How to Refine Eve's Responses
Last updated: September 30, 2026
Overview
Eve's first response is a starting point. Getting to work product usually takes a short back and forth: read what came back, say what to change, repeat. Because the conversation holds its context, each round builds on the last. A follow-up steers the existing answer rather than starting a new request.
Before You Start
A prompt already sent and a response already returned.
An active session inside a matter.
Read the First Response Critically
Get specific about what is off before typing anything. Too long? Too broad? Covering the wrong claims? Prose where a table was wanted?
"This isn't right" is hard to act on. "This covers all six causes of action and I only need the wage-and-hour ones" is a clear instruction. Have the concrete change in mind first.
Give Feedback in the Same Conversation
Type the follow-up in the thread rather than starting over. Eve keeps everything already discussed, including the documents in play and the direction taken, so a short instruction like "cut this in half and drop the procedural history" does the work of a much longer re-prompt.
Starting a new session throws that context away and means rebuilding it.
Change One Thing at a Time
Stacking five adjustments into one message makes it impossible to tell which instruction produced which part of the result. Fix the biggest problem, look at what comes back, then move to the next.
Pick the Right Lever
What you want | How to ask |
|---|---|
Narrow the scope | "Focus only on the PAGA claims, not the FEHA ones." |
Widen the scope | "Also cover the retaliation allegations in the third amended complaint." |
Change the length | "Cut this to about a page." Or "Expand the causation section." |
Change the format | "Give me this as a chronological table with date, source document, and event." |
Shift the emphasis | "Lead with the damages analysis." |
Adjust the depth | "Assume I know the standard. Skip the background and go straight to how it applies here." |
Strengthen the support | "Add direct quotes from the deposition for each of these points." |
Change the audience | "Rewrite this so I can send it to the client without a legal background." |
Showing beats describing. Paste in a prior brief, a firm template or a paragraph with the right tone and say "match this structure". A concrete example moves a response further in one round than several messages of abstract description.
Use Eve as a Thinking Partner
Ask for a critique before writing one. "What's the weakest part of this analysis?" or "What would opposing counsel attack first?" surfaces the gap faster than reading for it, and returns something specific to fix.
Ask what is missing. If two rounds have not got you closer, ask directly: "What additional information would help you make this stronger?" The answer usually names the real blocker, such as a document that was never uploaded or an ambiguity in the request, rather than the phrasing of the prompt.
Keep the prompts that work. A refinement sequence that produced a good demand letter or chronology will usually work on the next matter too. Saving it as a chat agent turns it into one click. See 📄 How to Create a Chat Agent in Eve.
Know When to Stop
Iteration compounds context, which is the point until it is not. After several wrong turns, a substantial change of direction, or a move to a genuinely different task, the accumulated conversation starts working against the answer.
The test: if your next message would be easier to write as a fresh request than as a correction, make it one. Open a new session and write a single well-structured prompt using what you learned. See 📄 How to Organize Sessions in Eve.