# Portia

## Docs

- [Small claims, fast track, and multi-track explained](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/claim-tracks-explained.md): Civil claims in England and Wales are allocated to a track based on value and complexity. Here is how the small claims, fast, intermediate, and multi tracks differ.
- [Litigant in person, solicitor, or McKenzie friend](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/lip-solicitor-mckenzie-friend.md): The difference between representing yourself, instructing a solicitor or barrister, and using a McKenzie friend in a civil case in England and Wales.
- [The pre-action conduct practice direction](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/pre-action-conduct-practice-direction.md): The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols sets the general standard of behaviour expected before a civil claim in England and Wales, where no specific protocol applies.
- [Pre-action protocols explained](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/pre-action-protocols.md): Pre-action protocols set out the steps parties should take before starting a civil claim in England and Wales. Here is what they are and why they matter.
- [The stages of a civil claim](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/stages-of-a-civil-claim.md): An overview of the main stages of a civil claim in England and Wales, from the pre-action steps through issuing a claim, defence, directions, and trial.
- [What is a cause of action?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-cause-of-action.md): A cause of action is the legal basis for a civil claim in England and Wales. It is the set of facts that, if proved, entitles you to a remedy from the court.
- [What is a chronology (and why courts want one)?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-chronology.md): A chronology is a dated list of the key events in a civil case in England and Wales. It helps a judge follow what happened and when, in order.
- [What is a defence?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-defence.md): A defence is the document a defendant files in response to a civil claim in England and Wales, setting out which parts of the claim they dispute and why.
- [What is a letter before action?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-letter-before-action.md): A letter before action, also called a letter before claim, is a formal letter sent before starting a civil claim in England and Wales, setting out the dispute and what you want.
- [What is a litigant in person?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-litigant-in-person.md): A litigant in person is someone who represents themselves in a civil case in England and Wales, without a solicitor or barrister. Here is what that means in practice.
- [What is a witness statement?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-a-witness-statement.md): A witness statement is a written account of the facts a person can give evidence about in a civil case in England and Wales, signed with a statement of truth.
- [What is an exhibit index?](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-is-an-exhibit-index.md): An exhibit index is a labelled list of the documents relied on in a civil case in England and Wales, so each can be identified and found quickly.
- [What legal aid covers (and what it doesn't)](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-legal-aid-covers.md): An overview of legal aid for civil matters in England and Wales: what it can help with, who may qualify, and the limits on its scope.
- [What 'not legal advice' actually means](https://docs.useportia.ai/concepts/what-not-legal-advice-means.md): Many tools and services say they do not give legal advice. Here is what that phrase means, and why the difference between information and advice matters.
- [How Portia works](https://docs.useportia.ai/getting-started/how-portia-works.md): A walk-through of the stages Portia takes you through: your documents in, a chronology and exhibits out, the legal foundation mapped, evidence checked against it, and structured documents prepared.
- [Quick start: for advice organisations](https://docs.useportia.ai/getting-started/quick-start-for-advice-organisations.md): For advice services, charities, and community bodies helping people through civil disputes in England and Wales: what Portia is, what people you refer will find, and where the lines are.
- [Quick start: for businesses](https://docs.useportia.ai/getting-started/quick-start-for-businesses.md): How to get started with Portia if you are handling a commercial dispute for a small or medium-sized business in England and Wales, without instructing a solicitor on every matter.
- [Quick start: representing yourself](https://docs.useportia.ai/getting-started/quick-start-representing-yourself.md): How to get started with Portia if you are handling a civil dispute in England and Wales on your own. What you upload, what Portia does with it, and what you end up with.
- [What is Portia?](https://docs.useportia.ai/getting-started/what-is-portia.md): Portia is a document-organisation tool for people handling civil disputes in England and Wales. It helps you prepare your case. It is not a law firm and does not give legal advice.
- [How Portia handles limitations](https://docs.useportia.ai/trust/how-portia-handles-limitations.md): Portia is built to be honest about what it can and cannot do, and to stop rather than guess when it does not have what it needs. Here is what that means for you.
- [Is this legal advice?](https://docs.useportia.ai/trust/is-this-legal-advice.md): No. Portia gives general help with organising and preparing a civil case in England and Wales. It does not give legal advice or tell you what to do in your situation.
- [What Portia will and won't do](https://docs.useportia.ai/trust/what-portia-will-and-wont-do.md): An honest account of what Portia does to help you prepare a civil case in England and Wales, and the things it deliberately does not do.
- [Your data and privacy](https://docs.useportia.ai/trust/your-data-and-privacy.md): How Portia handles your documents and personal data: encryption, no use of your documents to train AI models, your right to delete, and automatic deletion after dormancy.