Can I see the status of a specific legal matter?

Yes! Use the `get_matter_legal_details` tool with the matter ID. The agent will return the current status (Open, Closed, etc.), the client name, and the responsible attorney.

How do I check if a bill has been paid?

Use the `list_clio_bills` tool. Your agent will fetch the list of generated bills, which includes their amounts and payment statuses, directly from Clio.

Where do I find my Clio Access Token?

Clio uses OAuth 2.0. You can generate an access token through the Clio developer portal or by creating a private application in your Clio account settings.

Clio MCP Server for Claude Desktop 8 tools — connect in under 2 minutes

Name: Clio
Availability: InStock
Author: Vinkius

modelcontextprotocol.io/quickstart/user

Built by Vinkius GDPR 8 Tools IDE

Claude Desktop is Anthropic's native application for interacting with Claude AI models on macOS and Windows. It was the first consumer application to ship with built-in MCP support, making it the reference implementation for the Model Context Protocol standard.

Get MCP Server for AI Agents

ASK AI ABOUT THIS MCP SERVER

Open in ChatGPT Open in Claude Open in Perplexity

Vinkius supports streamable HTTP and SSE.

RecommendedModern Approach — Zero Configuration

Vinkius Desktop App

The modern way to manage MCP Servers — no config files, no terminal commands. Install Clio and 2,500+ MCP Servers from a single visual interface.

Download Free Open SourceNo signup required

Classic Setup·json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "clio": {
      // Your Vinkius token — get it at cloud.vinkius.com
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Fully ManagedVinkius Servers

60%Token savings

High SecurityEnterprise-grade

IAMAccess control

EU AI ActCompliant

DLPData protection

V8 IsolateSandboxed

Ed25519Audit chain

<40msKill switch

Stream every event to Splunk, Datadog, or your own webhook in real-time

* Every MCP server runs on Vinkius-managed infrastructure inside AWS - a purpose-built runtime with per-request V8 isolates, Ed25519 signed audit chains, and sub-40ms cold starts optimized for native MCP execution. See our infrastructure

About Clio MCP Server

Connect your Clio account to any AI agent and take full control of your legal practice management through natural conversation. Streamline how you manage matters, contacts, and billing natively.

Claude Desktop is the definitive way to connect Clio to your AI workflow. Add the Vinkius Edge URL to your config, restart the app, and Claude immediately exposes all 8 tools in the chat interface — ask a question, Claude calls the right tool, and you see the answer. Zero code, zero context switching.

What you can do

Matter Oversight — List and retrieve details for all legal matters and cases under your administration natively
Contact Intelligence — Access and monitor all contacts, including people and companies, flawlessly
Task Management — List and review firm tasks and to-dos to keep your practice organized securely
Billing Logistics — Access generated bills and monitor their payment status to manage cash flow flawlessly
Firm Management — List all internal users and attorneys within your law firm flawlessly
Integrated Visibility — Retrieve detailed matter metadata including status and responsible attorneys directly within your workspace flawlessly

The Clio MCP Server exposes 8 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to Claude Desktop in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.

How to Connect Clio to Claude Desktop via MCP

Follow these steps to integrate the Clio MCP Server with Claude Desktop.

Open Claude Desktop Settings

Go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config to open claude_desktop_config.json

Add the MCP Server

Paste the configuration above into the mcpServers section

Restart Claude Desktop

Close and reopen Claude Desktop to load the new server

Start using Clio

Look for the 🔌 icon in the chat — your 8 tools are now available

Why Use Claude Desktop with the Clio MCP Server

Claude Desktop by Anthropic provides unique advantages when paired with Clio through the Model Context Protocol.

Claude Desktop is the reference MCP client — it was designed alongside the protocol itself, ensuring the most complete and stable MCP implementation available

Zero-code configuration: add a server URL to a JSON file and Claude instantly discovers and exposes all available tools in the chat interface

Claude's extended thinking capability lets it reason through multi-step tool usage, chaining multiple API calls to answer complex questions

Enterprise-grade security with local config storage — your tokens never leave your machine, and connections go directly to the Vinkius Edge network

Clio + Claude Desktop Use Cases

Practical scenarios where Claude Desktop combined with the Clio MCP Server delivers measurable value.

Interactive data exploration: ask Claude to query DNS records, look up WHOIS data, and cross-reference results in a single conversation

Ad-hoc security audits: type a domain name and let Claude enumerate subdomains, check DNS history, and flag configuration anomalies — all through natural language

Executive briefings: generate comprehensive domain intelligence reports by asking Claude to compile findings into a formatted summary

Learning and training: new team members can explore API capabilities conversationally without needing to read documentation

Clio MCP Tools for Claude Desktop (8)

These 8 tools become available when you connect Clio to Claude Desktop via MCP:

get_matter

Includes client, practice area, responsible attorney, dates, and status. Get case details

list_activities

Optionally filter by matter. Includes date, hours, rate, notes, and billing status. List time entries

list_bills

List invoices

list_calendar_entries

Includes summary, start/end times, location, and linked matter. List calendar events

list_contacts

List firm contacts

list_documents

Filter by matter. Includes filename, category, creation date, and linked matter. List case documents

list_matters

Filter by status: open, closed, pending. Includes case number, description, client, and dates. List legal cases/matters

list_tasks

Filter by matter for case-specific tasks. Critical for tracking court deadlines. List tasks and deadlines

Example Prompts for Clio in Claude Desktop

Ready-to-use prompts you can give your Claude Desktop agent to start working with Clio immediately.

"List all my open matters in Clio."

"Show me the tasks for the 'City Refurb' matter."

"Who is the contact for the 'Jones v. Smith' case?"

Troubleshooting Clio MCP Server with Claude Desktop

Common issues when connecting Clio to Claude Desktop through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.

Server not appearing after restart

Ensure the JSON is valid (no trailing commas). Check the file path: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\\Claude\\ (Windows).

Authentication error

Verify your Vinkius token is correct. Go to cloud.vinkius.com to regenerate it if needed.

Tools not showing in chat

Click the 🔌 icon at the bottom of the chat input. If it shows 0 tools, the server may still be connecting — wait a few seconds.

Clio + Claude Desktop FAQ

Common questions about integrating Clio MCP Server with Claude Desktop.

How does Claude Desktop discover MCP tools?

When Claude Desktop starts, it reads the claude_desktop_config.json file and connects to each configured MCP server. It calls the tools/list endpoint to fetch the schema for every available tool, then surfaces them as clickable options in the chat interface via the 🔌 icon.

What happens if the MCP server is temporarily unavailable?

Claude Desktop handles disconnections gracefully — if the server is unreachable at startup, the tools simply won't appear. Once the server becomes available again, restarting Claude Desktop will re-establish the connection. There is no timeout penalty or error loop.

Can I connect multiple MCP servers simultaneously?

Yes. You can add as many servers as you need in the mcpServers section of the config file. Each server appears as a separate tool provider, and Claude can use tools from multiple servers in a single conversation turn.

Is there a limit on the number of tools per server?

Claude Desktop can handle hundreds of tools per server. However, for optimal LLM performance, Vinkius servers are designed to expose focused, well-documented tool sets rather than overwhelming the model with too many options.

Does Claude Desktop support Streamable HTTP transport?

Yes. Claude Desktop supports both SSE (Server-Sent Events) and the newer Streamable HTTP transport that Vinkius uses. Simply provide the server URL — Claude auto-negotiates the transport protocol.