A significant proposition of Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions is the ability to automate key contracts, instantly generating documents with the highest standards of quality and consistency.

However, it is essential to address formatting and numbering issues that often plague contract templates before implementing a CLM solution.

Many legal teams lack knowledge of these formatting nuances, resulting in consistent errors and inconsistencies from their automated system and undermining received benefits.

This post is part of a series of posts aimed at providing practical options for organisations that don’t want, can’t use, or cannot obtain a full CLM solution and are looking for guidance on what they can do with the tools they have and some reasonably priced add-ons. For more background and context, please see this introductory post:.

To maximise the benefits of automation and ensure seamless contract generation, legal teams should invest time in cleaning up their templates. This involves achieving 100% consistency in using clean numbering and formatting styles. If you are unfamiliar with these concepts or require assistance in understanding how to implement them effectively, please refer to our guide Microsoft Word Styles for Lawyers (which includes some downloadable templates as a free bonus).😀

In addition to cleaning up formatting and numbering styles, it is also wise to strip metadata from templates. This step removes any traces indicating the law firm or counterparty from which the template was initially obtained, the parties involved in the original transaction, or the original author. Doing so protects the confidentiality and integrity of your contract templates and prior transactions.

Getting started

Taking the time to prepare your templates before implementing a CLM solution will yield significant benefits in the long run. It establishes a solid foundation for automation, ensuring consistent document output, reducing errors, and enhancing efficiency within your contract management process.

If you want better CLM outcomes and want to look at your options and get a practical assessment of which options will best suit you, get in touch. We can recommend and introduce you to full CLM solutions or help with more targeted interventions, depending on your needs.