Guide

A law firm hiring pipeline and training tracker in Notion (with CPD records)

Law firm hiring and training tracker in Notion: recruitment pipeline, interview scorecards, a training matrix and CPD or CLE hours records.

By Raghav R Handa, practising lawyer3 October 202617 min read

TL;DR

Hiring is a pipeline: candidates, stages, structured scorecards and a decision record, related to the role.
A training matrix shows who has been trained on what, and a CPD record evidences each lawyer's continuing-education obligations and flags deficits early.
Candidate and employee data is personal data: restrict access, collect only what you need and set retention.
For a new starter's first week, use the onboarding guide; this page is about recruiting well and keeping skills and CPD current.

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Two jobs that small firms do badly because they are done rarely: hiring and training. Notion handles both well with a few related databases. A hiring pipeline makes recruitment consistent and defensible; a training matrix and CPD record show who has learned what and evidence each lawyer's continuing-education obligations. For a new starter's first week, use the onboarding guide. This guide covers the pipeline, the scorecards, a competency framework, the training matrix, CPD tracking and the privacy controls that make people data safe.

Part 1: hiring

The databases

Database	One row is	Key properties
Roles	A vacancy	Title, practice area, level, status (Planned, Open, Filled, Closed), owner, target start, salary band, job description link
Candidates	A person	Role, stage, source, date applied, CV link, current employer, decision, reason, retention date
Interviews	One interview	Candidate, interviewer, date, type, scores per criterion, overall, notes, recommendation
Offers	A proposed offer	Candidate, role, terms summary, date, status, accepted or declined, start date

The pipeline, with exit criteria

Stage	Exit criteria
Applied	Application received and acknowledged
Screen	CV reviewed against the role criteria; short call done; pass or decline recorded
First interview	Structured interview done; scorecard complete
Second interview or task	Work sample or panel done; scorecards complete
References and checks	References taken; checks the role requires completed, recorded without sensitive detail
Offer	Terms approved; offer made
Hired or Declined	Outcome recorded with reason; onboarding started or decline sent

Scorecards that make decisions comparable

Score every candidate on the same criteria, each on a defined scale with a description of what each score means. This reduces the pull of "I liked them" and gives you something to defend.

Criterion	1 (weak)	3 (solid)	5 (excellent)
Legal knowledge and analysis	Misses key issues	Identifies and reasons through the main issues	Spots subtle issues and weighs authority well
Drafting and writing	Unclear or error-prone	Clear, accurate, well organised	Precise, persuasive, needs little editing
Judgement	Poor sense of risk and priorities	Sound on routine problems	Balanced and commercial on difficult ones
Client and communication skills	Struggles to explain or listen	Clear and professional	Builds trust and handles difficult conversations
Work habits and reliability	Inconsistent	Organised and dependable	Proactive, owns outcomes
Fit with the practice and team	Misaligned	Would work well with the team	Raises the team

A structured question bank (adapt to the role)

Analysis: "Here is a short set of facts. What issues do you see, and what would you do first?"
Drafting: a short written exercise, with a time limit and a rubric.
Judgement: "Tell me about a time you disagreed with a senior colleague on how to handle a matter."
Client skills: "Explain this concept to a client with no legal background."
Reliability: "Tell me about a deadline you nearly missed and what you changed afterwards."
Ethics: "What would you do if you found a mistake in a document that had already gone out?"

Fairness, law and good practice

Ask every candidate the same core questions, and score before discussing.
Avoid questions about protected characteristics and anything unrelated to the role; the rules differ by jurisdiction, so check yours.
Record reasons for decisions in terms of the criteria.
Be cautious with AI screening tools; keep a human decision-maker and check the law where you hire.
Follow your regulator's rules on checks for regulated roles.

Part 2: training

The training matrix

A matrix answers "who can do what?" Build it from three databases.

Database	One row is	Key properties
People	A team member	Name, role, start date, supervisor
Skills and procedures	Something to be able to do	Name, category, owner, linked procedure, refresh interval (months), required for roles
Training records	A person's level on a skill	Person, skill, level (0 to 3), date assessed, assessor, evidence, next due

Level	Meaning
0	Not trained
1	Aware: has been shown
2	Competent with supervision
3	Competent independently, and can train others

// Next due for a training record
dateAdd(prop("Date assessed"), prop("Refresh (months)"), "months")

// Overdue flag
if(dateBetween(now(), prop("Next due"), "days") > 0, "Refresh due", "Current")

Views that matter: skills nobody has at level 2 or above (single points of failure), training due for refresh, and a grid of people by skill.

