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How to Transfer Clients via Bulk Actions

Bulk ActionsUpdated 10 min read

Required permissions
  • create bulk actions
or Super Admin

The Transfer Clients bulk action sends a filtered list of clients to another agency in one run, so you choose the destination agency, pick which related record types travel with each client, and decide what happens to the clients in your agency afterward.

Overview​

  • What it is: A bulk action type described in the app as "Transfer clients to another agency." You select a To Agency, choose record types in the Related Records list, and set two options, Sync with Target Agency and Archive After Transfer is Complete.
  • Why it matters: When a caseload moves to another jurisdiction, transferring records one client at a time is slow. A bulk action applies the same transfer settings to every client your search returns.
  • Who uses it: Staff who can create and update bulk actions and who coordinate transfers between agencies.
  • Expected outcomes: Every client in the search results, minus the ones you exclude, is sent to the destination agency along with the related record types you selected.

Prerequisites​

  • You must be signed in to the agency that holds the clients (the agency switcher button at the top right shows the current agency name)
  • You must be able to create and update bulk actions
  • The destination agency must be listed in Allow Transfers To under Admin > Settings > Agency Transfers, because the To Agency list is built from that setting
  • The destination agency must list your agency's UUID in its own Allow Transfers From setting. Without it, no clients are created there
  • Both agencies must be active
  • For events to keep their flow and location, the destination agency needs a flow and a location with the same names as yours
  • The Bulk Actions navigation item must be visible for your account

How-To Steps​

Step 1: Create the bulk action​

  1. Click Bulk Actions in the top navigation.
  2. Enter a name in the Action Name field of the Create Bulk Action card.
  3. Select Transfer Clients in the Action Type dropdown.
  4. Click Create to open the new bulk action.

Step 2: Configure the transfer settings​

Find the Bulk Action Settings card on the left side of the page.

  1. Select the destination agency in the To Agency dropdown.
  2. Select one or more record types in the Related Records list. The list contains addresses, bonds, cases, citations, comments, contacts, documents, events, payments, photos, sent_files, tasks, and warrants. Leave photos unselected, since client photos are stored as files and cannot be transferred.
  3. Check Sync with Target Agency if you want records that already exist in the destination agency to be updated. Leave it unchecked and those records are skipped instead.
  4. Check Archive After Transfer is Complete if you want the clients archived in your agency once the transfer finishes.
  5. Click Save.

Step 3: Filter the clients to transfer​

Scroll to the Search Clients card below the settings.

  1. Enter text in the Search field to match specific clients.
  2. Enter a number in the Limit field to cap how many results the search returns.
  3. Select a Client Status, an Assigned Users value, or a Client Type to narrow the results further.
  4. Click a client group badge to include that group in the search.
  5. Click Search to save the action and refresh the results.

Step 4: Review the results​

  1. Check the client count above the results table, which reads as the number shown out of the total found.
  2. Review the rows in the results table.
  3. Click the green check button in the INCLUDE column next to any client you want to leave out. The button turns red and the client is excluded.
  4. Click CLIENTS CSV to download the list if you want a record of it.

Step 5: Run the transfer​

  1. Click Live Run to start the transfer now.
  2. Click Schedule Run instead if you want it to run later, set the Scheduled Date and Scheduled Time, then click Schedule Run in the modal.

What to Expect​

A confirmation message reads "Running Bulk Action" and the status badge next to the client count updates. Bulk action statuses are dispatching, processing, complete, scheduled, and canceled.

  • Related Records: Only the record types you highlighted are sent with each client, and only their active records. Archived or trashed records stay behind.
  • Events: Each event is linked to the destination agency's flow and location with the same name. If no name matches, update the event in the destination agency.
  • Sync with Target Agency checked: If the client and related records already exist in the destination agency, they are updated. Otherwise they are created.
  • Sync with Target Agency unchecked: If the client or related records already exist in the destination agency, they are skipped. Otherwise they are created.
  • Earlier transfers: A record "already exists" when an earlier transfer copied it, so running the same transfer again never creates duplicates. A copy the destination agency has archived or trashed is left as it is, even with Sync with Target Agency checked.
  • Archive After Transfer is Complete checked: Each client is archived in your agency after its transfer finishes, along with its active contacts, cases, events, payments, addresses, documents, bonds, warrants, citations, and tasks, including types you did not send. Unsent outbound messages scheduled for the client are deleted. Comments, photos, and sent files are left as they are.
  • Partial transfers: If any selected record type cannot be copied for a client, the other types are still copied, but that client is not archived.
  • Email confirmation: You receive one "Transfer Client Complete" email for each client, with links to the original and the new client (or "To Client: Not Created"), any types listed under "Not Transferred", and whether the client was archived.

