> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.brieftech.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.brieftech.ai/get-started/prepare-disclosure-list.md). # Prepare a List of Documents for Disclosure Turn a set of documents into a finished disclosure package — a ZIP with Word and Excel indexes and every file renamed by serial, date and description. Welcome. In this tutorial we'll prepare a disclosure package — the kind you produce when you need to share a set of documents with the other side, a court, or a client. By the end you'll have a single ZIP archive containing: * a **Word file** with the index table (one row per document: serial number, date, description), * an **Excel file** listing the same documents as a spreadsheet, with its own fixed set of columns, and * every **document file** renamed to `--.`. We'll follow the workflow from upload to export in order. The whole run takes around fifteen minutes. {% hint style="info" %} **Note:** This is a learning walkthrough with one fixed path. Once you've completed it, the **How-To Guides** show how to handle each task on real matters, and the **Reference** pages cover every available option in detail. {% endhint %} *** ## Before you start **Before you open BriefTech**, prepare a small set of practice documents on your computer — five to ten files is enough to see the full workflow. They can be PDFs, Word documents, emails, or any other supported file type mixed together. *** ## Step 1 — Create the matter and upload your documents A **matter** is BriefTech's container for a single case or transaction. 1. Sign in to BriefTech. You'll land on the **Matters** screen. 2. Click Create New Matter

. 3. In **Input Matter Reference**, type `Practice — Disclosure List`. 4. Click Create Matter

. BriefTech opens the new matter on its Files tab

tab, showing an empty upload zone. Now upload your practice documents: 5. Drag your files into the upload zone, or click Select files

and pick them from your file picker. 6. BriefTech begins uploading and processing each file immediately. {% hint style="success" %} **Uploading a folder structure?** If your documents are organised in folders, you can drag the whole folder in — BriefTech remembers which folder each file came from. 1. Drag the whole folder into the upload zone. 2. Later, in the Document Index, select Apply preset

, then **Generate index headings → Group by folder** to turn each folder into a **header** that groups the disclosure list by category. See [Organise documents into folders](/how-to-guides/organise/organise-documents-into-folders.md) for the full guide. {% endhint %} {% hint style="info" %} **Documents with processing issues:** If a document shows an error or warning icon, hover over it to read the message. For a persistent processing error, right-click the row and choose Re-process Selection

— see [Reprocess a failed document](/how-to-guides/process/reprocess-failed-document.md) for a full guide. {% endhint %} *** ## Step 2 — Let BriefTech process the documents BriefTech automatically extracts the date and a description from each document as it uploads. This runs in the background. 1. Click the Review tab

tab. 2. Watch the **Document Date** and **Document Description** columns fill in. A spinner on a row means that document is still being processed. Wait until every row shows a date and a description before continuing. {% hint style="info" %} **How does BriefTech extract dates and descriptions?** Each document is processed by BriefTech's AI, which reads its text, looks at the page itself when an image of it is available, and identifies the most likely date and a short summary. To understand how this works — and what to do if results are consistently unexpected — see [How AI analysis works: agents and playbooks](/concepts/how-ai-analysis-works.md). {% endhint %} *** ## Step 3 — Review and correct dates and descriptions The index table is built from the **Document Date** and **Document Description** fields, and these same values appear in the renamed filenames. Reviewing them now ensures the disclosure package is accurate. The one exception is a document whose file name contains a date in a form BriefTech recognises, such as `2024-03-01`: the index and the renamed file use that date instead, so editing its **Document Date** here won't change either. **Correct a date:** 1. Find a row whose **Document Date** looks wrong or is missing. 2. Double-click the **Document Date** cell to open the inline date editor. It is a free-text editor, not a calendar: if BriefTech found more than one date in the document, a list of those dates appears for you to pick from, or you can type a date directly. 3. Click outside the cell to confirm. **Correct a description:** 4. Find a row whose **Document Description** you want to improve. 5. Double-click the **Document Description** cell. An inline editor opens. 6. Edit the text, then click outside to confirm. The value turns blue to show it is locked as your manual override. Re-running the AI's analysis won't overwrite a value you've set by hand. {% hint style="success" %} **Using the filename as the description:** If a document's existing filename is already the correct description, hover its **Document Description** cell and click the Use file name as description

icon to apply it directly. This icon shows only on hover, and only while the description hasn't been set by hand — once you've entered or accepted a description, it disappears. A file name applied this way doesn't count as a hand edit: it doesn't turn blue, and re-running the AI's analysis — including Refine Descriptions

— can replace it. {% endhint %} {% hint style="info" %} **Verifying against the source document:** Click a document's row to open a side-panel preview without leaving the Review tab

tab. {% endhint %} {% hint style="success" %} **Bring descriptions into a consistent style.** For many documents, use

