The Restore Clients bulk action lets you bring archived or trashed clients back to active status in a single operation, ensuring their records are fully accessible again across your agency's client list, reports, and assignments.

### Overview

- **What it is:** A bulk action type that restores multiple archived or trashed client records to active status at once. Restored clients reappear in your active client list, search results, and assignment views.
- **Why it matters:** When clients need to be reactivated after being archived or trashed (whether due to case reopening, data cleanup corrections, or policy changes), restoring them individually is time-consuming. This bulk action makes it fast and precise with special date filters for targeting the right records.
- **Who uses it:** Administrators, case managers, and agency staff who need to reactivate client records that were previously archived or trashed.
- **Expected outcomes:** All clients matching your filters are restored to active status. Their associated records (events, cases, messages, payments) become fully accessible again.

### Prerequisites

- You must have an active eCourtDate account
- You must be a super admin or have the **Create Bulk Actions** and **Update Bulk Actions** permissions
- You must be signed into the correct agency (verify the agency name in the top right corner)
- You should know the approximate date range when the clients were archived or trashed

### How-To Steps

#### Step 1: Navigate to Bulk Actions

1. Sign in to your eCourtDate agency.
2. Click **Bulk Actions** in the top navigation bar.

#### Step 2: Create a New Restore Clients Action

1. Enter a descriptive name in the **Action Name** field (e.g., "Restore Clients Archived in January 2026").
2. Select **Restore Clients** from the **Action Type** dropdown.
3. Click the **Create** button.

#### Step 3: Set the Archived Date Range

The Restore Clients action type includes special date filters that help you target clients based on when they were archived or trashed.

1. Scroll to the **Search Clients** section on the bulk action edit page.
2. Set the **Archived From Date** to the start of the period you want to target.
3. Set the **Archived To Date** to the end of the period you want to target.

> **Tip:** If you know the exact date a bulk archive or trash action was run, use that date for both the **Archived From Date** and **Archived To Date** to find only clients affected by that specific operation.

#### Step 4: Configure Additional Filters (Optional)

1. Apply additional filters to narrow your results further:
   - Select a **Client Status** to target clients with a specific status
   - Select a **Group** to target clients in a specific group
   - Select a **Type** to filter by client type
   - Select an **Assigned User** to target clients assigned to a specific staff member
2. Set the **Client Limit** to control the maximum number of clients to include.

#### Step 5: Search and Review Results

1. Click **Search** to find clients matching your filters.
2. Review the list of matching clients in the results area.
3. Verify the client count and confirm these are the records you want to restore.
4. Click the **Include/Exclude** button next to any client you want to remove from the operation.

#### Step 6: Run the Bulk Action

1. Click **Live Run** to restore the matching clients immediately.
   - Alternatively, click **Schedule Run**, set the **Scheduled Date** and **Scheduled Time**, then click **Schedule Run** to confirm.
2. Wait for the confirmation email indicating the bulk action is complete.

### What to Expect

After you click **Live Run**, the bulk action begins processing and restores all included clients to active status. Restored clients reappear in the active client list, search results, reports, and assignment views. All previously associated records (events, cases, messages, payments) become fully accessible again. Scheduled messages that were paused due to archiving or trashing resume if the send time has not yet passed. Processing time depends on the number of clients, and you will receive a confirmation email when the operation completes.

### Best Practices

- Use the **Archived From Date** and **Archived To Date** filters to precisely target the clients you want to restore, rather than restoring all archived or trashed clients at once
- Review the client list carefully before clicking **Live Run** to avoid restoring records that should remain archived
- After restoring clients, verify that their assignments, events, and scheduled messages are correct and up to date
- Communicate with your team after a bulk restore so staff members are aware that previously inactive clients are back in their active caseloads
- Keep the action name descriptive (e.g., "Restore Q4 2025 Archive Batch") so you can reference which clients were restored and when

### Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: Can I restore both trashed and archived clients in the same bulk action?**
A: Yes. The Restore Clients action targets both trashed and archived clients. Use the **Archived From Date** and **Archived To Date** filters to narrow the results to the correct time period regardless of whether the clients were trashed or archived.

**Q: What happens to a client's data when they are restored?**
A: All client data is fully preserved during archiving and trashing. When you restore a client, their events, cases, messages, payments, and all other associated records become accessible again in their original state.

**Q: Will scheduled messages resume after a client is restored?**
A: Yes, if the scheduled send time has not yet passed. Messages that were paused because the client was archived or trashed will resume their normal schedule once the client is restored.

**Q: How do I find clients that were archived on a specific date?**
A: Use the **Archived From Date** and **Archived To Date** fields on the Restore Clients bulk action. Set both dates to the same day to find clients archived on that exact date.

**Q: Can I restore a single client without using Bulk Actions?**
A: Yes. You can restore individual clients directly from their client record. Bulk Actions is designed for restoring multiple clients at once.

### Troubleshooting

**Issue:** No clients appear after setting the archived date range.
**Symptoms:** The results list is empty even though you know clients were archived during the specified period.
**Solution:**

1. Double-check the **Archived From Date** and **Archived To Date** values. Make sure the "from" date is earlier than or equal to the "to" date.
2. Widen the date range to include a larger period and see if clients appear.
3. Verify that clients were actually archived (not deleted permanently) during the specified period.

**Issue:** Restored clients are missing their assignments or events.
**Symptoms:** After restoring, client records appear but associated data seems incomplete.
**Solution:**

1. Refresh the client profile page to ensure all data loads correctly.
2. Check whether the associated records (events, cases, assignments) were independently modified or deleted while the client was archived.
3. If data appears to be missing, contact support through the ticket button in the bottom right corner of the screen.

> **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 Bulk Actions Work](/how-bulk-actions-work)
- [How to Trash Clients via Bulk Actions](/how-to-trash-clients-via-bulk-actions)
- [How to Archive Clients via Bulk Actions](/how-to-archive-clients-via-bulk-actions)
- [How to Manage Clients](/how-to-manage-clients)
- [How to Send a Mass Message using Bulk Actions](/how-to-send-a-mass-message-using-bulk-actions)