How to Create Forms

Forms let your agency collect information from clients through a web portal, so you can replace paper intake sheets with structured data that lands directly in eCourtDate.

### Overview

- **What it is:** A form builder that creates web forms hosted on one of your agency portals, with sections, 26 field types, conditional logic, and automatic actions on submission
- **Why it matters:** Clients complete the form online, your staff receive an email for each submission, and every answer is searchable and exportable
- **Who uses it:** Court and agency staff who reach the **Forms** page from the **Admin** menu
- **Expected outcomes:** A published form with a portal link, a QR code, and a **Submissions** record for every response

### Prerequisites

- Access to the **Admin** menu, where **Forms** is listed
- At least one portal. The **Forms** page shows "No portals found. Create a portal to use forms." when your agency has none
- A list of the questions you want to ask, so you can group them into sections before you build
- (Optional) An auto message, if you want each submission to trigger one through **Trigger Auto Message**

### How-To Steps

#### Create the form

1. Go to **Admin** > **Forms**.
2. Enter a **Name** in the **Create Form** card. New forms start as drafts, and language, portal, and status are set in the editor.
3. Click **Create**. eCourtDate opens the form editor for the new form.
4. Click **Import** on any sample in the **Import Sample Forms** card instead, if you would rather start from a prebuilt form.

#### Set the form details

1. Review **Name** and **Reference ID** in the **Edit Form** card on the left.
2. Select the **Portal** that hosts the form. New forms are assigned to one of your portals automatically, so confirm it is the right one.
3. Enter a **Description** to show under the form title (optional).
4. Select the **Default Language**.
5. Enter an **Expiration Date** under **Expiration Settings** to auto-close the form, then set an **Expiration Time**.
6. Enter a **Payment Amount** to collect an amount in USD when the form is submitted (optional).
7. Click **Save**.

Leave **External Redirect** empty unless you want visitors sent to an external form instead. When it holds a URL, the fields you build are not shown and the **Submission Settings** are hidden.

#### Configure submission settings

1. Enter a comma-separated list of addresses in **Notify on Submission**. Your own address is added when the form is created.
2. Select an auto message under **Trigger Auto Message** (optional).
3. Select a **Default Submission Status** to set the review status each new submission starts at. The default is "Portal default (New)".
4. Enter a **Redirect on Submission** URL to send clients somewhere after they submit (optional).
5. Enter a **Submit Button Label**, **Submit Confirm Alert**, and **Submit Confirm Description** to replace the default wording (optional).
6. Click **Save**.

#### Build sections and fields

1. Click the **Form Builder** tab.
2. Click **Add Section** next to **Form Structure** to add a section. A form that has no sections yet opens with one named "General".
3. Edit the **Section Title** and **Section Description**.
4. Click **Add Field** in the section header and pick a type from the grouped menu: **Text**, **Display**, **Input**, **Date & Time**, **Choices**, and **Special**.
5. Edit the **Field Title**. New fields are named after their type and open ready for editing.
6. Enter **Help Text** and a **Default Value** for the field (optional).
7. Clear **Required Field** if the answer is optional. Every new field is required by default.
8. Check **Hidden Field** to keep the field off the published form.
9. Enter the choices for a **Dropdown**, **Multi-Dropdown**, **Radio**, or **Checkbox** field as a comma-separated list, or pick a ready-made list from **Presets**.
10. Click **Save**.

Reorder fields by dragging the handle or clicking the up and down arrows, and move one elsewhere with **Move to Section**. Deleting a section or a field takes two clicks: the button changes to **Confirm Delete** for a few seconds.

#### Add conditional logic

1. Expand the field you want to show or hide, then open **Advanced Options**.
2. Select a **Condition Field**. The list holds the other fields in the same section.
3. Select an **Operator** such as **Equals** or **Not Equal**.
4. Enter the **Value** to compare against.
5. Select **Show** or **Hide** under **Action**.
6. Click **Save**.

Conditions match on the field title. If you rename the condition field later, update the condition too.

#### Create auto actions (optional)

1. Click the **Form Actions** tab.
2. Select **Update Client** or **Create Address** under **Action Type**.
3. Select the **Form Field** the action reads.
4. Select a **Condition** and enter the **Value** that has to match.
5. Select a **Logic Rule** of **And** or **Or**.
6. Select the **Update Field** and enter a **New Value** for an **Update Client** action. Leave **New Value** blank to store the submitted answer.
7. Select an **Address Type** and map at least **Full Address** or **Address Line 1** for a **Create Address** action.
8. Click **Add Action**.
9. Click **Save**. Actions are only stored on the form once you save.

#### Preview the form

1. Click the **Form Preview** tab.
2. Fill in the fields the way a client would.
3. Click the submit button. Nothing is saved: submitting in the preview does not create a submission or trigger notifications.
4. Click **Reset Preview** to clear the values and try again.

