# Sign and validate a contract

Send a draft contract to the client, collect the client's and the firm's signatures in the back office or on the portal, and let the contract become Valid.

A contract is signed while it is **Draft**. Once the client and the firm have both signed, it becomes **Valid** on its own.

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

- You need the **User: Own Documents** level or higher on **Contracts**.
- The contract is **Draft**: from **Drafting**, use **Actions** › **Mark Drafted**.

## Send it to the client {#send-it}

- **Actions** › **Send Report** opens an e-mail with the full contract as a PDF.
- **Actions** › **Send Formula** opens an e-mail with the one-page formula of the contract.

Both e-mails carry the link to the contract on the portal, where the client reads it and signs.

## Collect the signatures {#collect-signatures}

Open the **Signatures** tab. The client signs on the portal or here in **Client Signature**, and the firm signs in **Company Signature**. Each signature records its date.

![In Draft, the client and the firm sign here; both signatures make the contract Valid.](https://jaah.app/web/image/8263-b3b27df9/law-contract-sign-contract_signatures-en.png)

When both are in, the contract becomes **Valid**. When **Send Activation Notice** is on in the contract settings, an e-mail then announces it to the client, the followers or the people chosen there.

## Validate without signatures {#validate}

When the contract was signed on paper, **Actions** › **Set Valid** makes it **Valid** directly.

## FAQ {#faq}

### Why can I not sign? {#cannot-sign}

Signatures are open only in **Draft**, and each one only once. A contract in **Drafting** must be marked as draft first.

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- Source: https://jaah.app/docs/law-contract/sign-and-validate-a-contract
- Updated: 2026-10-14
- Version: Contracts 19.0.1.0.26
- Verified: 2026-10-14