Method and system for real-time collaboration and annotation-based action creation and management

A server for collaborating in real-time via action creation comprising:

• a storage medium having stored thereon:
• a user database comprising a plurality of users;
• a client database comprising a plurality of client records;
• a matter database comprising a plurality of matter records with each matter record being associated with a client record;
• a project database comprising a plurality of project records with each project record being associated with a matter record;
• and
• an action database comprising a plurality of action records;
• a network communication device configured to:
• receive an indication a user has opened a managed document;
• and
• receive an annotation associated with the managed document, the annotation comprising:
• a location of the annotation within the managed document;
• a comment;
• a creating user;
• and
• an assigned user;
• a processor operatively coupled to each of the storage medium and the network communication device, the processor being configured to:
• parse the annotation to identify each of the assigned user and the creating user and to generate a received action from the comment;
• generate an action record responsive to information identified from parsing the annotation, the action record comprising:
• at least one of:
• a received client being a client of the plurality of clients;
• a received matter being a matter of the plurality of matters that is associated with the received client;
• and
• a received project being a project of the plurality of projects that is associated with the received matter;
• the received action;
• and
• the assigned user;
• record a generated action record to the action database comprising:
• at least one of:
• a link to the client record associated with the received client;
• a link to the matter record associated with the received matter;
• and
• a link to the project record associated with the received project;
• the received action;
• a link to the user record associated with the assigned user;
• a link to a user record from which the record creation request was received, defining a creating user;
• and
• an assignment date being the date the action record creation request was received;
• and
• record the action record to the action database;
• wherein each user of the plurality of users can access the action database and retrieve action records for which they are the assigned user;
• and
• wherein the annotation does not change the file content of the stored inbound document.