#### Publish and share the form

1. Select **private** or **public** under **Status**. A **private** form is only accessible to signed-in clients, and a **public** form is accessible to anyone with the link.
2. Click **Confirm** in the banner that appears. eCourtDate saves the form as soon as you confirm.
3. Click **Copy Link** in the header to copy the portal URL, or **Open Link** to open the form yourself.
4. Click **QR Code** to open Design Studio and build a QR code for the link.
5. Point clients at the portal **Library**, which lists every form on that portal that is not a draft.

#### Review submissions

1. Click **View Submissions** in the form header to open the **Submissions** page filtered to this form.
2. Turn on **Edit mode** to correct answers in place, or use **Columns** and **Filters** to narrow the spreadsheet.
3. Click **Export**, then **CSV** or **PDF**, to download the submissions that match your filters.
4. Click the **Form Analytics** tab in the form editor for **Total Submissions**, **Submissions Today**, **Last 7 Days**, and **Last 30 Days** counts, plus **Review Status**, **Submissions Over Time**, **Field Response Rates**, and **Answer Distributions**.
5. Set **Created From** and **Created To** to limit the analytics breakdowns to a date range.

### What to Expect

Once the form is published, the header shows **Open Link**, **Copy Link**, **QR Code**, and **View Submissions**. Those buttons stay hidden while the form is a draft. Clients open the link, move through multi-section forms with **Previous** and **Next**, and finish with the submit button. They can also click **Download PDF** to download a PDF copy of the form. Every edit in the editor takes effect when you click **Save**, and an **Unsaved changes** badge appears until you do.

### Best Practices

- Start from the **Import Sample Forms** card and adapt a sample rather than building from scratch.
- Leave the form in **draft** while you build. A draft form is only accessible in the editor.
- Test in the **Form Preview** tab before you publish, because preview submissions save nothing.
- Name your fields before you add conditions or auto actions, since both match on the field title.
- Use **Duplicate** in the **Tools** dropdown to copy a working form instead of rebuilding it.

### Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: Can I embed a single form in our agency website?**

A: No. There is no embed code for an individual form. The portal that hosts the form has an **Embed and Share** card with an **iFrame Embed Code** that embeds the whole portal, and a **Whitelist Domains** field for the sites allowed to embed it.

**Q: Where do submissions go?**

A: To the **Submissions** page, which you reach with **View Submissions** in the form header. Use **Export** > **CSV** or **Export** > **PDF** to download them.

**Q: Can clients upload files?**

A: Yes. Add a **File Upload** field from **Add Field** > **Special**. The builder has no setting for accepted file types or file size.

**Q: What happens when a form expires?**

A: After the **Expiration Date** and **Expiration Time** pass, the form is no longer accessible and the editor shows "This form has expired. It is no longer accessible."

**Q: Can a form collect a payment?**

A: Yes. Enter a **Payment Amount** in the **Edit Form** card. It is an optional amount in USD collected when the form is submitted.

### Troubleshooting

**Issue:** The **Open Link**, **Copy Link**, **QR Code**, and **View Submissions** buttons are missing.

**Symptoms:** The form header only shows **PDF**, **Tools**, **Save**, and **Back to Forms**.

**Solution:**

1. Check that **Status** is **private** or **public** rather than **draft**, and click **Confirm** in the banner.
2. Select a **Portal** in the **Edit Form** card.
3. Click **Save** and reload the editor.

**Issue:** Clients never see the fields you built.

**Symptoms:** The **Form Builder** tab shows a warning that an External Redirect is set, and visitors land on another website.

**Solution:**

1. Clear the **External Redirect** field in the **Edit Form** card.
2. Click **Save**.

**Issue:** An auto action disappears after you leave the page.

**Symptoms:** The action shows under **Active Actions** while you work, then is gone when you return.

**Solution:**

1. Click **Add Action** to stage the action.
2. Click **Save** while the **Unsaved changes** badge is showing.

**Issue:** A conditional field always shows.

**Symptoms:** The field appears no matter what the client answers.

**Solution:**

1. Open **Advanced Options** on the field and check that **Condition Field** still names an existing field title.
2. Reselect the **Condition Field** if you renamed it, then click **Save**.

> **Important:** If you continue to experience issues after following these troubleshooting steps, sign in to eCourtDate and create a ticket by clicking the ticket button in the bottom right corner of the screen.

### Related Articles

- [How to Create Web Portals](/how-to-create-web-portals)
- [How to manage form submissions](/how-to-manage-form-submissions)
- [How to review form submissions](/how-to-review-form-submissions)
- [How to Setup a Self-Enroll Form](/how-to-setup-a-self-enroll-form)
- [How to generate qr codes](/how-to-generate-qr-codes)
- [How to Create an Auto Message](/how-to-create-an-auto-message)