How to Bates number PDFs and photos together offline (and catch password-protected exhibits)

Why mixed productions go wrong

Three things cause most of the trouble.

1. Photos aren't PDFs. Most Bates tools only accept PDFs. So photos get converted one at a time, and someone has to slot them back into the right place in the sequence.
2. Locked PDFs slip through. A password-protected or damaged PDF can stop a batch partway through. Worse, it can come out of the batch unusable without anyone noticing. Many workflows have no step that checks for protection before stamping.
3. The page count looks right, but the set isn't. A duplicated exhibit and a missing page can still add up to the right total. Without a per-file record of which Bates range landed on which file, the error turns up later, usually in a deposition.

The manual way: convert, check, stamp, log

You can do all of this by hand with Windows and a PDF editor your firm may already have.

1. Put every file in production order. Make a working folder and name the files with a leading number (01-Contract.pdf, 02-Email-Thread.pdf, 03-Site-Photo.jpg).

2. Convert the photos to PDF. In Windows, open the image and print it to Microsoft Print to PDF.

3. Check for protection and damage. Open every PDF once. If one asks for a password or won't open, deal with it now. Ask the client for an unlocked copy, or, if you're authorized, save an unlocked copy and keep the original in the matter file. If you use Acrobat, select all the files and choose Combine: it will tell you which ones are protected.

4. Stamp.

• Adobe Acrobat Pro (paid, but many firms already have it) has Bates numbering under Edit > More > Bates Numbering. It numbers continuously across all the files you add.

5. Build the log. Record each file's first and last Bates number and page count in a spreadsheet. That record is what lets you prove what you produced.

6. Spot-check. Check the first, middle and last numbers, and that no stamp covers body text.

That works, but steps 2, 3 and 5 are where errors creep in on a deadline.

Doing it in one pass with Solace BateStamp

Solace BateStamp is a Windows desktop tool we make for exactly this job. Here's what it does, checked by our own tests on a Windows PC with a mixed test volume (three PDFs, including a scanned one, plus a JPG and a PNG):

• PDFs and images in one continuous run. Our test volume came out as ABC000001 to ABC000009, with no gaps or duplicates. The photo and the diagram were numbered in sequence and came out as stamped PDFs.
• It catches locked and broken PDFs. Password-protected and corrupt PDFs are flagged Unreadable. They get no Bates number, so the sequence has no gap, and they're named under "Problems" in the production log and in the index CSV's Error column. The row tells you to unlock the file and add it again.
• Searchable stamps. Every number in our test could be found by text extraction.
• Proof before you export. You can check a stamped page, with its placement, before downloading the volume.
• A record of what you produced. Each volume downloads as a zip with the stamped files, an index.csv (file, pages, first and last Bates number) and a readable production-log.txt. Stamped file names carry their range, like 01-Contract__ABC000001-ABC000003.pdf.
• Nothing is uploaded. Stamping runs inside the desktop app.
• Your settings. Prefix, digits, start number, position, font, color and legend. We tested bottom-right and top-left placement and a custom start number.

What to know before buying:

• Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit only. It's a portable, unsigned zip, so Windows SmartScreen will warn you on first launch. The product page publishes a SHA-256 checksum to verify the download against.
• It produces PDFs plus a CSV and a text log. It does not make load files for review platforms. For large e-discovery productions that need those, use your review platform's production tools.
• We have tested small volumes, not productions of thousands of pages.
• It doesn't unlock protected PDFs. It flags them so you can deal with them on purpose.
• Always keep untouched originals, and review stamped pages before you produce them.

Which option fits you

• A few PDFs, now and then, and you already have Acrobat Pro: its Bates Numbering is fine.
• Mixed PDFs and photos, client files that must stay on the PC, and a need to prove what you produced: BateStamp saves you the convert, check and log steps for a one-time $19.99.
• Huge productions with load files: your e-discovery platform.

Get Solace BateStamp

$19.99 one-time for the current Windows package plus 12 months of best-effort support. No subscription. There's a 14-day refund if the package can't start its core check (see the purchase terms on the product page).

See Solace BateStamp →

This guide is general workflow information, not legal advice. Follow your court's rules and your firm's production protocol.