Case Review & Approval Workflows

Overview#

A supervisor at a financial intelligence unit is responsible for signing off on every case before it is referred for prosecution. With thirty active cases on the team, she needs to know that each one has passed through the right checks, that nothing critical was missed, and that the review process itself is documented for regulatory purposes. Case Review & Approval handles the routing, the checklists, the deadlines, and the evidence trail, so she can focus on the substance of each review.

The module provides multi-stage review and approval workflows that ensure case quality, compliance, and supervisory oversight throughout the investigation lifecycle. Organisations can define structured review processes with configurable approval stages, quality scoring, reviewer assignment rules, and escalation paths that maintain consistent standards across all case activities.

Key Features#

Multi-Stage Review Workflows: Define sequential and parallel review stages with configurable approval requirements, reviewer assignments, and escalation rules for each stage
Quality Scoring: Assess case quality against defined criteria with scoring rubrics that identify areas requiring improvement before final approval, supporting consistent evaluation standards
Role-Based Reviewer Assignment: Automatically assign reviewers based on role, expertise, case type, organisational hierarchy, and availability to ensure qualified review at every stage
Approval Routing: Route cases through configurable approval chains with support for sequential approvals, parallel reviews, consensus-based decisions, and majority-vote approvals
Review Comments and Feedback: Reviewers provide structured feedback, suggest revisions, and track resolution of review items within the workflow with threaded discussion support
Deadline Management: Set review deadlines with automated reminders and escalation when reviews are not completed within required timeframes, preventing bottlenecks
Audit Trail: Complete documentation of all review decisions, comments, scoring, and approval actions for compliance, accountability, and quality improvement analysis
Conditional Approval Logic: Define rules that automatically route cases to additional review stages based on case attributes, risk levels, quality scores, or specific content flags
Review Templates: Pre-configured review checklists and evaluation forms for common case types ensure consistent, thorough review at each stage
Return and Revision Tracking: Track cases returned for revision with clear documentation of required changes and automatic re-routing for re-review upon completion

Use Cases#

Supervisory Case Review#

Supervisors review completed investigations to verify thoroughness, accuracy, and compliance with organisational standards before cases are closed or forwarded for prosecution. Review checklists ensure consistent evaluation criteria are applied across all cases.

Quality Assurance#

Quality assurance teams conduct systematic reviews of case documentation, evidence handling, and procedural compliance using standardised scoring rubrics to maintain consistent quality standards and identify training needs across the organisation.

Legal Review Prior to Filing#

Legal teams review case files before filing charges or taking formal action, ensuring all documentation meets legal requirements and evidentiary standards. Specific legal review checklists verify that all prerequisite conditions are satisfied.

Compliance Sign-Off#

Compliance officers review and approve cases that involve regulated activities, ensuring proper procedures were followed and required documentation is complete before case closure. Compliance review results are documented for regulatory audit purposes.

A case is submitted for review upon completion of the investigation phase or a designated workflow trigger
The system assigns reviewers based on configured rules, case type, and reviewer availability
Reviewers assess the case using the provided review template, scoring criteria, and checklist items
Reviewers provide feedback, approve the case, or request revisions with specific guidance
If revisions are requested, the case returns to the investigator with clear documentation of required changes
Upon completion of revisions, the case is re-submitted and re-routed for review confirmation
Upon final approval, the case advances to the next lifecycle stage with the review record attached

Escalated Review#

A case flagged as high-risk, high-value, or meeting specific escalation criteria is automatically routed to senior reviewers
Additional review stages are triggered based on the configured escalation rules and case attributes
Senior reviewers conduct a thorough assessment using enhanced review criteria and record their detailed findings
The case proceeds only after all required escalation approvals are obtained and documented
Escalation decisions and rationale are recorded in the audit trail for accountability

Quality scores from completed reviews are aggregated across cases, teams, and time periods
Trends are displayed on dashboards showing quality improvement or degradation over time
Low-scoring areas are identified and prioritised for targeted training or process improvement
The impact of improvement initiatives is measured through subsequent quality score changes

Integration#

Programmable API Access: Integrate review and approval workflows with external case management, governance, and quality management systems
Notification Systems: Deliver review assignments, reminders, deadlines, and decisions through email, in-app, and mobile notification channels
Document Management: Access case documents directly within the review interface for seamless evaluation without switching between systems
Reporting and Analytics: Track review metrics including turnaround times, approval rates, quality scores, and revision patterns for process improvement and resource planning

Open Standards#

GraphQL (June 2018 specification): All review queue operations, submitting decisions, querying review items, assigning reviewers, and generating compliance reports, are exposed through a typed GraphQL API, enabling interoperability with external case management and governance systems.
JSON Web Token (RFC 7519): Every GraphQL request to the review and approval workflow must present a signed JWT bearer token; the token carries the authenticated user identity and tenant context that drives reviewer assignment and access control enforcement.
OAuth 2.0 (RFC 6749): The bearer-token authorisation framework underpins service-to-service authentication for the review pipeline, permitting integration with external quality management and governance platforms without transmitting credentials.
Role-Based Access Control (NIST RBAC model, NIST SP 800-207 aligned): Reviewer assignment, approval routing, and escalation paths enforce RBAC throughout, ensuring that only users holding the correct organisational roles (analyst, supervisor, compliance officer) can act at each review stage.
W3C WCAG 2.2 (Level AAA): All front-end review queue components are built to WCAG 2.2 AAA accessibility guidelines, with keyboard navigation and ARIA landmark labels present on every action control.
W3C WAI-ARIA 1.2: ARIA roles and labels are applied to review action buttons and escalation controls so that assistive technologies can present the approval workflow to users who require them.
ISO/IEC 27001:2022: The platform maps review audit events and access control obligations to ISO 27001:2022 Annex A controls, supporting the evidence collection required for formal certification of the case review process.
SHA-256 Merkle-tree audit anchoring: Every review decision, comment, and state transition is committed to an append-only audit trail whose integrity is protected by a binary Merkle tree of SHA-256 entry hashes; optional RFC 3161 TSA timestamping provides cryptographic non-repudiation for regulatory export.

Last Reviewed: 2026-02-05 Last Updated: 2026-04-14