A competency framework by role (example)

Skill area	Trainee or junior	Associate	Senior or partner
Opening a matter and conflict checks	Level 2	Level 3	Level 3, owns the procedure
Time recording and billing	Level 2	Level 3	Level 3
Deadline recording and checking	Level 2	Level 3	Level 3, second checker
Client communication	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3
Supervising others	n/a	Level 1	Level 3
Data protection and confidentiality	Level 2	Level 3	Level 3

Part 3: CPD and CLE records

Most regulators require lawyers to complete and record continuing professional development (called continuing legal education in the United States). Requirements, what counts and what records to keep differ by regulator, so read yours and record the rules from the source. A tracker turns the obligation into something you can see.

Database	Key properties
CPD requirements	Regulator, period (start and end), required hours, required categories (for example ethics), source link
CPD activities	Person, activity, date, hours, category, provider, evidence link, approved by supervisor
Per person per period (a rollup or summary view)	Hours completed by category versus required; deficit; due date

// Hours still needed in the period (rollup "Hours completed" from activities)
max(0, prop("Required hours") - prop("Hours completed"))

// Status
if(prop("Hours still needed") == 0, "Complete",
  if(dateBetween(prop("Period end"), now(), "days") < 60, "At risk", "On track"))

Run a quarterly check of anyone with a deficit and a period ending within six months, book the training, and keep the evidence (certificate, attendance record) linked to each activity.

Part 4: protect the people data

Keep Hiring, HR and training records in a restricted area, visible only to those who need them.
Collect only what you need; avoid sensitive categories unless required, and tell people what you hold and why.
Set and apply a retention period for unsuccessful candidates, and delete or anonymise afterwards.
Keep AI and integrations away from HR pages unless you have decided otherwise.
Follow the employment and data protection rules where you hire (see GDPR and other regimes).

A first-year rhythm

When	What
On opening a role	Create the role, criteria and scorecard before advertising
During hiring	Score immediately after each interview; decide after all scorecards are in
Day one	Start onboarding (see the onboarding guide) and create their training records
Quarterly	Review the training matrix; book refreshers; CPD deficit check
Annually	Review the framework, criteria and retention; delete expired candidate data

Common mistakes

Interviewing without criteria, then deciding on impression.
Keeping every CV forever.
A training record that records attendance, not competence.
Discovering a CPD shortfall in the last month of the period.
Hiring and HR pages visible to the whole firm.

Frequently asked questions

How do I track law firm hiring in Notion?

Create Roles and Candidates databases, relate them, add a stage property (Applied, Screen, Interview, Offer, Hired, Declined), and a scorecard for each interview. A board view by stage shows the pipeline.

Can Notion track CPD or CLE hours?

Yes. A CPD database with person, activity, date, hours, category and evidence link lets you total each lawyer's hours for the period and see who is behind. Check your regulator's rules for what counts and what records you must keep.

Is it safe to keep candidate data in Notion?

Candidate and employee information is personal data. Restrict access to those involved in hiring, avoid sensitive categories you do not need, set a retention period, and follow your jurisdiction's data protection and employment rules.

What is a structured interview?

An interview where every candidate for a role is asked the same questions, scored against the same criteria on a defined scale. It makes comparisons fairer and decisions easier to justify than unstructured conversation.

How do I build a training matrix?

List the skills and procedures people must be able to perform, list the people, and record each person's level (for example 0 to 3) and the date of their last training or assessment. A grid view shows gaps at a glance.

How long should we keep unsuccessful candidates' data?

Set a retention period that complies with your jurisdiction's rules and your privacy policy, tell candidates, and delete or anonymise after it. Do not keep CVs indefinitely by default.

How do I handle references and sensitive checks?

Record that they were done and the outcome, not the sensitive detail, and keep any detail in a restricted place under your policy and the law. Regulatory checks (such as character and fitness) follow your regulator's rules.

Can AI help with hiring?

Be cautious. Automated screening can introduce bias and raises legal issues in many places. If you use AI, keep a human decision-maker, test for fairness, tell candidates where required, and check the law where you hire.

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