What this article helps with: Stopping or changing automated Hona notifications for a specific client or case. There are three different solutions depending on your situation — whether the project already exists in Hona, and whether you want to stop all notifications or just change how they're delivered.
Who this is for: Firm staff and admins who need to disable or modify Hona notifications for an individual client.
When not to use this article: If you want to turn off your own business user notifications (not client notifications), see Configuring Business User Notification Settings. If you want to understand how client notifications work in general, see How Notifications Work in Hona.
Key Terms
Key Terms
Business = Business/Law Firm who invested in Hona
Business User = An individual account within a Hona Business Org
Client = General term for the end-user of the Hona Portal
Lead = potential Client of the Business
"Project" is the Hona term used to define "case" or "matter"
CMS = Case Management Software (often used interchangeably with CRM)
Client Notifications = Alerts sent to Clients to notify them of Hona features configured by Business
What this article helps with: Turning off Hona for a client
There technically is an "on/off" button for Hona notifications per client, but it's important to understand the impact before determining the best course of action. Answer these questions to find the right solution:
Has the case or contact already been synced into Hona as a correlating Project and Client?
Has the case or contact already been synced into Hona as a correlating Project and Client?
No = Solution 1
Yes = Solution 2 or 3
What exactly are you trying to disable and why? Is it a specific feature, or all automatic notifications?
What exactly are you trying to disable and why? Is it a specific feature, or all automatic notifications?
All automatic notifications = Solution 1, 2, or 3
Access to a specific feature = Solution 1, or visit the support article for that feature, or reach out to [email protected] for feature-specific guidance
Do you want to disable all automatic notifications or just change the type of notification they are receiving?
Do you want to disable all automatic notifications or just change the type of notification they are receiving?
Disable all notifications = Solution 1 or 2
Change notification preferences = Solution 3
Do you want to still be able to text the contact through Hona when needed?
Do you want to still be able to text the contact through Hona when needed?
No = Solution 1
Yes = Solution 2 or 3
Overview
Solution #1: Prevent Creation of Project
Solution #2: Disable Client Notifications in CMS
Solution #3: Change Client Notification Preferences in Hona
Solution #1: Prevent Creation of Project
Scope: Prevents Hona from syncing with a case during the automated nightly sync, stopping the automatic creation of a correlating Project in Hona. This stops both the Business and Client from communicating through Hona, since Hona won't know the case exists.
This solution is only effective if the Project does not already exist in Hona.
How to Prevent Creation of a Project:
How to Prevent Creation of a Project:
If your CMS is NOT SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, Growpath, or Smokeball:
If your CMS is NOT SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, Growpath, or Smokeball:
Open the case details in your CMS, edit the case, and make sure the Hona Enabled custom field is set to No. As long as this field remains No, Hona will not create a correlating Project for the case, even if it meets the criteria in your Project Type Mapping. Once a Project is created in Hona it cannot be deleted, so mark this field appropriately during case creation to prevent unintentional Project creation and client notifications. Changing this field to Yes will allow Hona to create a Project during the following nightly sync.
If you have SmartAdvocate:
If you have SmartAdvocate:
Open the contact's details in SmartAdvocate and under Contact Type Details, find the checkbox titled No Auto-Communication. Make sure it is checked. If checked before a Project is created in Hona, this will prevent one from being automatically created.
If you have CASEpeer:
If you have CASEpeer:
Because CASEpeer does not have custom field capabilities, the only way to prevent automatic Project creation is by disconnecting the case from the Hona integration entirely. Because Hona does not know the case exists, it will not create a correlating Project automatically.
If you have Growpath or Smokeball:
If you have Growpath or Smokeball:
Neither Growpath nor Smokeball have custom field capabilities. This means all cases which meet your Project Type Mapping criteria will be automatically pulled into Hona. Please reference Solution #3.
Solution #2: Disable Client Notifications in CMS
Scope: Prevents notifications from sending. This does not stop syncing between the case and Project — they remain connected through the integration — but any notifications queued during the nightly sync will be automatically cancelled prior to sending. You can re-enable at any time.