Once the action has run, the Live Run, Schedule Run, and Search buttons no longer appear, and the count changes to the number of clients the action processed. Tools > Replay becomes available so you can queue the action again.

Best Practices​

  • Coordinate with the receiving agency before you run the transfer, since the transfer creates records in their agency
  • Set a small Limit and run one batch first, because Transfer Clients has no simulate mode
  • Select only the Related Records types the receiving agency actually needs, and leave photos unselected
  • Confirm the receiving agency has added your agency to Allow Transfers From before you run
  • Leave Sync with Target Agency unchecked for a one time transfer so existing records in the destination agency are skipped rather than rewritten
  • Download CLIENTS CSV before running so you keep a list of exactly who was included

Frequently Asked Questions​

Where does the To Agency list come from?

From the Allow Transfers To setting in Admin > Settings > Agency Transfers, which holds a comma separated list of agency UUIDs. The bulk action loads each of those agencies and sorts them by name.

What happens if I do not select anything in Related Records?

Only the client record is sent. Any record type you leave unselected stays in your agency, and if Archive After Transfer is Complete is checked, those records are archived along with the client.

Can I test a transfer before running it for real?

No. Simulate Mode and the Simulate Run option appear only on Send a Message bulk actions, so use the Limit field to run a small batch first.

Can I transfer one client without building a bulk action?

Yes. Open the client and click Tools > Transfer. See How to Transfer a Client to Another Agency.

Is it safe to replay a transfer that already ran?

Yes. Records an earlier run already copied are skipped (or updated, with Sync with Target Agency checked), so a replay only adds what is new and never creates duplicates.

Can a transfer be reversed?

There is no undo button. To bring the originals back in your agency, run a Restore Clients bulk action on the archived clients. The receiving agency can also transfer the clients back, as long as their Allow Transfers To lists your agency and your Allow Transfers From lists theirs.

Troubleshooting​

No To Agency dropdown appears.

Symptoms: The bulk action shows "Loading configured agencies..." and then a warning that reads "Set transfer agencies in Settings", or a warning that reads "The configured transfer agencies could not be loaded."

Solution:

  1. Go to Admin > Settings and type transfers in the Search Settings field.
  2. Add the destination agency UUIDs to Allow Transfers To as a comma separated list, then save.
  3. Reopen the bulk action. If the warning says the agencies could not be loaded, the UUIDs are set but could not be read, so confirm each one is correct.
Related records are missing in the destination agency.

Symptoms: The clients arrived, but events, payments, or other records did not.

Solution:

  1. Open the bulk action and confirm those record types were highlighted in the Related Records list before the run.
  2. Check whether the records already existed in the destination agency. With Sync with Target Agency unchecked, existing records are skipped instead of updated.
  3. Check whether the destination agency archived or trashed its copy. A transfer never brings back or replaces a copy the destination agency removed.
The clients never appear in the destination agency.

Symptoms: The bulk action completes, but each "Transfer Client Complete" email reads "To Client: Not Created".

Solution:

  1. Ask the destination agency to add your agency's UUID to their Allow Transfers From setting under Admin > Settings > Agency Transfers.
  2. Confirm your Allow Transfers To still lists them.
  3. Click Tools > Replay to queue the action again.
Clients were transferred but not archived.

Symptoms: The emails list a record type under "Not Transferred" and read "Archive in From Agency: not archived".

Solution: If the type is photos, remove it from Related Records, since photos cannot be transferred. Archive the clients with an Archive Clients bulk action once the destination agency confirms it has what it needs. For any other type, create a ticket with one of the emails.

The Live Run button is missing.

Symptoms: The buttons above the results table do not include Live Run or Schedule Run.

Solution:

  1. Check the status badge. An action that has already run hides both buttons, so use Tools > Replay to queue it again.
  2. Check whether the action is archived or trashed. Restore it from the Tools menu to bring the run buttons back.

If the transfer still does not behave as expected, sign in to eCourtDate and create a ticket by clicking the ticket button in the bottom right corner of the screen.