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A better playbook for agreement evidence
Evidence is the completed PDF plus the completion record. A folder of screenshots is not a substitute.
Store the file and the record in the matter folder you already use.inSigner
When someone asks what was agreed, you want the file they signed and a record that still matches it. This playbook is about that pair. It is not a litigation memo.
01 · Name the artifacts
Name the artifacts
Keep two things: the completed PDF and the completion record. The record includes a SHA-256 hash of the final file. If you keep only a screenshot of a signature, you have lost the easiest way to show that the file is intact.
02 · Store them in one place
Store them in one place
Put both in the matter file your team already uses. A second copy in a personal inbox is easy to lose and easy to mix with an earlier draft. The workspace holds the completed file. Your archive is still your job.
The playbook is short because the artifacts are few: the PDF that was signed, and the record that still matches it.
03 · Separate drafts from the signed file
Separate drafts from the signed file
A draft with open brackets is not the agreement. Do not file it next to the signed PDF under the same name. Rename drafts, and let the signed file keep the name the record describes.
- ✓Is the completed PDF in the matter file?
- ✓Is the completion record beside it?
- ✓Can we recompute the SHA-256 hash?
- ✓Is the governing law noted for counsel, not as a slogan?
04 · Write down the law you relied on
Write down the law you relied on
Note which law counsel said governs the document, and link the country guide you read. That note is context. It is not proof that the signature meets every rule in that country.
05 · Review before you need it
Review before you need it
Once a quarter, open one completed matter and check that the PDF still hashes to the value in the record. A quiet check is cheaper than a search during a dispute.
Primary sources
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