1 · Getting into the portal
You received an email because your employer's legal team needs your help with a legal matter, and they use a secure online portal to work with you. This guide walks you through everything you'll do there. It's short, and there's nothing to install — the portal opens right in your web browser.
A "legal matter" is simply a case or investigation your organization is handling. Being asked to help does not mean you did anything wrong. In most matters, people are contacted because of the systems, files, or accounts they use for work — not because of anything they personally did.
Why you received this email
The email came from your own organization's legal or compliance team, sent through the InsightOptix portal on their behalf. It asks you to do one or more of the following: confirm you've received a "legal hold," fill out a short survey, or let the team know when something has changed. The email will name the matter and usually includes the name of the person on the legal team you can reach out to.
If anything about the email feels uncertain, that's completely reasonable — legitimate requests like this one can look unfamiliar the first time. You can always confirm it's genuine by contacting your legal or IT department directly using contact details you already trust, rather than replying to the email.
Opening the portal
Your email has a button or link — usually something like "Sign in to review your legal hold." Clicking it opens the portal in your browser. You can open it on a computer or a phone; the pages adjust to your screen.
The notice email showing the "Sign in to review" button and the matter name, with the sender identifying the legal team
Signing in
There are two ways to sign in, and the portal shows you the ones available to you:
- Security code. Your email includes a 6-character code (letters and numbers, like ABC123). Type it into the "Security code" box on the sign-in screen and select Sign in.
- Sign in with SSO. If your organization uses single sign-on, you'll also see a Sign in with SSO button. "SSO" just means you sign in with your normal work username and password (the same ones you use for email), through your company's own login screen. Choose this if you see it and it's how you usually sign in at work.
The portal sign-in screen: the security-code field with an "OR" divider and the "Sign in with SSO" button below it
Once you've signed in, the portal remembers you for up to 14 days on that device, so if you come back to finish something you'll usually land straight on your matters without signing in again. On a shared or public computer, close the browser when you're done.
If your code doesn't work, it may have expired or a newer reminder email may have replaced it — check for the most recent email and use the code there. If you use SSO and it can't match your sign-in, reach out to the legal-team contact named in your email; they can help you get in.
After you sign in, you'll see My Matters — a list of the matters that involve you. Most people have just one. Each row shows where things stand and what, if anything, needs your attention. The rest of this guide follows that list, one task at a time.
2 · Acknowledging a legal hold
The most common first task is acknowledging a legal hold. This chapter explains what that means and walks you through confirming it.
What a legal hold means for you
A legal hold is a request to preserve — to keep — information that might be relevant to the matter. When a legal hold applies to you, your job is simple: don't delete, change, or throw away anything that could relate to the matter, and keep it as it is until the legal team tells you the hold is lifted.
The notice will describe what the matter is about and often a relevant timeframe — the dates the team is focused on. That helps you understand what to hold on to. This can include emails, chat messages, documents, files, photos, and records on the devices and accounts you use for work.
Until you're told the hold is lifted, do not delete, move to trash, edit, or destroy anything that might relate to the matter — and don't turn off any automatic-deletion settings your organization has in place. If you're unsure whether something is covered, keep it and ask the legal-team contact. It's always safer to preserve.
Reading the notice
On My Matters, select the matter's Legal Hold status to open the acknowledgement page. There you'll see the actual notice your legal team wrote — the same message that was in your email — along with the matter's description, timeframe, and who to contact. Take a moment to read it. Everything you're confirming is right there on the page.
The Acknowledge Legal Hold page showing the notice email preview, the matter details (description, relevant timeframe, contacts), and the "I acknowledge the legal hold" button
Confirming you received it
When you select I acknowledge the legal hold, you're confirming one thing: that you've received the notice and understand you need to preserve relevant information. You're not agreeing to anything about the matter itself, and you're not making any statement about it. The portal records the date and time so your legal team knows you've seen it — which also means they won't need to keep sending you reminders.
- Sign in to the portal and open My Matters.
- Find the matter and select its Legal Hold status.
- Read the notice shown on the page, along with the matter description and relevant timeframe.
- When you're ready, select I acknowledge the legal hold.
- You'll see a green confirmation with the date and time. That's it — you're done with this step.
Sometimes, right after you acknowledge, the portal will take you straight into a short survey for the same matter. That's expected — just continue on to Chapter 3.
If you acknowledge and then come back later, the page will simply show that it's already been recorded. You don't need to do it again, and clicking again won't cause any problems.
3 · Completing a survey
A survey is a short set of questions from your legal team. It helps them understand where relevant information might live — for example, which devices you use, which accounts you have, and where you keep work files. Answering honestly and completely is the most helpful thing you can do, and it usually only takes a few minutes.
Opening your survey
On My Matters, select the matter's Survey status to open it. The survey moves through one page of questions at a time, with Next and Back buttons so you can move forward or return to review an earlier answer.
A survey page in the portal showing a required question (marked with an asterisk), an optional question, Back and Next buttons, and the save indicator
Answering the questions
- Required questions are usually marked with an asterisk (*). You'll need to answer these before you can submit.
- Optional questions are helpful but not mandatory — answer them if they apply to you.
