Personal injury demands
How long does demand preparation take?
Demand preparation time
Direct answer
Preparation time varies widely with record volume and provider count, and most of it is not spent writing. Reading and organizing records, building the chronology and reconciling billing typically consume the majority of the hours; drafting is a comparatively small share. Firms that measure the interval from records-complete to demand-sent get a far more useful number than hours-per-demand.
NORBU Demand Editorial · Last reviewed 2026-08-31
Where the hours actually go
| Activity | Nature of the work |
|---|---|
| Collecting and chasing records | Administrative, dependent on providers |
| Organizing and deduplicating | Mechanical |
| Reading and sequencing treatment | Mechanical with judgment at the margins |
| Reconciling billing | Mechanical and error-prone by hand |
| Drafting the narrative | Judgment |
| Attorney review | Judgment |
The mechanical categories are where automation changes the number. The judgment categories should not shrink — they are the work.
How to measure it
- Cycle time: date records were complete to date demand was sent
- Touch time: hours logged by role per demand
- Rework rate: demands returned in review for documentation problems
- Backlog: cases sitting at records-complete without a demand
Note
Model your own numbers on the demand economics calculator rather than adopting benchmarks from elsewhere.
NORBU Demand provides analytical support for counsel. It does not determine legal value, predict settlement outcomes, or provide legal advice. Every observation is presented for attorney review.
Run this against a real file.
Upload a case and review readiness before anything leaves the firm.