Glossary
Bates number
Bates number
A Bates number is a sequential control number applied to every page of a document set during production, usually as a prefix plus a zero-padded figure such as SMITH000101. The name comes from the Bates numbering machine, a stamping device used long before documents were produced electronically. Its job is page-level identification: any single page anywhere in the production can be cited and found.
The distinction from an exhibit number is worth keeping sharp. Bates numbers are applied in discovery, cover every produced page whether or not it is ever used, and never change. Exhibit numbers are applied later, cover only the material a party puts before a tribunal, and identify whole documents rather than pages. One exhibit therefore spans a Bates range. Prefix conventions, whether numbering is per party or per production, and any confidentiality endorsement that travels with the stamp are matters of agreement or court order and vary between cases.
Example
The Smith production ran from SMITH000001 to SMITH000412. The construction contract occupies SMITH000001 to SMITH000012 and became Exhibit 001. The site inspection report occupies SMITH000330 to SMITH000341 and became Exhibit 008. When counsel wants the photographs inside that report, the useful citation is Exhibit 008 at SMITH000335 to SMITH000338, which identifies both the exhibit the jury has and the exact pages in the production.
Practical context
Carrying the Bates range on your exhibit list is what lets two sides confirm they are discussing the same document when their exhibit numbers differ. It is also how you catch a common error: an exhibit whose PDF is missing a page, which shows up as a gap between the stated range and the page count.
Record the range as produced rather than retyping it from memory, and keep it beside the page count in your trial exhibit index. The trial exhibit list template has a column for it.
In Exhibit Room
Be clear about the limit here: Exhibit Room does not apply Bates numbers. There is no stamping tool, and no text is written into the PDF, so numbering has to be done in whatever tool handles your productions before the file is imported.
What the app does offer is a description field on each exhibit, which is a sensible place to keep the range as a label, and a viewer that opens large PDFs page by page so a long production volume stays responsive. There is also no text search inside PDFs, so plan to navigate by page number and thumbnails; how to organize trial exhibits suggests a file naming scheme that helps.
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