dealhead 101 : dhDealBinder

When a transaction closes or reaches a milestone, you need to assemble the final documents for your records, external counsel, advisors, or archival. Traditionally that means hunting through versions, manually organizing them, and sending ZIP files via email. dhDealBinder automates this: you curate which documents go into a package, name it, decide who gets access, and dealhead generates a clean, ordered ZIP with an INDEX showing everything inside.

A Deal Binder contains the documents you select from your Project Checklist, plus anything you upload separately. For workflow items (documents that went through negotiation and signature), the binder includes the executed final version and its Certificate of Completion if one exists. For simple tracked items with no document workflow, the binder includes all uploaded files.

You decide the order, rename documents for presentation purposes, and control visibility. The result is a professional, organized package you can share or store.

Public Deal Binders are visible to everyone involved in the Project — both Teams, all Organizations. Use a Public binder when you want the final deal package accessible to all stakeholders.

Private Deal Binders are visible only to you (the creator) and the specific Project Members you add. Use a Private binder when you're assembling a package for internal use only, or when only certain people should see it.

⚠️ Important: Private binders are isolated by the access list. If you remove a member later, they lose access to all Private binders they were added to.

1️⃣ Click Create New Deal Binder

On the Project Tab, scroll to the Deal Binder section and click Create New Deal Binder. A configuration modal opens.

2️⃣ Name your binder

The Deal Binder Name field is pre-filled with your Project Name. Change it if you want something more specific — for example, "Project Alpha - Executed Agreements" or "Buyer Disclosure Schedules Only". The name you enter here appears in the file name when you download it, and it becomes the title in the auto-generated INDEX PDF.

Binder names must be unique within your Project. If you try to use a name that's already taken, you'll see an error.

3️⃣ Choose visibility

Select Public (viewable by all Teams) or Private (viewable by selected members only). Public is selected by default.

If you choose Private, a member picker appears. By default, only you have access. Click to add other Project Members from your Organization to the access list. They'll be able to download the binder and view its contents once you create it.

4️⃣ Review and manage documents

The modal shows all Checklist Items you've previously flagged for dhDealBinder, in Checklist order. You can add, remove, reorder, and rename them here.

Adding documents: Use the Add Additional Documents dropdown to include items not currently in the list. When you add an item, dealhead also flags it for future binder creations — so next time you create a binder, it will appear pre-populated again. You can also upload files that aren't part of your Checklist by dragging them into the upload area or clicking Upload File. Uploaded files are simultaneously added to your Project Documents.

Removing documents: Click the Remove button on any row. A prompt asks whether you want to remove it from this binder only, or also exclude it from future binders. Removing from future binders unflags the item so it won't appear pre-populated next time.

Reordering: Drag any row by its handle to change the order. The order you set here determines the order of documents in the final ZIP and INDEX. This is one of the main reasons to use dhDealBinder: you control exactly how the package is organized.

Renaming documents: Click a document's name to rename it for presentation. The original Checklist Item name stays visible as a reference. You can use this to add context — for example, renaming "Doc_v47_FINAL" to "Share Purchase Agreement" makes the package clearer for recipients.

Duplicate names within the binder aren't allowed. If you try to use a name already in the list, you'll see an inline error.

Checking document status: Each row shows the Checklist Item's current status (for example, "Executed" or "Pending Approval"). This helps you spot items that aren't ready yet. Items with a Certificate of Completion display a small badge — this tells you the CoC will be included in the binder. Items with no document attached display a "No document" indicator — they won't be included in the final ZIP, but you can still remove them from the binder here.

Viewing documents: Hover over a row to reveal an book icon. Click it to preview the document in dealhead's viewer. The modal stays open and unsaved so you can continue working.

5️⃣ Generate the binder

Click Create. If any items have no document attached, dealhead asks for confirmation before proceeding. The final package will exclude those items and include everything else. If you're satisfied, click Create Anyway.

dealhead generates a ZIP file named dhDealBinder_[YourBinderName]_[Date].zip. It contains:

The binder now appears in the Deal Binder list on your Project Tab. Public binders are automatically marked as the "Official Version" — useful if you want to track which package is the current one to reference.

When a document has been signed by all signatories but hasn't been finalized yet, dealhead creates a watermarked "In Escrow" version showing who has signed while signatures are still pending completion. Items in this state display an amber "In Escrow" chip in the document list.

By default, the watermarked In Escrow version is included in your Deal Binder. If you want to include the raw document (no signatures) instead, click the chip to toggle it. Click again to switch back. The INDEX will note which documents were included as In Escrow versions so there's no confusion about what you're looking at.

This is useful if you're assembling an internal package while a deal is still in flight — you can include the current signed state without waiting for finalization.

A generated Deal Binder is a point-in-time snapshot. If documents in your Checklist change later — a new version is negotiated, a signature is added, or the CoC gets generated — your existing binder doesn't change. The ZIP and INDEX remain exactly as they were when you created it.

This is intentional. It means a binder you created last month is still the same package if you download it today, even if the underlying documents have evolved. If you want to pick up changes, create a new binder. The pre-populated list makes this fast — your flagged items appear immediately, and you can adjust from there.

✅ Next Step: Read dealhead 101 - Working with Checklist Items for a deeper look at how items work, or dhSign - Guide for Team Captains to understand the document workflow and Certificates of Completion better.