Roles & permissions model
This is the single most important concept in ProGuard Legal. Read this carefully — it explains why two people with the same job title may see very different things in the app.
Three layers of roles
Every user in your firm has roles assigned to them. Roles come in three layers, and a real user almost always has roles from more than one layer.
Layer 1 — The base role
staff— every user gets this. It grants the basics: read your own profile, see notifications, use the calendar, see tasks assigned to you.
Layer 2 — Module roles (where permissions actually live)
These grant the actual ability to work on matters, clients, HR, etc. Each module has three seniority tiers:
| Module | Worker (read) | Supervisor (create/update) | Manager (full, incl. delete) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matters | matter_worker | matter_supervisor | matter_manager |
| CRM | crm_worker | crm_supervisor | crm_manager |
| HR | hr_worker | hr_supervisor | hr_manager |
| Admin | admin_worker | admin_supervisor | admin_manager |
Rule of thumb:
- Worker — can read records in the module, limited write.
- Supervisor — can create and update, but cannot delete.
- Manager — full control including deletion.
Layer 3 — Legal titles (labels, not permissions)
These are seeded so your firm can reflect its real structure:
clerkassociate,senior_associatepartner,senior_partner,managing_partneraccount_managerfront_desk_executivegeneral_manager
Important: On their own, most legal titles carry no permissions. They're labels. A
partnerwith no other roles cannot do anything beyondstaff. To give a partner the ability to actually work on matters, they must also be assigned an appropriate module role (usuallymatter_supervisorormatter_manager).
The exceptions are:
general_manager— inherits all*_managerroles across modules.administrator— full control over users, roles and permissions.
How real users are put together
Examples from a typical firm setup:
| Person | Roles assigned |
|---|---|
| Managing Partner | staff, managing_partner, general_manager |
| Partner running litigation | staff, partner, matter_supervisor |
| Senior associate | staff, senior_associate, matter_supervisor |
| Junior associate | staff, associate, matter_worker |
| Litigation clerk | staff, clerk, matter_worker |
| HR manager | staff, hr_manager |
| Office manager / CRM lead | staff, account_manager, crm_manager |
| Front desk | staff, front_desk_executive, crm_worker |
| Firm administrator | staff, administrator |
Changing a user's roles
Only the firm administrator can assign or change roles, from Admin → Users → [pick user] → Roles. Changes take effect immediately.
Where to see exactly what each role can do
See the Permission matrix for a complete breakdown of every resource and action each seeded role has.