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Create A Document Using A Document Blueprint
Create A Document Using A Document Blueprint

Learn How To Create A Document For A Matter Using A Document Blueprint

Christine Clark avatar
Written by Christine Clark
Updated over a week ago

Create A Word Document With Blueprint Fields

Blueprint fields are similar to merge fields in Word. You can create a blueprint field by selecting from the available fields listed below. 

Blueprint fields are written as: {client_name} , where the blueprint field is wrapped in curly braces { }.

Enter these blueprint fields in your Word document and then upload your document into ZenCase.

How to Add Document Blueprint Fields to Word

  • Create a new Word document.

  • Add your fields wrapped in curly braces to your Word document in the spaces you want them to appear.
    Note: Blueprint fields are case sensitive. A blueprint field written as {my_field}  will be different from {My_Field} which is also different from {MY_FIELD}.
    Also, white space will cause problems with blueprint fields. We recommend using an underscore instead of white space for your fields.

  • Save the file.

Here is an example:

Upload A Document Blueprint into ZenCase

After creating your Word document with the appropriate blueprint fields, you can then upload your document blueprint into ZenCase.

How To Upload a Document Blueprint into ZenCase

  • Select "Document Blueprints" from the left sidebar menu

  • On the Document Blueprints page, click "Add Document Blueprint"
    Please note: Document Blueprints requires NetDocuments OR Box.com to be connected to use this feature. We recommend the Box Business Account for the best experience. We have a guide to help you Setup NetDocuments for ZenCase.

  • In the Add Document Blueprint window, click "Choose File" and select your file

  • Enter your description in the "Description" field

  • Select "Author" which is the currently logged in user by default

  • Select "Matter Type"

  • Click "Save"

Create a Document Using A Document Blueprint

You can easily create new documents where fields will be populated automatically for you and this document will be saved for a Matter.

How to Create A Document in a Matter

  • On the Matters List page, select a Matter's name from the Matter Name column to view the Matter Details

  • On the Matter Profile page, click "Create a Document" in the top right

  • From the Create a Document window, you can choose to select from the "New" list, or you can choose "Recent" or "Library" from the left sidebar.

    The "New" list will display the most recently created document blueprints
    The "Recent" list will display the most recently used document blueprints
    The "Library" list will display *all* document blueprints categorized by Matter Type

  • Select your document blueprint

  • Click "+ Create"
    Please Note: This may take a minute to generate, so please be patient.

  • You will now see a Document Preview page
    - Please enter the missing empty fields in the left toolbar
    ​  Note: ZenCase will best match the fields with any available information. Any
      fields that cannot be populated will be placed in the "Empty Fields" section.
    - Click the "Insert Fields" button to view the missing empty fields populated in the
      document
    ​  Please Note: This may take a minute to populate the fields, so please be patient.
      Also, if you are using Box.com, then you will see the document preview panel.
      If you are using NetDocuments, no document preview is available at this time,
      however you can still fill in the blueprint fields.

  • When you are ready to save the file, click "Save"

  • You should now see your newly created document in your "Files" tab

All document blueprint fields that are used for a Matter are stored in the "Info" tab of the Matter Profile page in ZenCase. The blueprint field is listed below each field for reference.

That's it! You have now created a document in a Matter with fields populated by ZenCase.

Supported Document Blueprint Fields:

{bar_number}
{client_address}
{client_addresses}
{client_connections}
{client_email_address}
{client_first_name}
{client_last_name}
{client_middle_name}
{client_name}
{client_originator}
{client_originator_bar_number}
{client_originator_email}
{client_originator_job_title}
{client_originator_location}
{client_phone_number}
{client_phone_numbers}
{client_salutation}
{contact_address}
{contact_addresses}
{contact_connections}
{contact_email_address}
{contact_email_addresses}
{contact_first_name}
{contact_last_name}
{contact_middle_name}
{contact_name}
{contact_originator}
{contact_originator_bar_number}
{contact_originator_email}
{contact_originator_job_title}
{contact_originator_location}
{contact_phone_number}
{contact_phone_numbers}
{contact_salutation}
{location}
{matter_connections}
{matter_description}
{matter_name}
{organization_name}
{organization_website}
{phone_number}

If you have any suggestions for adding to this list, please let us know!

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