--- {"title": "How to draft legal notes by voice for lawyers in 2026", "description": "A plain guide for lawyers to draft legal notes by voice, with the steps, the tools to try and the mistakes to avoid.", "url": "https://xpdaily.com/how-to-draft-legal-notes-by-voice-for-lawyers/", "date": "2026-10-12"} --- A plain guide for lawyers to draft legal notes by voice, with the steps, the tools to try and the mistakes to avoid. Hold a key and talk, and the words are typed into the window you are using. Set up a dictation tool, pick a private spot, and read every note before you save it. | Option | How it turns speech into text | Fee or cost | |---|---|---| | Voice typing already on the computer | You talk and the built-in tool types into the app in focus | not published | | A phone dictation app or service | You talk and the app turns words into text to move into a note | not published | | QuickDictate | You hold a key while you talk and it types into the window you are using [^1] | Free for personal and noncommercial use, no subscription or account [^1] | ## What you need before you start Drafting legal notes by voice takes only a few things. - **A Windows computer with a window to type into.** The typed words land in whichever window has focus, so have the draft, email or note app open first. QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. [^1] - **A way to start and stop speaking.** You hold a key while you talk, or press it once to start and once to stop, and you can change both keys. [^1] - **A private spot.** Legal notes hold client names and case details, so dictate where you are comfortable saying them aloud. - **A speech source.** For online recognition you sign in with a provider: ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and that provider bills you directly. [^1] For offline work, choose Local in Settings and install a model such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo; dictation then needs no internet connection or API key. [^1] - **A way to check your words.** Read every outcome for names, citations and terms before you keep it. ## Step by step These steps work with any voice dictation tool. 1. **Open the window where the note will land.** The typed words go into whichever window has focus, so bring up your draft, email or note app. [^1] 2. **Set the vocabulary.** For legal terms, list the words and phrases the tool should recognise. QuickDictate sends these to the provider to help it recognise them, and a replacement table fixes spellings such as "Chat GPT" to "ChatGPT". [^1] 3. **Try a test sentence.** Speak one line and see how it lands before you start real notes. 4. **Dictate in short bursts.** Say a clause or two, then stop and look at the text. 5. **Correct as you go.** If a sentence is wrong, saying "scratch that" discards the text you just dictated instead of inserting it. [^1] It is the only voice command shipped. [^1] 6. **Watch live text if your tool offers it.** With five of the cloud providers, words appear while you are still talking. [^1] 7. **Keep the window focused.** The words land in the focused window, so do not click away mid-sentence. [^1] 8. **Let other audio settle.** While dictating, other apps' audio is muted or turned down, and it goes back to its old level when you stop. [^1] 9. **Review the whole note.** Read it top to bottom for what the voice missed. 10. **Look back at recent dictations.** You can browse and filter your last 50 dictations in Settings, and the history survives a restart or self-update. [^1] 11. **Save or send the note.** Your review is done, so file it where your matter needs it. ## Tools that can do it You do not need new software for this. Here are options to consider. **Voice typing already on the computer.** Many operating systems ship a voice typing tool that turns speech into text in the focused app. Nothing is published here about its price or limits, so check its own page before relying on it for client work. **A phone dictation app or service.** A phone app can turn speech into text that you move into a note or email. Its price, privacy and limits are not published here, so check its own page. Phone dictation raises the same confidentiality questions as any cloud speech, so confirm where the audio goes. **QuickDictate.** QuickDictate is made by the team that publishes this site. QuickDictate is one option. It is a Windows program that types what you say into whichever window you are using. [^1] You hold a key while you talk, or press it once to start and once to stop, and you can change both keys. [^1] You can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and that provider bills you directly. [^1] For no internet, choose Local and install a speech model such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo. [^1] QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. [^1] It ships as an .exe on GitHub with a built-in updater that works silently, and it can be built from source. [^1] QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. [^1] Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. [^1] From v0.9.0 on it is source-available under PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0, so commercial use needs a separate licence, and releases up to v0.8.0 were MIT. [^1] ## Common mistakes to avoid **Dictating without a private spot.** Client names and case details in a shared office risk being overheard, so pick a closed room. **Trusting the first output.** Voice tools miss names and citations, so read every note before you save it. **Forgetting the licence rule.** QuickDictate is free for personal and noncommercial use, but commercial use carries a separate licence. [^1] Confirm which use applies before you rely on it. **Letting the window lose focus.** The words land in whichever window has focus, so clicking away mid-sentence sends text elsewhere. [^1] **Skipping the vocabulary list.** Legal terms trip up recognisers unless you add them, so list the words your cases use. [^1] **Never reviewing the history.** Check recent dictations before you file them, since a fixed spelling can hide a real change. [^1] ## Frequently asked questions ### Can QuickDictate type legal notes into any window? Yes. QuickDictate types what you say into whichever window has focus, such as an editor, chat box, terminal or web form. [^1] Hold a key while you talk, or press once to start and once to stop, and change both keys. [^1] Read the result before saving, since speech tools can miss names and citations. ### Does QuickDictate need the internet to work? Not always. Choose Local in Settings and install a speech model such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo, and dictation needs no internet connection or API key. [^1] With cloud providers, you can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and that provider bills you directly. [^1] ### Is QuickDictate free for a lawyer? QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. [^1] Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. [^1] From v0.9.0 on it is source-available under PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0, so commercial use needs a separate licence, and releases up to v0.8.0 were MIT. [^1] Confirm which use applies before relying on it. ### Which Windows versions run QuickDictate? It runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, and there is no Mac or Linux version. [^1] It is delivered as an .exe file on GitHub with a built-in updater that works silently, and it can be built from source. [^1] Check the release page for the current details before installing. ### Can QuickDictate fix a misspelled word in a note? Yes. You can list words and phrases that are sent to the provider to help it recognise them, and a replacement table fixes spellings such as "Chat GPT" to "ChatGPT". [^1] Saying "scratch that" discards the text you just dictated instead of inserting it. [^1] QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. [^1] - [Visit QuickDictate](/go/start) ## Sources [^1]: QuickDictate's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher) (/go/start)