This solution is tailored specifically for Projects which already exist in Hona. Following these steps without an existing Project is the same as Solution #1.
How to Disable Client Notifications in CMS:
How to Disable Client Notifications in CMS:
If your CMS is NOT SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, Growpath, or Smokeball:
If your CMS is NOT SmartAdvocate, CASEpeer, Growpath, or Smokeball:
Open the case in your CMS and make sure the Hona Enabled custom field is set to No. Hona will continue to sync with the case details during the automatic nightly sync and update Project details accordingly. However, as long as this field remains No, any notifications queued during the nightly sync will be automatically cancelled prior to sending. You can change this field back to Yes if you want notifications to start sending again.
If you have SmartAdvocate:
If you have SmartAdvocate:
Open the contact's details in SmartAdvocate and under Contact Type Details, find the checkbox titled No Auto-Communication. Make sure it is checked.
If you have CASEpeer:
If you have CASEpeer:
Because CASEpeer does not have custom field capabilities, the only way to prevent Client notifications within CASEpeer is by disconnecting the Client's case from Hona. The correlating Project in Hona will no longer update during the nightly sync since Hona will not know its correlating case exists in CASEpeer. Because the Project is no longer updating, future automatic notifications will not be triggered. However, if the Project remains in a Phase with a continuous automation (like a drip notification), that notification will continue to send on its designated interval. It is a smart idea to also follow Solution #3 to ensure the Client contact does not receive future notifications.
If you have Growpath or Smokeball:
If you have Growpath or Smokeball:
Neither Growpath nor Smokeball have custom field capabilities or a default setting for preventing automatic communications. For these integrations, it is best to follow Solution #3.
Solution #3: Change Client Notification Preferences in Hona
Scope: Hona will continue to sync with case information nightly and trigger automatic notifications, but the method by which the Client receives their notification from Hona is changed. This is useful when you want to stop SMS notifications but keep email, or stop all notification delivery entirely.
You will not be able to use this solution without an existing Project in Hona.
How to Change Client Notification Preferences in Hona:
How to Change Client Notification Preferences in Hona:
Open the contact details in Hona, either by finding them in the Contacts tab or by opening the contact's correlating Project. Open the dropdown next to Notifications to change the contact's personal Notification Preferences. This will only change the notification delivery method for this one contact going forward. Select None to stop all automated message delivery entirely (the client can still receive 2-way messages).
FAQs
Why can't I delete Projects out of Hona?
Why can't I delete Projects out of Hona?
To prevent erroneous notifications to your Clients due to Business User error. Once a Project is created in Hona, it is synced daily with its correlating case in your CMS. Being able to delete Projects post-creation would put you at risk for duplicative notifications — because without editing the case details in your CMS or your Project Type Mapping, the case would just be synced back into Hona again during the next nightly sync, creating a new Project and triggering another Client notification. The ability to delete Projects has led Businesses in the past down a rabbit hole of triggering the same Client notification over and over.
If I can't delete, how do I get a Project out of my Hona Org?
If I can't delete, how do I get a Project out of my Hona Org?
If you want to get the Project out of your Active Case Count, you can Archive a Project. This ensures that the case data stays stored on the back-end, so if the case is synced from your integration again, Hona will open the pre-existing Project instead of creating a new one and triggering a new notification. An Archived or Completed Project will not count towards your Active Case Count.
How do I get a Project completely wiped from my Hona Org's data storage if I need to?
How do I get a Project completely wiped from my Hona Org's data storage if I need to?
We understand there are sensitive situations where data needs to be removed entirely from your Hona Org. Please reach out to our support team at [email protected] and we will be happy to assist you quickly and with confidentiality. Please keep in mind that Hona will only have the power to delete data being stored in Hona — you will need to delete data in your CMS and anywhere else separately.
Why This Matters
Understanding how to properly disable Hona for a case or contact ensures that your team maintains full control over client communications and data visibility. Each solution impacts your workflows, notifications, and client experience differently — so knowing which method to use prevents confusion, unnecessary client outreach, or data inconsistencies across your systems.