurisdiction: England and Wales
- We act for: the Licensor
- Deal: three-year software licence
- Stage: third round of negotiation
- Key issues: liability cap, IP ownership, termination
DOCUMENTS ADDED:
- Current draft
- Previous drafts (for comparison)
- Our standard form
- Commercial terms agreed so far
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Protect the Licensor's ownership of its IP
- Limit the Licensor's liability
- Refer to the parties by role, not by name
- Flag any unusual request from the Customer
Usage:
The Customer wants the liability cap reduced to one year's fees.
What are the risks to the Licensor?
Draft a reply explaining why the Licensor needs a higher cap.
What could the Licensor offer in return for keeping it?
Pro Tips
Naming convention:
[Matter reference] - [Work type]
Projects are easy to find, and a glance at your screen gives nothing away.
Update the instructions as the matter moves on:
STAGE: Due diligence
STAGE: Negotiating the share purchase agreement
STAGE: Preparing for completion
Use projects for:
- ✅ Active matters with continuing work
- ✅ Matters with many documents
- ✅ Matters where several people need the same background (Team and Enterprise plans)
Don't use projects for:
- ❌ One-off questions
- ❌ General research
- ❌ Client documents on a Free, Pro or Max account
Document management:
- Replace a document when a new draft arrives
- Remove drafts you no longer need
- Keep client names out of file names
When the matter closes:
- Follow your firm's retention policy
- Archive or delete the project from its menu
Working with colleagues (Team and Enterprise plans only):
- Share the project with named members of the matter team
- "Can view" lets a member read the project and chat in it
- "Can edit" also lets a member change the instructions, files and membership
Common Mistakes
❌ A client's name in the project title: use the matter reference
❌ Client documents on a personal or consumer account: use the firm's Team or Enterprise plan
❌ A project visible to the whole organisation: make it Private and invite the matter team
❌ Clicking thumbs up or thumbs down in a matter project: the conversation is stored for up to five years
❌ Vague instructions: "This is a corporate matter" tells Claude nothing
❌ Out-of-date documents: working from draft 1 when the matter is on draft 5
✅ One Private project for each active matter, named by matter reference, with clear instructions and the current documents
Quick Reference
Before anything is uploaded:
- Team or Enterprise plan, not Free, Pro or Max
- "Rate chats" switched off by an Owner
- Project set to Private and shared only with the matter team
- Your firm's policy and the client's agreement checked
Setting up:
-
Create the project: name it
[Matter reference] - [Work type] -
Add project instructions:
PROJECT: [Matter reference] - [Work type]
CONTEXT: [Jurisdiction, who we act for by role, matter type, stage]
INSTRUCTIONS: [How Claude should help; parties by role, not name]
DOCUMENTS ADDED: [What is in the project]
-
Add the documents: file names by matter reference
-
Use it: open the project, ask, and check the answer against the documents
Sources
All checked on 29 September 2026.
Anthropic, on projects:
- What are projects?: which plans have projects, which plans can share them, the controls an Owner has over sharing, and the new version in beta
- How can I create and manage projects?: creating a project, setting project instructions, adding files, archiving and deleting
- Manage project visibility and sharing: Public and Private projects, "Can view" and "Can edit"
- Upload files to Claude: file size and number of files in a project
- Retrieval augmented generation (RAG) for projects: the expanded capacity on paid plans
Anthropic, on Team and Enterprise plans:
- Is my data used for model training?: no training by default, feedback stored for up to five years, the "Rate chats" setting
- Does Anthropic act as a Data Processor or Controller?: controller and processor
- How do I view and sign your Data Processing Addendum (DPA)?: the addendum and the Commercial Terms of Service
- How long do you store my organization's data?: retention and deletion
- Configure custom data retention controls for Enterprise plans: the retention period an Owner can set
- Who owns and manages the data of my team?: exports the Primary Owner can request
- Where are your servers located?: where data is stored
Anthropic, on Free, Pro and Max plans:
- Is my data used for model training?: when chats are used to improve models
- How do I change my model improvement privacy settings?: the "Help improve our AI models" setting
- How long do you store my data?: retention of up to five years when that setting is on
Solicitors Regulation Authority:
- SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs and RSLs: paragraph 6.3