For law firms

Protect your own file: record the version you advised on

TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes. For your own file, it is a dated record of the exact version you advised on, if a client or the other side later disputes which one it was.

A TimeBind is a dated, checkable record that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. The fingerprint is made in the browser, and the file stays on your device. Your first Pooled TimeBind is free; after that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

In the TimeBinder app, drag and drop your file. Your browser creates its digital fingerprint. Your file stays on your device—we never receive or see its contents.

Open TimeBinder app

When a client later says "I relied on a different draft", the question is no longer about the law. It is about which version of which document was advised on or sent, and when. A lawyer’s file notes, emails and document management history answer that most of the time. An independent timestamp adds a record of the exact file that is held outside the firm’s own systems. A TimeBind shows that the exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches its fingerprint. It does not show that the client received or read it, that the advice was right, or that it will prevent or defeat a claim.

Last updated: 10 November 2026

Where version questions come from

Drafts that go to the other side, then change. Which version did they actually see?
Advice letters, later revised or re-sent. Which version did the client act on?
Reports and opinions updated after a development. What did the earlier one say?
Documents edited after the fact, by accident or otherwise, including with AI tools. An edited file has a different fingerprint, so it won’t match the dated record.
Systems that are the firm’s own. Dates held only on the firm’s systems depend on those systems.

What to record, and when

Moment	What to timestamp	Why
Advice goes out	The advice letter or email attachment, as sent	Records the exact advice on that date
Draft goes to the other side	The draft, as sent	Records which version they saw
Client signs or instructs	The executed or instruction file	Records what was relied on
Key file note or report finalised	The final PDF	Records the version issued
Handover or closing	The matter’s key document set	Records the file at close

You don’t need to date everything. Choose the points where a later version question would be hardest to settle.

How it fits with the rest of your file

It is a supporting record, not a replacement. Keep:

Your usual file notes and records of instructions.
The email trail, showing what was sent and when.
Document management history, for internal revisions.
The certificate and the original file, together, with a short note on where they are stored.

What it does not do

It does not show that anyone received or read the file.
It does not show that the advice was correct, or who wrote the document.
It does not prevent a claim, or defeat one by itself. Talk to your insurer or risk adviser about how it fits your risk management.
It does not show how a court or regulator will treat it.

A simple routine

Export the final PDF as sent. Don’t re-save it.
Make a TimeBind in the TimeBinder app. The fingerprint is made in your browser.
Use the matter number as the reference text. No client names.
File the certificate with the matter, next to the original, with a short note.
Repeat when a new version is sent.

Offering it to clients too

The same step can be offered to clients as a service, whether bundled into a fixed fee or stated separately. See offering timestamping to clients. For the wider background, read could ignoring timestamping create liability risks for lawyers? and is a blockchain timestamp admissible in court?.

Why your own file benefits from a dated record

When a client says they relied on a different draft, the firm is the one asked to show what was sent. Your own systems hold the history, and a TimeBind adds an outside record of the exact file at that date. It helps protect the firm against disputes and altered copies; it does not show that the client received or read the document.

Your file’s fingerprint, anchored to a global network secured by real electricity and cryptography.

Editing a file—including with AI—changes its fingerprint, not its existing network record.

How this works

Your file’s SHA-256 fingerprint, a short code worked out from its exact contents, is made in your browser, and the file itself stays on your device. A cryptographic commitment to that fingerprint, which may be combined with others, is then anchored in a block on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin is secured by proof of work: computers around the world spend real electricity to add each block, and changing an earlier block would mean redoing that work faster than the rest of the network. Until that block is confirmed, your proof is pending. Once the Bitcoin anchoring is confirmed, you can verify the proof against that recorded commitment. The confirmed record can then be checked; Pooled TimeBinds are checked through TimeBinder, while ASAP TimeBinds can also be checked independently. If you check the file later and its fingerprint still matches, that shows the file existed no later than the recorded time. The record doesn’t show who made the file, whether AI was used, or that its contents are true.

Your filestays on your device
FingerprintSHA-256
Network timestampon Bitcoin

FAQ

Does it protect us from a negligence claim?

No. It is a supporting record. It helps show which version you advised on or sent, alongside your other file records.

Do we need to timestamp every email?

No. Choose the moments where a later version question would be hardest to settle, such as advice letters, drafts sent to the other side and executed documents.

Does it show the client received the advice?

No. It shows the exact file existed no later than the recorded time. Delivery is shown by your email and courier records.

Do client documents leave the firm?

No. The fingerprint is made in your browser and the file stays on your device. Use a matter number as reference text.

What does it cost?

Your first Pooled TimeBind is free. After that, from US$5 for Pooled and US$15 for ASAP, or less per TimeBind on a plan.

General information, not legal advice. A TimeBind shows that this exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches its fingerprint. It does not show authorship, ownership, copyright status or how any court, tribunal, client or insurer will treat it.

Date the version you send

Fingerprint the advice letter or draft before it goes out and file the certificate with the matter. Your first Pooled TimeBind is free, and the file stays on your device.

Make your first TimeBind free → See plans and pricing

Your first Pooled TimeBind is free, with no credit card required. After that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15. Your browser makes the fingerprint and the file stays on your device. A TimeBind shows a file existed no later than the recorded time. It doesn’t show who made it.

Make the file note stronger

Record the version you advised on, so it is there if a version question comes later.

See plans and pricing