Not professional advice. This prompt helps you draft legal work faster. What the assistant writes is not legal advice: have a qualified professional check it before anyone relies on it.
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You are an expert in this kind of work, and you know the Legal sector from the inside.
## Your task
Create a work breakdown structure for [PROJECT] at a mid-sized law firm. Break it into phases, deliverables and work packages, three levels deep. For each work package give an owner role, an effort estimate in days and its dependencies. Present it as a numbered outline, then as a table.
## About my situation
- Who this is for: clients, partners and associates
- What we must respect: client confidentiality, professional-conduct rules and jurisdiction (the output is a draft for a qualified lawyer to review, not legal advice)
- How we measure success: matter turnaround and billable utilisation
## What matters in Legal
- People involved: partners; associates; paralegals; clients; opposing counsel; courts and regulators.
- Common risks to plan for: missed deadlines; conflicts of interest; confidentiality breaches; citing wrong or made-up case law; fixed fees that run over.
- Documents people already work with: contracts; legal notices; research memos; advice letters; engagement letters; case summaries.
- Timing and seasons: hearing dates and court calendars; limitation deadlines; clients' financial year-end.
## How to work through it
1. Split the project into phases.
2. Break each phase into deliverables and work packages.
3. Give each work package an owner role, effort and dependencies.
4. Check that nothing in scope is missing.
5. Highlight the work packages with the most risk.
## What to deliver
- Numbered WBS outline
- Work package table
- Missing or unclear items
## Rules
- Make every point specific to my situation and my industry; replace generic advice with detail that fits.
- Use plain language, short sentences, and tables where they make the answer easier to scan.
- Use only the facts I give you. Do not invent figures, laws, sources or quotes. Mark anything you had to assume with "Assumption:".
- If something important is missing, ask me up to 3 short questions before you start.
## Before you answer
Check your draft against this list and fix anything that fails:
- Every task, risk and action has an owner role and a date or trigger.
- It is written for a mid-sized law firm; nothing in it would read the same for any other business.
- Nothing in it breaks client confidentiality, professional-conduct rules and jurisdiction (the output is a draft for a qualified lawyer to review, not legal advice).
- Every item under "What to deliver" is included.
How to use this prompt
- Copy the prompt. Press Copy prompt and the full text goes to your clipboard.
- Fill the brackets. Use the form above, or replace [PROJECT] with your own details.
- Paste and send. Paste it into ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini and send. Ask follow-up questions to refine the answer.
Why this prompt works
The “Work breakdown structure” prompt tells the assistant exactly what to hand back: numbered WBS outline; work package table; and missing or unclear items. It makes the assistant work through 5 steps in order, starting with "split the project into phases", instead of jumping straight to an answer. Before replying, the assistant checks its draft against 4 tests and fixes anything that fails.
This version is written for a mid-sized law firm, so the assistant keeps client confidentiality, professional-conduct rules and jurisdiction (the output is a draft for a qualified lawyer to review, not legal advice) in mind and judges the result by matter turnaround and billable utilisation. If an important detail is missing, it asks you up to 3 short questions before it starts.
How to get the best answer
- Fill every bracket with real detail: [PROJECT] should hold real names, numbers and dates, not placeholders.
- Paste real material: where the prompt asks for notes, data or text, paste the actual content rather than a summary.
- Refine in the same chat: ask "make it shorter", "turn it into a table" or "add more detail on step 2".
- Check the result: review it against what you know about matter turnaround and billable utilisation before you share it.
Other industries
Same prompt for other industries
The same work breakdown structure prompt, rewritten for each industry.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Which AI assistant works best with the “Work breakdown structure” prompt?
The “Work breakdown structure” prompt works in any chat assistant and suits ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini best. Paste it in, send it, and ask follow-up questions in the same chat to refine the answer.
What do I fill in before sending the “Work breakdown structure” prompt?
Replace the highlighted bracket – [PROJECT] – with your own details. The more specific you are, the better the answer.
Is the “Work breakdown structure” prompt only for Legal?
No. This version is written for a mid-sized law firm, and the same prompt is also written for 15 other industries, listed on this page.
Is the “Work breakdown structure” prompt free to use?
Yes. First AI Prompt prompts are free to copy and use in personal and business work, with no sign-up, no account and no daily limit.
Can I trust the answer the “Work breakdown structure” prompt gives?
Treat it as a strong first draft: the prompt tells the assistant not to invent facts and to mark its assumptions, but check figures yourself and have a qualified professional review anything with legal, financial, medical or employment consequences.
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