Using AI Chat

Pactly Assist includes an AI chat that understands your contract. Ask questions, request edits, get explanations—all in natural language, all without leaving Word.

Think of it as having a knowledgeable colleague available instantly, one who’s already read the contract you’re working on.

Ask about specific provisions:

• “What’s the termination notice period?”

• “Is there an auto-renewal clause?”

• “What are the payment terms?”

Ask for explanations:

• “Explain section 8.2 in plain English”

• “What does this indemnification clause mean?”

• “What risks does this limitation of liability create for us?”

Ask about what’s missing:

• “Does this contract have a data protection clause?”

• “Is there an audit rights provision?”

Request changes in plain language:

• “Make the liability cap mutual”

• “Change the governing law to Singapore”

• “Add a 30-day cure period to the termination clause”

The AI shows you the proposed edit and lets you approve before it changes your document.

Access your clause library:

• “Show me my indemnification clauses”

• “Insert our standard governing law clause”

• “Find a mutual confidentiality clause”

Flag issues for discussion:

• “Add a comment asking about the liability cap rationale”

• “Flag this clause for legal review”

1. Click Pactly Assist in the ribbon

2. Click Chat

3. Type your question and press Enter

During a review, you can chat about a specific position:

1. Expand any position in your review

2. Click Chat within that position

3. The AI already has context about this specific issue

This is useful when you want to discuss why something was flagged or what changes would make it compliant.

Message area: Your conversation history. You can scroll back through previous messages.

Input field: Type your question or request here. Natural language works—no special commands needed.

Context indicator: Shows what the AI knows about (current document, playbook position, etc.).

Just ask naturally. The AI searches your document to find the answer.

Finding information:

“What’s the notice period for termination?”

The AI locates the termination clause and extracts the notice period.

Checking for provisions:

“Does this contract have a non-compete?”

The AI searches for non-compete provisions and tells you if they exist.

Getting explanations:

“Explain the indemnification section in simple terms”

The AI paraphrases complex legal language into plain English.

Understanding implications:

“What risks does this IP assignment clause create?”

The AI analyzes the clause and explains potential concerns.

Describe what you want changed. The AI drafts the edit and shows you before applying it.

Simple changes:

“Change ‘30 days’ to ‘45 days’ in the notice clause”

Substantive changes:

“Make the limitation of liability mutual instead of one-sided”

Adding language:

“Add an exception for gross negligence to the liability cap”

For each edit, you’ll see:

• Current text: What’s being changed

• Proposed text: The suggested replacement

• Explanation: Why this change addresses your request

Click Apply to make the change, or Reject to try a different approach. The edit uses track changes so counterparties can see what you modified.

Search your organization’s clause library:

“Show me my standard confidentiality clauses”

The AI searches and displays matching clauses. Click one to preview, then click Insert to add it to your document.

“Insert the mutual NDA confidentiality clause”

If there’s a clear match, the AI inserts it directly (with your confirmation).

When inserting a clause into an existing contract, you may want it to match the contract’s style:

“Insert my liability cap clause and adapt it to match this contract’s terminology”

The AI:

1. Retrieves your clause

2. Identifies the contract’s defined terms (e.g., “Provider” vs “Vendor”)

3. Adapts your clause to fit

4. Shows you the adapted version for approval

This saves time on manual adjustments.

Request comments to be added to the document:

“Add a comment on the liability section asking about the rationale for unlimited liability”

The AI creates a Word comment attached to the relevant text.

“Flag all IP clauses for legal review”

The AI finds relevant clauses and adds review comments to each.

Chat is conversational. You can build on previous messages:

You: “What’s the limitation of liability in this contract?”

AI: “The contract caps liability at $500,000…”

You: “Is that mutual or one-sided?”

AI: “It’s one-sided—only the vendor’s liability is capped…”

You: “Make it mutual and change the cap to 12 months of fees”

AI: [Shows proposed edit]

You don’t need to repeat context. The AI remembers the conversation.

The AI knows about:

• Your current document: It can read and search the entire contract

• Selected text: If you select text before asking, the AI focuses on that selection

• Playbook position: If chatting from a position, it knows the guidance and assessment

• Your clause library: It can search and retrieve your organization’s clauses

It doesn’t know about:

• Files on your computer (only the open document)

• The internet (no web searches)

• Other Pactly documents or contracts

• Information you haven’t shared in this conversation

Less effective: “Fix this clause”

More effective: “Make the liability cap mutual and change it from $1M to 12 months of fees”

Less effective: “Change the termination clause”

More effective: “Change the termination for convenience clause in section 12”

If the AI suggests something you don’t understand:

“Why did you suggest removing that sentence?”

If the first response isn’t quite right:

“That’s close, but also add an exception for willful misconduct”

Not sure about a concept?

“What’s the difference between indemnification and limitation of liability?”

The AI can explain legal concepts in context.

Chat is especially powerful during reviews:

“Why did you mark the liability clause as non-compliant?”

The AI explains its reasoning based on your playbook guidance.

“What changes would make this clause compliant?”

The AI suggests specific modifications.

“Draft a comment to the counterparty explaining why we need to cap liability”

The AI creates professional language you can use in discussions.

“What’s the risk if we accept this clause as-is?”

The AI analyzes the deviation from your standard and explains implications.

Not legal advice: The AI helps with contract review but doesn’t replace legal counsel for important decisions.

Document scope: It can only see the current document, not other files or contracts.

Clause library only: It can only search clauses your organization has added to Pactly, not external databases.

No internet access: It can’t search the web or access external resources.

Your chat history is saved with the document session. If you close and reopen Pactly Assist while working on the same document, you can continue where you left off.

Starting a new document or review begins a fresh conversation.

• Running Playbook Reviews — Use chat during reviews

• Using the Clause Library — Browse and insert clauses

• Installing Pactly Assist — Get started