clio

Access the Clio Manage API with managed OAuth authentication. Manage matters, contacts, activities, tasks, documents, calendar entries, time entries, and billing for legal practice management.

Quick Start

# List matters
python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://gateway.maton.ai/clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,display_number,description,status')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Base URL

https://gateway.maton.ai/clio/{native-api-path}

Replace {native-api-path} with the actual Clio API endpoint path. The gateway proxies requests to app.clio.com and automatically injects your OAuth token.

Authentication

All requests require the Maton API key in the Authorization header:

Authorization: Bearer $MATON_API_KEY

Environment Variable: Set your API key as MATON_API_KEY:

export MATON_API_KEY="YOUR_API_KEY"

Getting Your API Key

Sign in or create an account at maton.ai
Go to maton.ai/settings
Copy your API key

Connection Management

Manage your Clio OAuth connections at https://ctrl.maton.ai.

List Connections

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections?app=clio&status=ACTIVE')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Create Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
data = json.dumps({'app': 'clio'}).encode()
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections', data=data, method='POST')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
req.add_header('Content-Type', 'application/json')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Get Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections/{connection_id}')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Response:

{
  "connection": {
    "connection_id": "21fd90f9-5935-43cd-b6c8-bde9d915ca80",
    "status": "ACTIVE",
    "creation_time": "2025-12-08T07:20:53.488460Z",
    "last_updated_time": "2026-01-31T20:03:32.593153Z",
    "url": "https://connect.maton.ai/?session_token=...",
    "app": "clio",
    "metadata": {}
  }
}

Open the returned url in a browser to complete OAuth authorization.

Delete Connection

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://ctrl.maton.ai/connections/{connection_id}', method='DELETE')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

Specifying Connection

If you have multiple Clio connections, specify which one to use with the Maton-Connection header:

python <<'EOF'
import urllib.request, os, json
req = urllib.request.Request('https://gateway.maton.ai/clio/api/v4/matters')
req.add_header('Authorization', f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}')
req.add_header('Maton-Connection', '21fd90f9-5935-43cd-b6c8-bde9d915ca80')
print(json.dumps(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(req)), indent=2))
EOF

If omitted, the gateway uses the default (oldest) active connection.

API Reference

Field Selection

By default, Clio returns minimal fields (id, etag). Use the fields parameter to request specific fields:

GET /clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,display_number,description,status

For nested resources, use curly bracket syntax:

GET /clio/api/v4/activities?fields=id,type,matter{id,description}

Matters

List Matters

GET /clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,display_number,description,status,client_reference

Get Matter

GET /clio/api/v4/matters/{id}?fields=id,display_number,description,status,open_date,close_date

Create Matter

POST /clio/api/v4/matters
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "description": "New Legal Matter",
    "status": "open",
    "client": {"id": 12345}
  }
}

Update Matter

PATCH /clio/api/v4/matters/{id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "description": "Updated Matter Description",
    "status": "closed"
  }
}

Delete Matter

DELETE /clio/api/v4/matters/{id}

Contacts

List Contacts

GET /clio/api/v4/contacts?fields=id,name,type,primary_email_address,primary_phone_number

Get Contact

GET /clio/api/v4/contacts/{id}?fields=id,name,type,first_name,last_name,company

Create Contact (Person)

POST /clio/api/v4/contacts
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "type": "Person",
    "first_name": "John",
    "last_name": "Doe",
    "email_addresses": [
      {"name": "Work", "address": "john@example.com", "default_email": true}
    ]
  }
}

Create Contact (Company)

POST /clio/api/v4/contacts
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "type": "Company",
    "name": "Acme Corporation"
  }
}

Update Contact

PATCH /clio/api/v4/contacts/{id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "first_name": "Jane"
  }
}

Delete Contact

DELETE /clio/api/v4/contacts/{id}

Activities

List Activities

GET /clio/api/v4/activities?fields=id,type,date,quantity,matter{id,description}

Get Activity

GET /clio/api/v4/activities/{id}?fields=id,type,date,quantity,note

Create Activity

POST /clio/api/v4/activities
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "type": "TimeEntry",
    "date": "2026-02-11",
    "quantity": 3600,
    "matter": {"id": 12345},
    "note": "Legal research"
  }
}

Update Activity

PATCH /clio/api/v4/activities/{id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "note": "Updated note"
  }
}

Delete Activity

DELETE /clio/api/v4/activities/{id}

Tasks

List Tasks

GET /clio/api/v4/tasks?fields=id,name,status,due_at,priority,matter{id,description}

