Three hundred emails, fifty contracts, a folder of scanned receipts, and a partner who wants the discovery pack on her desk in the morning. The temptation is to dump it all into one PDF, slap a number on it, and call it done.
That's how production gets challenged. Order of operations matters more than speed.
Categorise before you collate
Sort source documents into clear categories — typically by date, by custodian, by subject matter, or by request number depending on the jurisdiction. Within each category, sort chronologically. This sounds basic but doing it before you start building the PDF saves hours of reordering later. Use reorder PDF pages only for final fine-tuning.
Convert everything to PDF first
Word docs, Excel sheets, emails, images — convert them all up front. Word to PDF, Excel to PDF, image to PDF. Working from a uniform set of PDFs means the merge step is mechanical. Don't mix native and converted files mid-bundle.
Redact, then merge
Redact each source file in redact PDF before merging. If you redact at the bundle stage, every revision means re-applying redactions to a giant file. Source-level redaction also makes the redaction log easy to maintain — one entry per file, with the basis recorded.
Merge, order, stamp
Use merge PDF to combine the redacted sources in your categorised order. Spot-check by jumping to category boundaries and confirming the right documents sit at each break. Then apply Bates numbering across the entire merged pack so every page has a unique reference. Never stamp before merging.
Build the index last
The index lists categories, Bates ranges, and document descriptions. Build it after stamping so the page numbers are correct. Insert the index at the front of the pack — number it separately (e.g. i, ii, iii) so the Bates range starts at page 1 of substantive content. Save the final pack with a versioned filename and circulate.
FAQ
What's the safest order for discovery operations?
Categorise, convert, redact source files, merge in order, Bates-stamp, build index, version filename. Reversing any step typically multiplies the work.
How granular should the Bates numbering be?
Page-level numbering is standard. Document-level numbering (one ID per document) is used in some jurisdictions but page-level remains the safer default.
Can I add documents after the pack is stamped?
Yes, but use suffix numbers (e.g. PLT-000123A) inserted at the right place, or produce a supplementary pack with its own prefix. Never renumber.
Should I produce in PDF or native format?
Jurisdiction-dependent. Many courts now require native format for spreadsheets and emails, with PDF for the index and skeleton. Check the specific rules.
Discovery production rewards order of operations more than any other PDF task. Categorise, convert, redact, merge, stamp, index — in that order. Start with the merge step in Flint.