> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://support.vlex.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://support.vlex.com/vincent-by-vlex/vincent/skills/creating-a-custom-skill.md).

# Creating a Custom Skill

#### Summary

When Vincent's Skills Library doesn't cover the task you need, you can build your own custom Skill in one of two ways: write it manually for full control, or ask Vincent to guide you through the setup with a series of questions.

#### Why This is Important

Pre-built Skills cover the most common legal tasks, but every firm has its own way of working, proprietary demand letter formats, jurisdiction-specific due diligence checklists, house rules for how client updates get written. Custom Skills are how you capture those firm-specific patterns and turn them into reusable, consistent output.

Once you build a custom Skill, you unlock the same benefits the Library gives you, consistency, speed, quality, but tuned to your firm's actual practice instead of a generic template. Custom Skills are also the primary path to codifying senior lawyers' expertise so the rest of the team can apply it without needing constant guidance.

#### Before You Begin

A few things to have ready before you start:

* **A clear task in mind.** Skills work best when they're scoped to a specific task, not a broad practice area. "Draft a demand letter" is a good Skill scope. "Help with litigation" is too broad.
* **Your Personal Preferences configured.** Skills inherit context from your General settings, practice area, default jurisdiction, preferred name. If those aren't set, see Setting Up Your Personal Vincent Preferences.
* **A sense of what "done well" looks like.** The more concretely you can describe the ideal output, the better your Skill will perform. If you have an example document that reflects what you want, keep it handy.

#### The Two Ways to Create a Skill

You can create a Skill in either of two ways. Both produce a working Skill in your Skills panel; they just differ in who does the structural work.

| Option                                       | Best For                                                                                                              |
| -------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Option A - Create manually**               | You know exactly what you want, you're iterating on an existing framework, or you want full control over every field. |
| **Option B - Build with Vincent's guidance** | You're new to Skills, you have the idea but not the format, or you want Vincent to structure the thinking for you.    |

<figure><img src="/files/kYQSChduWejrwlg0fBY9" alt=""><figcaption><p>The two paths aren't mutually exclusive. Skills generated by Vincent (Option B) can be opened and edited manually afterward, and manual Skills (Option A) can be refined by chatting with Vincent about how to improve them.</p></figcaption></figure>

#### Option A - Create a Skill Manually

Manual creation gives you full control over the Skill's structure and instructions.

**Step 1: Open the Skills Panel**

1. On the Vincent home page, click **Customize** in the top right.
2. Select the **Skills** sub-tab.
3. Click the **+** icon to create a new Skill.

A blank Skill editor opens.

**Step 2: Name the Skill**

Give the Skill a clear, descriptive name that tells you (and your colleagues, if you later publish it) exactly what it does.

* **Good:** "Demand Letter, Standard Style," "NY PI Medical Records Review," "UK NDA Drafting."
* **Weak:** "Letter," "Review," "Draft."

Descriptive names make Skills easier to find in the panel and easier for Vincent to trigger accurately.

**Step 3: Write the Description**

The description is the most important field to get right, Vincent uses it to identify when to activate the Skill from a user's prompt. Write it in plain language, focusing on what the Skill does and when it applies.

Example: *"Drafts a demand letter for slip-and-fall personal injury cases under New York law, using the firm's standard structure with client facts, liability theory, damages summary, and settlement demand."*

**Step 4: Add Activation Conditions**

Conditions are the natural-language triggers that tell Vincent when to fire the Skill. Add one or more conditions describing what a user prompt might look like when they need this Skill.

Examples:

* "User asks to draft a demand letter."
* "User asks for a settlement demand."
* "User uploads a slip-and-fall incident report and asks for a letter to send to opposing counsel."

Add a condition by clicking **Add condition** in the editor. More conditions widen the range of prompts that will trigger the Skill.

**Step 5: Write the Instructions**

This is where the Skill's actual behavior lives. Write instructions in plain language describing exactly how Vincent should handle the task, the structure to follow, the tone to use, the pieces to include, and anything to avoid.

The quality of your instructions determines the quality of the output. For detailed guidance on writing effective instructions, see Tips for Writing Effective Skills.

**Step 6 (Optional): Add Sub-Skills or Assets**

For more complex Skills, you can extend the base instructions with two additional building blocks:

* **Sub-skills:** related instruction sets that branch off from the main Skill. Useful when one task has multiple variants (for example, a "Despidos" Skill might have sub-skills for disciplinary, objective, and collective dismissals).
* **Assets:** reference materials attached to the Skill, such as a house checklist, a standard template, or a piece of jurisdiction-specific legislation. Vincent reads these when the Skill activates.

Click **Add sub-skill** or **Add asset** in the editor to add either.

**Step 7: Set Visibility and Save**

Choose who the Skill should be available to using the visibility dropdown next to the Skill name:

* **Inactive:** Vincent doesn't use this Skill in any conversations. Useful for drafts or Skills you're not ready to test.
* **Published · Just me:** Vincent can use this Skill in your own conversations only. This is the default for new Skills.
* **Publish to Organization:** sends the Skill to your Publisher for approval. Once approved, all Users in your organization can use it. See Submitting a Skill for Organization-Wide Use.

Click **Save**. The Skill is now available in your Skills panel and will activate automatically on prompts that match its conditions.

<figure><img src="/files/U3YNoFAntqW3mZT0kYUl" alt=""><figcaption><p>Manual creation gives you full control over the Skill's structure and instructions.</p></figcaption></figure>

#### Option B - Build a Skill with Vincent's Guidance

If you prefer a guided setup, ask Vincent to build the Skill for you. Vincent asks a series of questions about the Skill's purpose, jurisdiction, expected inputs, and expected outputs, and then generates the Skill.

**Step 1: Start the Conversation**

On the Vincent home page, type a request describing the Skill you want to build. For example:

> *"Help me build a skill for drafting a client update after a motion ruling, in plain language, covering what happened, what it means, and what's next."*

The more concretely you describe the task in the opening prompt, the fewer follow-up questions.

<figure><img src="/files/CqMfHyp5w2sQoT9vdlXa" alt=""><figcaption><p>Build a Skill with Vincent's Guidance</p></figcaption></figure>

### Related Articles

* [Integrating Your Firm's Data with Vincent](/vincent-by-vlex/vincent/core-workflows/integrating-your-firms-data-with-vincent.md)
* [Getting answers without prompting](/vincent-by-vlex/vincent/getting-started-with-vincent/getting-answers-without-prompting.md)

### Relevant Video Content

{% embed url="<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MEuJid7eNZoDEPKNeSlrRm_2EpFEUqnc/view?usp=sharing>" %}

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