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Templates
Creating Custom Templates

Custom Templates

Upload your own DOCX template to make every exported transcript match your firm's house style — cover page design, certification language, exhibit index format, fonts, margins, and more.

Creating a custom template in HeyDonna

How It Works

HeyDonna reads your uploaded DOCX as a template shell. When you export:

  1. Your template's existing content (cover page, appearances, certification) is preserved exactly
  2. The transcript body is inserted at the {{TRANSCRIPT}} placeholder you placed in the proceedings section
  3. Section-specific formatting from your template is applied to the corresponding content

The result is a DOCX that looks like you formatted it yourself in Word — not a generic AI output.

Uploading a Custom Template

Prepare Your DOCX

Open your template in Word. You need to add one required marker and optionally review your section structure.

Required: Add the {{TRANSCRIPT}} placeholder

Find the proceedings section in your document — the area where the actual testimony belongs. Place the cursor on an empty paragraph there and type:

{{TRANSCRIPT}}

This tells HeyDonna exactly where to insert the transcript body. The placeholder paragraph is replaced by the formatted transcript content on export.

Optional: Review your section headings

HeyDonna auto-detects sections by looking for common legal heading keywords:

SectionKeywords that trigger detection
AppearancesAPPEARANCES, COUNSEL
ProceedingsContains {{TRANSCRIPT}}
CertificationCERTIFICATE, CERTIFICATION
Exhibit IndexINDEX OF EXHIBITS, EXHIBIT INDEX

Make sure your heading text contains one of these keywords (case-insensitive) so the system can map your template correctly.

Upload the Template

  1. From the editor or dashboard, open Project Settings
  2. Go to the Template tab
  3. Click Upload Template
  4. Select your DOCX file (max 20MB)
  5. HeyDonna parses the file and displays a section preview

Verify Section Detection

The preview shows which sections were found:

  • Detected — Section found and will be included in exports
  • Not detected — Section is absent or heading wasn't recognized; that section will be omitted

If a section shows "Not detected" that you expect to be there, check that the heading text matches one of the keywords in the table above.

Save and Test

Click Save to attach the template to the project. Then:

  1. Run a short test export: File → Export as DOCX
  2. Open the DOCX in Word
  3. Check that each section looks correct and the transcript content appears where expected

Section Detection

HeyDonna uses structural analysis to identify sections in your template. Here's how each section is recognized:

Cover Page

Everything before the Appearances section is treated as the cover page. It's preserved as-is and appears first in every export.

Appearances

Any block of text that contains the heading APPEARANCES or APPEARANCES OF COUNSEL (case-insensitive). The content in this section is preserved as-is; HeyDonna does not modify appearances.

Proceedings

The paragraph that contains {{TRANSCRIPT}}. This is the only required section — it cannot be auto-detected by keyword alone because its location varies widely between firms.

Certification

Any section containing a heading that includes CERTIFICATE or CERTIFICATION. The certification language from your template is preserved and appears after the transcript body in exports.

Exhibit Index

Any section with a heading containing INDEX or EXHIBIT. Preserved as-is in exports.

Formatting Requirements

For the transcript body to render correctly, the proceedings section of your template should follow these guidelines:

SettingRecommended Value
Paragraph styleNormal
Tab stops0.5in, 1.0in, 1.5in
Line spacingDouble (504 twips / 28pt)
Lines per page25
FontAny proportional font (Times New Roman 12pt is common)
⚠️

Avoid using absolute line heights, text boxes, or frames in the proceedings section. These can prevent HeyDonna from flowing transcript content correctly.

Troubleshooting

{{TRANSCRIPT}} Placeholder Not Detected

  • Make sure the placeholder is typed exactly: two opening braces, uppercase TRANSCRIPT, two closing braces — {{TRANSCRIPT}}
  • The placeholder must be in a regular paragraph, not inside a table cell, text box, or header/footer
  • Check there are no smart quotes around the curly braces (Word sometimes replaces { with a typographic alternative)

Sections Missing from Export

  1. Check your section heading text against the keywords in the detection table above
  2. Make sure the heading is in a regular body paragraph — not a Word style like Heading 1 (which can sometimes confuse detection)
  3. Try adding the exact keyword (e.g., APPEARANCES) to the heading text

Formatting Looks Wrong in Export

  • Open the exported DOCX in Word and check the paragraph styles applied to the transcript body
  • If body text is inheriting a cover page style, the Normal style in your template may be overridden — reset Normal style to your preferred settings
  • Tab stop positions in your template's Normal style are used for Q/A and colloquy indentation; make sure they're set to 0.5in, 1.0in, 1.5in

Template Upload Fails

  • Maximum file size is 20MB
  • File must be .docx format (not .doc, .odt, or .pages)
  • Password-protected documents cannot be uploaded — remove the password in Word first
Using TemplatesTemplate Creation Wizard