How to transition a Contract to Active

Activation means a contract becomes legally effective.

🗺️ Overview

CLM Power Users can manually activate a contract once it is fully signed and ready for execution.
Activation represents the transition from a signed or finalized draft to an Active contract, enabling all operational and reporting capabilities available in the active phase.

🧑‍🦱 Who Can Use This

Only users with the following roles can activate contracts:

CLM Power User

✅ When a Contract Can Be Activated

A contract can be manually activated in the following cases:

1. Contract Status = Signed

2. Contract Status = Draft with Signed Main Document when a contract is bulk-imported.

🧩 Note: The Main Document can have any document category (not limited to “Master Agreement”).

⚙️ How to Activate a Contract

Open the contract you want to activate and review its key details.
Initiate the activation from the contract workflow.
The system validates the contract dates to ensure the contract can become effective.
- If the contractual Start Date is later than the activation date, activation is blocked and a warning is displayed.
If all validations are met, the contract status changes to Active.
For contracts activated from Draft, access permissions defined for the contract are automatically shared with users and user groups from the Permissions tab.
The contractual Start Date remains unchanged.
An email notification is sent to the CLM Power User and Viewers/Editors to inform them that the contract has been activated.

What Happens After Activation

Once a contract is activated, it moves into the Active phase, enabling all operational and monitoring features within CLM.

Dashboards and Reporting:
The contract becomes part of all relevant analytics, contributing to performance tracking.
Renewal and Expiration Tracking:
The system begins tracking the contract’s lifecycle milestones, including upcoming renewals, and expirations.
Permissions and Access:
Users and user groups granted permissions during the setup phase retain or gain access according to their assigned rights.

↔️ Allowed Transitions from/to Active

Transition	Description
Signed → Active	Manual
Draft → Active	Manual: only for bulk imported contracts with `Main document Signed` = true
Active → Inactive	Automatic: when the contract’s End Date is reached. Manual: before End Date, if required.
Inactive → Active	Manual
Active -> (Renewed) → Active	Automatic: when the End date is reached. Manual

Limitations

The system does not auto-activate contracts based on Start Date or any other parameter.
Activation must always be performed manually by the CLM Power User.

Best Practices

💡 Tips for Effective Use:

Double-check mandatory fields (Value, Currency, Start Date) and ensure all attached documents have passed the antivirus check.
Only one document can serve as the main file — ensure it’s the signed, finalized version before activation.