TABLE OF CONTENTS


Overview

Our Actionstep integration is simple to set up and lets you start and manage AML checks directly from an Actionstep matter, with client and matter details flowing automatically into First AML. This means less manual data entry, fewer errors, faster onboarding, and a smoother AML process that fits naturally into your matter workflow.



Video summary: the video walks through connecting First AML to Actionstep as a Compliance Admin, and then shows what a user sees inside an Actionstep matter once it's connected: a "Create First AML Case" action that carries the client and matter details across, and the resulting First AML case linked back to the matter.


Prerequisites

To set up the integration, you will need:

  • To be a First AML Compliance Admin.
  • Credentials for an Actionstep user with Workflow and Workflow Admin permissions.

For everyday use of the integration, users need a First AML account for creating cases. We call this a Frontline account: it lets a user create and work cases day to day, without the admin permissions needed to configure the integration itself.


Setting up the integration

1. Connect First AML to Actionstep

  1. As a Compliance Admin, select "Settings" > "Integrations" > "Actionstep" > "Connect".
  2. You'll be redirected to Actionstep to log in. You must log in as a user with Workflow Admin permissions. We recommend creating a separate Actionstep user for this purpose if you don't already have one.


2. What happens at setup

Once connected, First AML creates two new Data Collections in your Actionstep Matter Types. A Data Collection is a custom set of fields Actionstep displays on a matter; the two we add are used to create a First AML case, and to keep case history in sync with Actionstep afterwards.




This step is optional: if you don't want a particular Matter Type to be able to trigger a First AML case, you can remove our custom Data Collections from that Matter Type. See this Actionstep article for editing Data Collections. You can also set System role permissions on the Data Collections we create, to control who can and can't access them.


3. Double-check that AML features are enabled in Actionstep


Enable AML for Matter Types:

  1. In the Actionstep Admin area, select "Matter types".
  2. For each Matter Type where AML is relevant, select the Matter Type, then select "Matter type settings".
  3. Under "Other settings", ensure "Record Anti-Money Laundering (AML) review status" is switched ON.




Enable AML for Participant types:

A Participant type in Actionstep is a category of contact on a matter (for example, Company or Individual). Each type has its own set of information "panels" you can turn on, and AML needs to be one of them.

  1. Company: in the Admin area, select "Additional settings", then select "Participant types". Find the "Company" participant type and select the number in its "Panel Count" column. Confirm "Anti-Money Laundering" is included as a panel. If it isn't, select "+ Add row" and select Anti-Money Laundering in the new row.



  2. Individual: repeat the same process for the "Individual" participant type.


How it works

Creating a case from an Actionstep matter

  1. Select "Create First AML Case" from within the Actionstep matter.
  2. You'll be directed to First AML, with your client and key matter information already prefilled.
  3. Confirm whether this case relates to a Client Intake, a Matter Intake, or both. Your selection assigns Client tags and/or Matter tags, which your Compliance Rules can use to make sure your team collects the right documents and follows the correct procedure under your AML programme, for example whether a Client and/or Matter risk assessment is completed.
     
    See our article on Manifest compliance rules for more on how these rules work.

     
  4. When you create the case, Actionstep is updated with a link to the First AML case, and the Matter and Client AML status is set to in progress. First AML retains key matter reference information, and you can link from a case or profile back to the associated Actionstep record.
  5. Once the AML case is completed:
    • Actionstep Matter and Client AML statuses are updated with the verification results.
    • A case summary PDF is uploaded to the Matter's documents folder.
  6. On an ongoing basis, whenever we recognise a returning contact from Actionstep, they're retrieved into the First AML case automatically. You can confirm their last verification result and link straight through to the details of the previous case, without any manual lookup.