Documents & e-signatures

Send consent forms, intake forms, agreements and contracts to be signed online. The people signing don't need an account; they get an email with a link, sign on their phone or computer, and everyone gets the signed copy by email. Documents is in the sidebar, and each contact's page has a Documents tab.

Templates: set a form up once

For a form you send again and again — a consent form, an intake form, your terms — make a template: Documents → New template.

1. Upload the form as a PDF (up to 10 MB). Have it as a Word document? Save it as a PDF first (File → Save as PDF).
2. Choose who signs. "Client" is there to start with. Add another signer if two people sign (a client and their partner, say), or tick I sign it too to countersign it yourself.
3. Place the fields: pick Signature, Initials, Name, Date, Text or Checkbox, then click on the page where it goes. Drag a field to move it, drag its corner to resize it, and click it to choose who fills it in, what it asks and whether it's required. Name fills in with the signer's name (they can correct it), and Date with the day they sign.
4. Add a message for the email if you like, and Save template.

Sending a document

Documents → Send for signing, or Send for signing on a contact's Documents tab. Pick a template, choose who signs (a contact, or type a name and email for someone who isn't one), and Send. For a one-off document, choose Upload a one-off PDF instead and place its fields the same way. With more than one signer you can have them sign in order; if you countersign, you sign last.

The email comes from your own email address if you've connected one under Settings → Email. If you haven't, it comes from documents@groundbasecrm.com as "Your Name via Groundbase", and replies go to you.

What the person signing sees

The document, page by page, with their boxes highlighted. They draw or type their signature, fill in anything else asked, tick I agree to sign this document electronically, and press Finish. They can also Decline, with a reason, which emails you straight away and closes the document.

When everyone has signed

Groundbase adds a signature certificate page to the end of the PDF: who signed, their email, when (UTC), the IP address they signed from, how they signed (drawn or typed), the full history, and the SHA-256 fingerprint of the document exactly as it was sent. The signed PDF is emailed to everyone, and kept on the document in Groundbase, where Download signed PDF gets it again any time.

Keeping track

The Documents page lists what's Waiting and what's Signed. Open one to see who has signed, who has opened it, the full history, and to Send a reminder or Cancel it. People who haven't signed get an automatic reminder after 3 days and again after 7. When it's your turn to countersign you get an email, and Sign it now appears on the document.

Changing a template never changes a document already sent: each one keeps the exact copy that went out.

Is an electronic signature legally valid?

For most everyday agreements, yes: consent forms, service agreements, contracts and waivers. Canada, the United States (the ESIGN Act and UETA) and Barbados (the Electronic Transactions Act) all accept electronic signatures for these, and the certificate page records the details that show who signed and when.

Some documents still need a signature on paper, or a witness or notary: wills, powers of attorney, some property and land documents, and some court and government forms. The rules vary by country, province and state. If a document is legally important and you're not sure, check with a lawyer before relying on an electronic signature. Groundbase is not legal advice.

From your AI assistant

Connected Claude, ChatGPT or another assistant? Ask it to "send Sarah the consent form" and it sends your template, after checking with you first. It can also tell you what's still waiting, remind people, and cancel a document. Templates themselves are made in the app.

Where it is

Web and desktop (desktop with the next desktop build). Signing happens on a web page, so the people signing need nothing installed.