: 1. Edit at least one description into the style you want (one example works; a few give better results). 2. Tick that row together with the documents you want to restyle. 3. Select

in the toolbar. BriefTech rewrites the unedited descriptions to match your examples. See [Refine descriptions using your own edits as examples](/how-to-guides/review/refine-descriptions-from-examples.md) for the full guide. {% endhint %} *** ## Step 4 — Configure serial numbering, date format, and sort order Serial numbers are assigned in the Index tab

tab. BriefTech numbers documents from 1 by default (1, 2, 3, …). The serial numbers are plain sequential numbers and are not zero-padded. See [Serial numbers and date formats](/reference/serial-numbers-and-date-formats.md) for the full reference. 1. Click the Index tab

tab. 2. To change where numbering starts, hover the **S/No.** column header and click the edit

icon that appears to open its header editor, then set **Initial Serial Number**. 3. To change the date format, open the **Date** column's header editor the same way and choose a **Date Format Preset**. The options are labelled by example date (for example `01/01/2026`), not by format code. 4. To sort the list chronologically before numbering, select Apply preset

in the toolbar, hover over **Sort all sections**, and choose **Date**. See [Sort documents in the Document Index](/how-to-guides/index/sort-documents-in-index.md) for the full guide. {% hint style="info" %} **Adding headers to group documents.** To show groups under category headings (for example, "Correspondence", "Contracts", "Invoices"): 1. Hover over the row where a group should start — an **Add heading:** area appears. 2. Select Heading

and enter a title. 3. Drag documents beneath the heading. See [Manage headings in the Document Index](/how-to-guides/index/manage-index-headings.md) for the full guide. {% endhint %} Switch to Preview

mode to confirm that serial numbers, dates, and descriptions look correct before exporting. *** ## Step 5 — Export the complete disclosure package BriefTech produces the Word index, the Excel index, and the renamed files in a single export. 1. In the

tab, click

in the toolbar. The **Download Files** panel opens on the right. 2. Under **Export Type**, tick **All Files**. This produces a ZIP archive containing the renamed document files together with the Word and Excel index tables. 3. Under **File Naming Convention**, select **Serial Number + Date + Description**. 4. Leave **File Type**, **Word Separator in File Names**, and **Folder Export** at their defaults for now. 5. Click Export

. If any documents are being exported for the first time, BriefTech will show a confirmation dialog listing the credit cost — review it and confirm to proceed. 6. BriefTech queues the job and shows **Export started!**. The job keeps running if you move elsewhere. * When it finishes, BriefTech emails you a link to download the ZIP. * The finished ZIP is also listed in the **Download Files** panel when you return to the **Index** tab. * If you stay on the Index tab, BriefTech shows **Your export is ready to download!** when it's ready. * While the job runs, the

icon in the top bar pulses; click it to open **Background Jobs** and check the job's status. See [Background Jobs](/reference/background-jobs.md) if the job appears stuck. 7. Click the

download icon once the job completes. {% hint style="warning" %} **Exporting spends credits.** Credits are charged at 1 credit per 50 pages (minimum 1 credit per document); documents you have exported before are free to re-export. {% endhint %} {% hint style="success" %} **Customising the export:** This tutorial uses the defaults, which include a **File Type** of **Searchable PDF**. To export files in their original format or preserve your folder structure inside the ZIP, see [Export formats and options](/reference/export-formats-and-options.md) for the full settings reference. {% endhint %} Open the ZIP and check that it contains: * a Word file with the index table, * an Excel file listing the documents as a spreadsheet, and * each document file named in the format `1-2024.01.15-email from alice to bob.pdf` (or similar). *** ## What you've accomplished You took an empty matter and: * uploaded a set of documents and let BriefTech extract dates and descriptions automatically, * reviewed and corrected the metadata so the list is accurate, * configured serial numbering, date format, and sort order in the Document Index, and * exported a single ZIP containing the Word index, the Excel index, and every document renamed by serial number, date, and description — ready to share as a complete disclosure package. *** ## Where to go next


Export the Document Index as a Word or Excel file	Export your Document Index as a Word or Excel file.	Export the Document Index as a Word or Excel file
Sort documents in the Document Index	Sort documents within Document Index sections by date, file name, or description.	Sort documents in the Document Index
Manage headings in the Document Index	Add, rename, move, sort, indent, and delete headings in the Document Index, or generate them automatically from your folder structure.	Manage headings in the Document Index
Refine descriptions using your own edits as examples	Edit a few descriptions the way you want them, then have BriefTech rewrite the rest to match.	Refine descriptions using your own edits as examples
Serial numbers and date formats	Serial numbering options, date format presets, and sort order for the Document Index.	Serial numbers and date formats
Export formats and options	Output formats and the settings for exporting the Document Index.	Export formats and options
Document metadata fields	The document fields you can edit in the Review tab and their accepted values.	Document metadata fields
Background Jobs	Status indicators, columns, and row actions in the Background Jobs dialog.	Background Jobs
How AI analysis works: agents and playbooks	What agents and playbooks are, and what they extract.	How AI analysis works: agents and playbooks
The document lifecycle: from upload to ready	What happens to a file between upload and the moment it can be used.	The document lifecycle: from upload to ready
How credits work	What credits measure and how your balance is calculated.	How credits work
Credit costs and pricing	What charges credits, what is free, how the charge is calculated, and what credits cost to buy.	Credit costs and pricing

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