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One of MasterFile's unique design features is its single file repository architecture. The single file repository architecture means that an entire repository -- all the documents and all related data such as document dates, authors, summary descriptions, security, etc. -- are all stored in just one computer file, just as a word processing or spreadsheet document is stored in one computer file.
This architecture makes MasterFile conceptually simple to understand and ideal for small project and case files, or even collections of a few dozen documents that need to be shared, secured, organized for quick retrieval or indexed for searching. Just create a repository and start loading the documents.
Then, the unique browsing metaphor and issue/topic categorizations let you customize MasterFile to suit your needs without programming. Think of it as legal putty you mould, limited only by your imagination.
In this issue of "Just The Facts" we highlight how the single file repository architecture, combined with MasterFile's unique blend of features, lets you use MasterFile in creative ways you might not think of.
Here's what we'll cover:
Creating an archive to store scanned copies of critical paper documents
As explained above, MasterFile's unique single file repository architecture makes its repositories ideal for small project and case files, or even collections of a few dozen documents that need to be shared. Many case or project files will have a core set of critical or confidential documents (wills, contracts, research data, critical evidence, etc.) that must be kept in a vault or other secure location, either while the file is active or after it has been closed.
Photocopies of the relevant documents create additional challenges as they too must be secured if the information is confidential. In such situations, simply scan the critical documents and store them in a MasterFile repository created specifically for them so they can be accessed quickly and efficiently, while letting MasterFile's security controls who has access to them.
Review the remainder of this article for tips on how to manage small files with MasterFile, using MasterFile for reference or authority databases and using encrypted, local MasterFile databases.
Fed up with managing and hunting for electronic or paper documents?
A well known PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP study found professionals spend 50% of their time looking for information.
So if you're fed up with rummaging through paper files or workstation and server subdirectories hunting for paper or electronic documents, you'll find MasterFile's document management, OCR generation, search and indexing and bulk loading features will start saving you time almost immediately.
Using one MasterFile database you'll not only store all the documents you receive, but actually create and draft the documents you send out. Storing documents in workstation and server subdirectories is a thing of the past. You'll find everything is at your fingertips and accurate record keeping is simplified because your MasterFile database will always be complete and up to date. You won't forget about a critical document just because you forgot to print a hard copy for your paper file.
For more information, see our article:
Creating a database to manage contract terms and conditions
As a party to a contract, have you ever had this problem:
A customer or supplier advises you are in breach of clause xyz of your contract and you have 30 days to remedy the situation. You know they're wrong because you had an exception inserted in one clause to cover exactly the situation you're facing, but it's buried in 200 pages of finely crafted legalese and you can't find it. Moreover, the person who negotiated the contract is on vacation or worse, no longer with the firm!
Or, as counsel, had this problem:
Your client is in a meeting renegotiating a contract and calls you because they can't find the one clause in 150 pages that sets out a specific term they want in the new contract.
Whether you're managing your own contracts, or are counsel managing contracts for your clients, digging through and rereading contracts over and over again is a big time waster, but one that can't be avoided. The consequences of failing to find the right clause, or forgetting about exceptions can be costly.
MasterFile's Extract Repository, doc-link technology and full text search will let you solve all these problems:
- Create extracts with brief descriptions of the critical clauses. Then link them to issues such as "Termination" as well as provide any notes or commentary highlighting important points. These key extracts then appear both as summaries with the documents and in various "by Issue/Topic" views.
- Insert doc-links to extracts from the same or other contracts within your notes so you can instantly locate other relevant paragraphs.
- Search the contracts for a specific phrase or word to pinpoint clauses when issues arise.
Document Inventories -- Managing documents and extracts without the documents
Although in most situations you will probably scan and load copies of at least your key documents in MasterFile, MasterFile does not require you to load any documents at all. In some situations you may wish to simply catalogue or inventory some or all of your documents rather than scan and load them.
Then, as time or resources become available, you can scan key documents and simply drag and drop them into the document profiles you had already created (or the Watch Folder monitor button, "Add file to existing doc profile", created just for this purpose) making them available on line at your fingertips.
When creating a document catalogue or inventory, complete as much of the document profile as needed, adding any notes or commentary you require. As usual, the document type, date, author, recipient, summary description and location of original are required fields and in fact will be sufficient to create a thorough index of your paper documents. You'll find using Express Load's "Power Assist Mode" and load "Profile data only" feature will make short work of this entire process.
