This article will guide you through setting the signing order in SpotDraft for your contracts, ensuring they are signed in the correct sequence.
What is a Signing Order?
Signing order refers to the specific sequence in which individuals are invited to sign a contract. It's crucial to set the signing order correctly so that:
- Signatories are invited to sign in a predefined sequence: This ensures a logical flow and prevents confusion.
- Parties sign in the right order: For example, the counterparty might need to sign after the creating party.
Setting Signing Order
You can set the signing order in three different ways in SpotDraft:
1. When Uploading a Third Party Contract and Sending for Signatures:
- Prepare for Signing: Ensure that your contract is in the “Prepare for Signing” flow.
- Manage Recipients: In this step, you can define the signatories and approvers involved and turn on the toggle for “Set Signing Order”
- Set Signing Order: Drag and drop the signatories/approvers/recipients to arrange the order in which they will be invited to sign.
Note:- Approvers Cannot Be Last: Approvers should not be placed as the last step in the signing order. This ensures that they can review and approve the contract before it is signed by the final signatory.
2. From Contract Summary Card:
- Navigate to the Contract: Open the contract record for the template contract you want to modify.
- Go to "Party Information": This section lists all the parties involved in the contract.
- Click "Signatory and Recipient Order": This button will open a dialog box where you can set the signing order.
- Define Signing Order: Drag and drop the signatories to arrange the order in which they will be invited to sign when using this template.
3. On the Contract Type Level: (For Admins)
- Navigate to "Contract Types": Select "Contract Types" from the Manage menu from the side navigation.
- Select Your Contract Type: Click on the specific contract type you want to configure.
- Select Entity: To set the sign order, go to the relevant entity.
- Go to "Signatories": You will find this section in the contract type settings.
- Define Signing Order: Set the default signing order for all contracts of this type.
Note:- You cannot set the approver and receiver signing order from the contract type settings.
Key Terminology:
- Signatories: Individuals who need to sign the contract to legally bind themselves.
- Approvers: Individuals who need to review and approve the contract.
- Receivers/Viewers: Individuals who can just view the contract.
Important Notes:
- Approvers Cannot Be Last: Approvers should not be placed as the last in the signing order. This ensures that they can review and approve the contract before it is signed by the final signatory.
- Once an approver is added, the signing order has to always be sequential and it cannot be the same for multiple signatories.
Additional Tips:
- Use the "Add Recipient" option in the ‘Prepare for Signing’ flow to add more individuals as signatories or approvers as needed.
If you have any further questions, please consult our Knowledge Base or contact our support team.