Get Task

GET /clio/api/v4/tasks/{id}?fields=id,name,description,status,due_at,priority

Create Task

Requires assignee with both id and type ("User" or "Contact"):

POST /clio/api/v4/tasks
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "name": "Review contract",
    "due_at": "2026-02-15T17:00:00Z",
    "priority": "Normal",
    "assignee": {"id": 12345, "type": "User"},
    "matter": {"id": 67890}
  }
}

Update Task

PATCH /clio/api/v4/tasks/{id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "status": "complete"
  }
}

Delete Task

DELETE /clio/api/v4/tasks/{id}

Calendar Entries

List Calendar Entries

GET /clio/api/v4/calendar_entries?fields=id,summary,start_at,end_at,matter{id,description}

Get Calendar Entry

GET /clio/api/v4/calendar_entries/{id}?fields=id,summary,description,start_at,end_at,location

Create Calendar Entry

Requires calendar_owner with id and type:

POST /clio/api/v4/calendar_entries
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "summary": "Client Meeting",
    "start_at": "2026-02-15T10:00:00Z",
    "end_at": "2026-02-15T11:00:00Z",
    "calendar_owner": {"id": 12345, "type": "User"}
  }
}

Note: Associating a matter with a calendar entry during creation may return a 404 error. To link a matter, update the calendar entry after creation using PATCH.

Update Calendar Entry

PATCH /clio/api/v4/calendar_entries/{id}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "data": {
    "summary": "Updated Meeting Title"
  }
}

Delete Calendar Entry

DELETE /clio/api/v4/calendar_entries/{id}

Documents

List Documents

GET /clio/api/v4/documents?fields=id,name,content_type,size,matter{id,description}

Get Document

GET /clio/api/v4/documents/{id}?fields=id,name,content_type,size,created_at

Download Document

GET /clio/api/v4/documents/{id}/download

Users

Get Current User

GET /clio/api/v4/users/who_am_i?fields=id,name,email,enabled

List Users

GET /clio/api/v4/users?fields=id,name,email,enabled,rate

Bills

List Bills

GET /clio/api/v4/bills?fields=id,number,issued_at,due_at,total,balance,state

Get Bill

GET /clio/api/v4/bills/{id}?fields=id,number,issued_at,due_at,total,balance,state

Pagination

Clio uses cursor-based pagination. Response includes pagination metadata:

GET /clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,description&limit=50

Response includes pagination info in the meta object:

{
  "data": [...],
  "meta": {
    "paging": {
      "next": "https://app.clio.com/api/v4/matters?page_token=xyz123"
    },
    "records": 50
  }
}

Use the page_token parameter to fetch the next page:

GET /clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,description&page_token=xyz123

Code Examples

JavaScript

const response = await fetch(
  'https://gateway.maton.ai/clio/api/v4/matters?fields=id,display_number,description',
  {
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${process.env.MATON_API_KEY}`
    }
  }
);
const data = await response.json();

Python

import os
import requests

response = requests.get(
    'https://gateway.maton.ai/clio/api/v4/matters',
    headers={'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.environ["MATON_API_KEY"]}'},
    params={'fields': 'id,display_number,description'}
)
data = response.json()

Notes

Field selection is important - default responses only include id and etag
Nested resources use curly bracket syntax: matter{id,description}
Only one level of nesting is supported
Contact types: Person or Company
Task assignees require both id and type ("User" or "Contact")
Calendar entries require calendar_owner with id and type; associating a matter during creation may fail - use PATCH to link matters after creation
Activity quantity is in seconds (3600 = 1 hour)
Contact records limited to 20 email addresses, phone numbers, and addresses each
Activities, Documents, and Bills endpoints require additional OAuth scopes beyond the basic integration
IMPORTANT: When using curl commands, use curl -g when URLs contain brackets to disable glob parsing
IMPORTANT: When piping curl output to jq or other commands, environment variables like $MATON_API_KEY may not expand correctly in some shell environments

Error Handling

Status	Meaning
400	Missing Clio connection or bad request
401	Invalid or missing Maton API key
404	Resource not found
429	Rate limited (50 req/min during peak hours)
4xx/5xx	Passthrough error from Clio API

Rate Limit Headers

Clio includes rate limit headers in responses:

X-RateLimit-Limit - Maximum requests in 60-second window
X-RateLimit-Remaining - Requests remaining in current window
X-RateLimit-Reset - Unix timestamp for window reset
Retry-After - Seconds to wait (when throttled)