In the "Location of original" field you'll still specify where the paper copy is stored and therefore you'll be able to instantly locate any document of interest in your paper files. If you prefer, you can even number your paper documents sequentially, regardless of their current filing state, and simply append the document number to the file code entered into the "Location of original" field . For example the 16th document in file JK2004-01 could be coded as JK2004-01...016 or any other appropriate coding style.
All of MasterFile features are still available. In particular you can still:
- create and use doc-links to reference documents, exhibits, sources of facts, etc. E-mail doc-links maintaining full access security to sensitive information.
- create extracts of key information as you review paper documents, with a summary description and its location within the original document,
- index and search the profiles and extracts,
- use views to quickly browse and see documents by date, author, recipient, issue, type, etc.,
- create folders to collect document profiles,
- link documents and extracts to issues, topics or players,
- take the index with you on the road and update it as needed,
- etc.
You or an administrative assistant can even create a CSV (comma separated value) file of the profile information you need for each document by going through a paper file and rapidly entering the information in a spreadsheet. Each column represents one of the required fields listed above, i.e. document type, date, etc. You can then simply use Express Load to automatically process the CSV file and create a profile for each line of data.
Facts and Argument only -- no documents, again
Although one of MasterFile's primary functions is to organize and manage evidentiary and work -product documents, MasterFile's Fact & Argument Drafting module is by itself a unique and complete application that can can be used with or without any documents.
Simply create your facts and chronology events as usual and describe the evidence relied upon in the "Sources of fact, argument and counter-argument" field. Creating document and extract profiles, even without the documents, as described above, will let you use MasterFile's doc-link technology to set out, point by point, the evidence you rely upon in your argument quickly and easily without repeatedly typing descriptions of that evidence, for example "Letter of 12th Jan, 2003 from Jeff to counsel at ...".
Creating reference and authorities databases
How many times have you tried to look for an important authority or reference article but given up because you forgot where you saw it or in which case it was used? To solve this problem, simply create a MasterFile database for authorities. Set up the various issue or topic categories by which you wish to organize your authorities and their extracts and start loading them in the database just as you would any other document.
If your authorities are on paper, scan and OCR them with MasterFile's Evidence Cruncher. Then, you'll be able to search their contents and create extracts of the key paragraphs saving you hours of rereading to track down crucial information.
MasterFile's doc-link technology does not limit you to doc-links within the same database. You can refer to and create doc-links to any other MasterFile database such as for authorities and refer to those databases 'documents and extracts from all your other MasterFile databases.
Full mobile support means you'll be able to take for example your MasterFile authorities databases with you on the road so when you're disconnected from the office working on your notebook computer, you'll still have full access to them.
Keeping work-product documents or bulky digital evidence such as audio or video segments in their own MasterFile databases
The same technique, described above, used to create an authorities MasterFile database can be used to separate out documents from a MasterFile database.
One situation in which this is useful is for bulky digital evidence such as audio or video clips. One method to manage these would be to keep just the transcript of the video in the primary database, so it's available for searching and extracting, and a doc-link to the secondary database which stores the actual audio or video file. Separating the data in this fashion will keep your primary MasterFile database to a reasonable size so it can fit on notebooks giving mobile users access to the transcript information without squeezing in giga-bytes of data.
Although Notes database structure has been designed to allow databases over a terabyte in size, however at present Lotus is only certifying sizes upto 64G due to limitations in Windows. If you know in advance that you are going to have extensive bulky digital data or an exceptionally large document set, which will make database size approach the 64G limit, we recommend you split the evidence into multiple databases from the beginning to avoid having to move the data later and updating doc-links to re-reference the new database.
Another situation when you may want to use more than one database for a case file, is when you want to keep certain documents separate. For example, you might want to keep work-product or work in progress, current pleadings, documents received from the opposing side, etc. separate from the primary evidentiary documents for the litigation. Whether or not to do this depends on your circumstances. Keeping all documents together has many advantages, some of which are set out below.
Advantages of keeping evidentiary and work product documents together:
- Very often pleadings, work-product and correspondence between opposing counsel and/or clients becomes evidence itself for motions and applications, or contains admissions or new facts, blurring the line between "evidence" and "other" documents. For example:
You review one of your clients' evidentiary documents and have some questions, so you write and ask. The document and your letter are stored in the same database. Your client replies, but also asks you to update the case status, advises you of changes in strategy they feel necessary, and finally raises some other administrative issues. The reply is scanned, OCRs and also stored in the same database.
