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Custom Data Fields

Introduction

Actionstep provides the ability to store a wide range of data for a Matter. However, there are times when you want to store additional information that is specific to your Practice or a specific Matter type. Actionstep provides custom data fields to facilitate this need. You can create individual fields of different data types and have them displayed for data entry against a Matter.

How Data Fields Work in Actionstep

Custom data fields are associated with an underlying Matter type. This is because a Matter is always assigned a particular matter type. Individual data fields are associated with a data collection. A data collection is simply a way to group related data fields. When you view a Matter in Actionstep you can configure the panels to display a data collection and thus the individual data fields within that collection in the same way standard fields are displayed. A data field can contain data of many different types, from simple strings, integers, or dates, etc.

You can also group field instances into a record. By marking a data collection as multi-row you create a new record for a set of field instances. For example; you create a data collection called "Document Checks" and mark it as multi-row. You then create a number of fields within this collection; Check type, Checked by, and Checked Date. When you view the data collection on the matter's home page, and assuming you have added this data collection as a displayed panel, you will see a New Record button at the bottom of the panel. Clicking this button takes you to a separate screen where you can enter values for Check type, Checked by, and Checked Date. The entered values are stored together as a record instance for this data collection, and you can create as many record instances as you need.

API Endpoints

There are essentially 4 API endpoints for managing custom data collections and fields, namely; datacollections, datacollectionfields, datacollectionrecords, and datacollectionrecordvalues.

The diagram below shows how the entities these 4 endpoints represent are related. The key to understanding the relationships is to view the links section of a GET request from each of these endpoints.

Custom Data Collections and Fields

Managing Data Fields

Custom data fields can be managed under the Admin section of Actionstep for users with Administrator permissions. From the Admin screen click on the Matter types option and click on the required matter type. The list of options displayed includes Matter data. Clicking on this option displays the current list of data collections. From this screen you can manage both data collections and individual fields within those collections.

You may find it easier to setup data fields and collections using the Actionstep Admin menu and populate their values using the API.

Demonstration Application and Sample Source Code

Actionstep provides a sample application that demonstrates many of the API calls for custom data collections and fields. Check out the Actionstep GitHub repository for more information.