- Follow-up questions may appear based on how you answer. For example, if you say you use a certain type of account, the survey might then ask which one. This is normal — just answer whatever appears.
Answer as best you can. If you're not certain about something, give your best honest estimate and mention any uncertainty in a comment box if one is offered. Your legal team would much rather have an approximate answer than a blank.
Listing your data sources
Part of the survey may ask you to list your data sources — the places you keep or handle work information. Think broadly:
- Devices — your work laptop or desktop, phone, or tablet.
- Accounts — email, chat or messaging apps, and any cloud storage or shared drives you use for work.
- Locations — folders, shared sites, or even physical files where relevant material might be kept.
It's better to include something you're unsure about than to leave it out. The legal team can always follow up.
One question type may ask you to name other people connected to your work on the matter — colleagues who share a project, an account, or a device with you. If you see an Add related person option, you can search your organization's directory by name and pick them from the list, so you don't have to type their details by hand.
The "Add related person" picker open, showing a search box and a few directory results with name, department, and title
Saving to finish later
You don't have to complete the survey in one sitting. The portal saves your answers automatically as you go, so if you get interrupted you can simply close the page and come back later. When you sign back in and reopen the survey, your earlier answers will be waiting for you right where you left off.
Because saving happens automatically, there's no separate "save draft" button to worry about. Just answer at your own pace — your progress is kept for you.
Submitting
When you reach the end and have answered the required questions, select the option to finish and submit. Submitting tells your legal team your answers are ready for them to review.
Once you submit, your answers are locked and you can't change them yourself. If you realize you need to correct or add something afterward, that's okay — just contact your matter administrator (their name is on the matter page) and they can help.
- Sign in to the portal and open My Matters.
- Select the matter's Survey status to open it.
- Answer each page's questions, using Next to move forward and Back to review. Complete any required (*) questions.
- When asked, list the devices, accounts, and locations you use for work — and use Add related person if a question asks about colleagues.
- If you need a break, just close the page — your answers are saved automatically. Reopen the survey later to continue.
- At the end, select finish and submit. You'll see a confirmation that your survey is complete.
4 · Release & data-deletion confirmation
Good news usually arrives here: a release means the legal team no longer needs you to preserve information for the matter. This chapter explains what that means and the small step, if any, they may ask of you.
What a release means
When a matter no longer requires your help, the team releases you from the legal hold. From that point, the preservation duties you acknowledged earlier are no longer in force — you're free to go back to your organization's normal, everyday practices for the information that was on hold. You don't need to do anything special to the data itself; the release simply lifts the "please keep everything" instruction.
Wait for the release before changing anything. A hold stays in effect until you're actually notified of the release — a matter winding down, or a rumor that it's "probably over," is not a release. If you're ever unsure whether you've been released, treat the hold as still active and ask the legal-team contact.
Acknowledging the release
Just like the original hold, you may be asked to confirm you received the release notice. On My Matters, select the matter's status to open the release page, read the notice, and select I acknowledge the release. The portal records the date and time. That's all that's needed.
The Acknowledge Release From Legal Hold page showing the release notice and the "I acknowledge the release" button
If you're asked to confirm data was released or deleted
In some matters, the legal team may follow up and ask you to confirm that data connected to you has been properly released or deleted — for example, that you've deleted a copy you were personally keeping for the matter, or released material you set aside. If you receive a request like this, it will tell you exactly what it's about.
There's nothing to fear in this step. It's simply a way to tidily close things out and keep an accurate record. Do only what the request asks, and if any part of it is unclear — including whether you should delete something at all — pause and check with the legal-team contact before acting. When in doubt, ask first.
- Sign in to the portal and open My Matters.
- Select the matter's status to open the release page.
- Read the release notice shown on the page.
- Select I acknowledge the release; you'll see a confirmation with the date and time.
- If a separate request asks you to confirm data was deleted or released, follow the instructions in that request — and ask your contact if anything is unclear.
5 · Questions & help
You're never on your own with this. If anything is confusing or you're unsure what's being asked, there are a few easy ways to get help — right from the portal.
Asking a question
On a matter's page you can find an Ask a question option. Type your question in plain language and send it. It goes straight to the people on your legal team who handle this matter, and they'll get back to you. There's no such thing as a silly question here — if you're wondering about it, it's worth asking.
The "Ask a question" box on a matter page with a text field and a send button
After you send a question, you can check back later to see it listed along with the team's answer once they've replied.
The self-serve FAQ
Some matters offer a short FAQ — a list of common questions and answers that the team has chosen to share. If it's available, it's a quick place to look first; your question may already be answered there. The FAQ never shows who asked what — questions are shared without any names attached.
Reaching the matter team
Each matter page lists the people responsible for it — typically a Matter Administrator, a Responsible Attorney, and a Responsible Paralegal. Where an email address is shown, you can select it to email that person directly. If you ever have a concern you'd rather raise outside the portal, these are the right people to contact.
A matter page's contact section listing the Matter Administrator, Responsible Attorney, and Responsible Paralegal with clickable email links
Not sure who to ask? The Matter Administrator is a good first point of contact for anything about the portal, a survey, a hold, or a release.
Thank you for helping with this. Acknowledging your hold, answering honestly, and asking when you're unsure is exactly what the legal team needs — and it's genuinely appreciated.