A week later, when you return to the issue, you have to do just one search using a keyword or two related to the issue and all three documents will be found. You don't need to:
- locate the original documents in an "evidence" database,
- locate your letter in a "work-product" database, or
- figure out where your client's reply is stored -- because the reply to your questions gave you critical new evidence that should be in the evidence database but the rest of the letter was not evidentiary in nature.
Furthermore, by simply selecting the new evidence, contained in the answers to your questions, you can create an extract with which to update your argument, complete with doc-links back to your client's letter so you can instantly reproduce the source document you relied on if it becomes necessary.
- Primary evidence is often used with current correspondence and in pleadings so keeping everything together conceptually is less taxing for end-users as it's one less issue they have to be concerned with.
- Everything is in one database, simplifying maintenance, administration, training -- for example issue lists don't need to be duplicated and kept synchronized, user lists aren't duplicated, global changes don't need to be applied to two databases, etc.
- End-users don't have to remember to review two databases.
- Mobile users only have to replicate and store one database per case file.
Disadvantages of keeping evidentiary and work product documents together:
- Depending on the volume of "other" documents, primary evidence may get drowned amongst the noise of counsel correspondence, pleadings, etc. However, the "by author" and "by Issue/topic" views are usually sufficient to keep valuable information being lost, and in the "by Date" view, the primary evidence generally precedes documents generated by the litigation.
Merging many small case files into one MasterFile database
The converse of splitting one case file into multiple databases is to merge several case files into one database. You'll find this technique useful when you find yourself with dozens of small files with just a few documents in each, and don't want or need to create a separate MasterFile database for each. In these situations, you need the electronic equivalent of the dreaded Miscellaneous File. Dreaded because you know whenever anything goes into it you'll probably waste hours trying to find it again.
Simply create a Miscellaneous MasterFile database, and for each case file you store in it, create an Issue/Topic keyword to identify each file. Then, as you create or load documents in the database, create players or create facts (if necessary), and simply assign the respective case file issue code so you'll be able to view all documents related to a particular file from the by Issue/Topic views.
To help you ensure the case file code is always set and not forgotten, you can create a keyword of the type "Required_Issues_Topics". Simply create a new keyword of this type using "Create Keyword" and follow the instructions that will appear.
Furthermore, you'll find that "by From", "by To" and "by Doc Type, From", views will also let you quickly locate documents relevant to a particular file by the individuals and organizations associated with that file.
Extract profiles -- use them whenever you need to keep notes and commentary private
Although extract profiles are primarily intended to be used for extracts from large documents, they can be used for any information related to a document which you need to keep private because you can set specific security access for an extract so any information you extracted, your notes, attachments, a draft version, etc. can be kept confidential or private, with access only for a select group from your team, or perhaps just for yourself
Only users with permission to read the extract will see it in views and know it exists.
The same part of a document can also be extracted several times by different users, or by yourself, if you need to keep some notes private.
When you absolutely, positively need to keep some documents private, make a local encrypted database
One of Notes unique capabilities is its ability to encrypt databases on-the-fly while you use them. This allows you to keep notebook replicas private incase of theft. However, even if you're using a Notes server, you can also create MasterFile databases on your machine which are never replicated to the server. Only you'll have access to these, and if you want to make sure that nobody else can read them, then encrypt them.
For your own convenience, you may wish to keep all documents, even if they're from separate case files in one database. See Merging many small case files into one MasterFile database above for suggestions about how to organize documents for several cases in one MasterFile database.
To encrypt a database, simply choose "Properties" from the "File/Database" menu, click on the "Encryption Settings..." button and select the level of encryption you require.
Important Notice:
As with all Notes security mechanisms, database encryption uses the Notes' public/private keys tied to your Notes ID. To ensure nobody else can open the database, you must make sure that extra copies of your Notes ID, perhaps when it was created, have been deleted or only have passwords you know.
We suggest that all Notes ID files be created with a default password and be physically kept in a secure location together with your organization's certifier ID file. No copies should remain anywhere else and only very trusted individuals have access to these ID files. All users should immediately set a password on their ID files to ensure others can't use them.
Creating a Corporate Records binder
One of our customers uses MasterFile's binder tab view to create their electronic corporate records binders. A MasterFile database for each binder holds scanned copies of the corporate records, categorized by appropriate document types and topics. Click here to see how.
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