# Your first contract

Draft a retainer for a client from a template, with its dates, then take it through Drafting and Draft until it is Valid and ready to invoice.

This walk-through drafts one contract, an annual retainer, from a template the firm keeps, and takes it to the point where it starts invoicing.

## Before you start {#before-you-start}

- You need the **User: Own Documents** level or higher on **Contracts** (in the **Legal Rights** section of your user).
- The client exists as a contact, and the firm keeps a template in **Contracts/Configuration/Contract Templates**.

## Step 1: draft the contract {#draft-the-contract}

1. Open **Contracts/Contracts** and click **New**.
2. Choose the **Client** first, then the **Template**. The template gives the contract its **Amount** and writes the **Agreement Statement**, with the firm's name, the client's name and the value in place.
3. Set the **Start Date** and the **End Date**.

![The template gave the contract its amount and its agreement, filled with the company and the client.](https://jaah.app/web/image/8239-3b8234cb/law-contract-first-contract-first_contract_form-en.png)

4. Click the cloud icon **Save manually**. The contract takes its sequence and starts in **Drafting**, a stage only the firm sees.

## Step 2: make it Valid {#make-it-valid}

1. When the text is ready, open **Actions** › **Mark Drafted**. The contract becomes **Draft**: the client can now read and sign it on the portal.
2. Once it is agreed, either both sides sign in the **Signatures** tab, which makes it **Valid** by itself, or open **Actions** › **Set Valid**.

![The contract is Valid; its auto invoicing and links start from here.](https://jaah.app/web/image/8243-86a7cfa5/law-contract-first-contract-first_contract_valid-en.png)

## What you have done {#what-you-have-done}

The contract exists with its amount, its dates and its agreement, and it is **Valid**. From here its instalments are invoiced in the **Auto Invoicing** tab, and the cases, consultations or project it covers can name it.

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- Source: https://jaah.app/docs/law-contract/first-contract
- Updated: 2026-10-14
- Version: Contracts 19.0.1.0.26
- Verified: 2026-10-14