Documents & templates

Documents is where your writing lives — declarations, letters, outlines, notes — along with any files you've received or filed. You can write from scratch, start from a template that's already filled in with your case details, or have AI draft from your instructions and your own records. Everything is versioned, so you can always go back.

Where to find it#

Open Cases, choose a court case, and select the Documents tab. Documents not tied to any court case are in the workspace-wide view — use the link at the bottom of the tab.

Upload documents#

Drop files or folders onto Upload documents or folders, click to browse, use Upload a folder, or paste with Ctrl/Cmd + V. PDFs, Word files, text, images, and more are accepted; text is pulled out automatically on upload (without using AI) so the document is searchable. Folder structure is kept.

Create a document#

There are three ways to start:

• Blank — use one of the quick-create buttons (+ Letter, + Motion, + Affidavit, + Strategy, + Exhibit List, and so on) and give it a title. The type you pick is a label that helps you filter later.
• From a template — click New from template.
• Drafted with AI — create or open a document and use Draft with AI.

Templates#

1. Open the pickerClick New from template.
2. AcknowledgeTick the acknowledgement that templates are jurisdiction-neutral and not official court forms (it appears when your state requires it). Do this before choosing a template.
3. Choose a templateClick its card. The document is created and filled in.
4. Complete the placeholdersAnything the app doesn't know appears in [square brackets] — [Your full name], [Address]. Replace every one.

What's filled in for you: your case caption and role; the court case's number, title, court, and judge; your next hearing's date, time, location, and purpose; relevant contacts (for example, the "To:" line of a meet-and-confer letter uses a contact marked as opposing counsel); and today's date. You can preview every blank template before you start at app.custodycommander.com/templates.

Draft with AI#

AI drafting writes or revises a document from your instructions, using the facts already in your case.

1. Open the documentCreate or open a document and click Draft with AI.
2. AcknowledgeConfirm you understand drafts are jurisdiction-neutral, not official court forms or a substitute for an attorney, and that you'll check your court's rules.
3. Say what you wantFor example: "A declaration summarizing the pattern of late pickups", or "Tighten this and add a paragraph about the missed exchanges".
4. Generate and reviewClick Generate. A preview appears — nothing changes until you choose Apply (which replaces the document body) or Discard.

What the AI can see: your caption and role, your court cases, upcoming hearings, recent timeline events, evidence descriptions and exhibit numbers, contacts, your preparation records (not private hearing notes), and the current text if you're revising.

Built-in guardrails:

• The AI is instructed not to invent facts. Where it needs something it doesn't have, it leaves a [bracketed placeholder] for you to fill in. Check every statement anyway.
• Any legal citation you didn't provide yourself is marked [VERIFY]. Look it up in the original source before you rely on it.
• Requests like "what should I file?" or "will I win?" are declined before any AI runs, and don't use an operation.
• If a draft comes back recommending legal strategy or predicting an outcome, it's withheld and not applied. Try instructions limited to organizing facts or drafting a position you've chosen.

Each Generate uses 1 AI operation, even if you discard the result.

Editing and organizing#

• The document body saves automatically when you click away. Edit the title inline.
• Document details & editing tools holds the folder, court case, and status (draft, signed, final, submitted, filed, served, and so on), plus court details: document type, who filed or prepared it, document date, filing date, and docket entry. Status is a label for your own tracking.
• Filter by file type, document type, party, and status, and search titles, contents, filenames, and docket entries.
• Folders work like Evidence folders: create, nest, and drag documents onto them.
• Analyze for timeline with AI reads a document (such as an order you received) and suggests timeline entries. 1 AI operation.

Version history#

Open Show version history in any document you can edit. The previous text is saved every time it changes — whether you edited it, the assistant did, or text was re-extracted. Choose Restore this version to go back; the current text is kept in history too, so restoring is never destructive. Saved versions count toward your storage. If a document was signed, restoring a version means signing again.

Review, sign & export (court documents)#

Documents made from a court template or marked as a filing go through Review, sign & export instead of the simple export. It's a four-step checklist that helps you catch problems before a document leaves your hands. The checks flag text for your review — they don't establish that a fact is true or that a document meets your court's rules.

1. Formatting#

Fill in the caption details — court state, your full name, court, county, file number, the parties and their roles, and optionally your address, phone, and email — plus the signature date. Options include numbering the body paragraphs, adding an AI-assistance disclosure, and adding your certificate of service (who was served, how, and when). You can list children's full names under Minor names to check so the review can flag them. Click Save formatting & refresh checks, and use Preview unsigned PDF to see a watermarked draft.

2. Review statements, citations & privacy#

• Placeholders — any remaining [bracketed] text must be completed before export.
• Statements — sentences that don't match text in your evidence are listed. For each, confirm you're stating it from personal knowledge, or link the source you reviewed.
• Citations — statutes, case names, and [VERIFY] tags are listed for you to confirm you've checked them against the original.
• Private information — possible Social Security numbers, account numbers, phone numbers, and children's full names are flagged so you can redact or use initials where appropriate.
• Reader review — gentle hints about tone (words like "always", "never"), events described without dates, and stating the document's purpose early.

Click Save my review.

3. Sign#

Choose a typed /s/ signature, draw or upload one, or use a signature you've saved. Then confirm the attestation: that you prepared the document, reviewed every statement and citation, are acting on your own behalf, and that the software provider didn't review it or give you legal advice. Editing the document afterwards — or changing linked evidence — invalidates the signature, so sign last.

4. Export#

Confirm the attestation again and choose PDF, DOCX, or PDF + exhibits. Final exports carry a footer noting that you prepared the document using self-help software. The app doesn't file or serve anything for you — check your court's requirements for cover sheets, signatures, service, exhibits, and redaction, and keep a copy.

Adding exhibits: cite them in the text as "Exhibit A", "Exhibit 1", or "Ex. 3" — one at a time, not as ranges. Each label must match the exhibit number of exactly one evidence item, and exhibits must be PDF, PNG, or JPEG. They're attached in the order first cited, each with a slip sheet.

Availability by state#

Court-document features depend on the state you live in (set when you accept the terms) and the court case's state (set in Cases):

• In most states, jurisdiction-neutral drafts are available after an acknowledgement.
• Where a state's requirements haven't been met yet, court-document generation is unavailable, and the panel will say so. Evidence and organizing tools are unaffected.
• Final signed exports require Full Suite access where available.

Simple export#

For letters, notes, outlines, and other non-court documents, use Export → Draft PDF or Markdown (.md). On the free plan, PDFs carry a DRAFT watermark. Exports don't use AI operations.

Sharing a document#

Documents are private to you until you share them. Use Share to the other side or the access button on the document, and see Sharing for permission levels.