Legal integrates with an e-signature service so you can send matter documents for binding electronic signature without leaving the platform. The signing flow tracks status automatically — from the moment you send, through the signer completing the document, to the final signed record stored on the matter.
How the Signing Flow Works
When you send a document for signature, Legal hands off to the configured e-signature service and generates a signing URL. Status updates flow back to Legal automatically via the event bus, so the document's signature status stays current without manual checking.
The signing statuses on a document are:
- none — no signature action taken
- queued — the send is in flight; the document is claimed while Legal dispatches it to the e-signature service
- sent_for_signature — sent; waiting for the signer to complete
- signed — signer has completed; the document is countersigned and recorded
- declined — the signer declined to sign
- voided — the send was voided, or the envelope expired before signing
Step 1: Prepare the Document
The document must already be attached to a matter. If you are working from a template, render and save it to the matter first. Make sure the document is complete and ready — once sent for signature, edits should not be made without voiding and re-sending.
Step 2: Send for Signature
- Open the matter and go to Documents.
- Find the document you want to send and click Send for Signature.
- Legal records the send timestamp, updates the document's
esign_statustosent_for_signature, and generates a signing URL. - Share the signing URL with the signer or allow the e-signature service to handle delivery, depending on your integration configuration.
Note: Sending for signature is rate-limited per organization to prevent accidental bulk sends. If you hit the limit, wait a short period before retrying.
Step 3: Signer Completes the Document
The signer accesses the document through the signing URL and completes the required signature fields. This flow is handled by the e-signature service, not by Legal directly.
Step 4: Mark as Signed
When the e-signature service confirms completion, it sends an event back to Legal via the bus. Legal automatically updates the document's esign_status to signed and records the esign_signed_at timestamp.
If the bus event does not arrive (for example, due to a connectivity issue), an administrator can manually click Mark Signed on the document to complete the status update.
Signer Roles
Legal tracks which document was sent and when, but signer role definitions (who signs in what order, required fields) are configured in the e-signature service itself. Legal stores the resulting esign_envelope_id and status from that service.
Audit Trail
Every send-for-signature and mark-signed action is written to the Legal audit log with the actor, timestamp, and document details. See Compliance and Audit Trail for details.
FAQ
What e-signature provider does Legal use?
The signing provider is chosen by the e-signature service itself, from its own ESIGN_PROVIDER setting (default inhouse-pades, the in-house PAdES signer), and the in-house PAdES signer is the only provider the service currently ships. Legal keeps its own esign_provider value in its settings, which its settings API accepts only from the providers the signing service ships — but that value does not choose the signing adapter.
The signing URL isn't working — what do I do?
Confirm that the e-signature service is configured and healthy (ask your administrator to check the ESIGN_SERVICE_URL setting). The document status will show sent_for_signature even if the signing URL is not yet active; status updates automatically once the service confirms delivery.
Can I re-send a document for signature? You can use the Mark Signed action to manually close out a document if the signer completed signing outside the platform. To re-send to a new set of signers, you would typically upload a new version of the document and initiate a fresh send.