Release Notes

Recent Common Paper releases and improvements.

August 23, 2023

Common Paper Business Associate Agreement (BAA) v1.0

We're proud to announce the release of our latest standard, the Common Paper Business Associate Agreement (BAA). Whether you’re building in health tech or selling into the healthcare ecosystem, you probably need a BAA. Created by the attorneys on the Common Paper Committee, we’re proud to share the standard BAA - built for software companies to stay HIPAA compliant. Streamlined, easy to negotiate, and open-source. Available for free to download or for use in our app today! Read more

August 2, 2023

Automatic Billing

For Common Paper users using our Cloud Service agreement, we’ve launched the ability to automate invoicing and collecting payment from your customers. Using the data in your contract, Common Paper automatically creates a billing schedule and walks your customer (or someone else in their org) through a payment workflow immediately after signing a Common Paper […]

July 5, 2023

Bill with Stripe Integration

We're excited to release a new feature that allows users to integrate their Stripe accounts with Common Paper. Once connected, Cloud Service Agreements can be configured to create recurring subscriptions in Stripe based on the parameters of the contract, and present a checkout screen to recipients immediately after signing. This new integration will help reduce the time it takes for Common Paper customers to receive payment from their customers and get their subscriptions in place. Read more

June 27, 2023

Upsell / Renew Uploaded Signed Agreements

For Common Paper users on paid plans, we've added the ability to send a renewal or upsell order form from an agreement that was uploaded to an account. For instance, if you've signed a Common Paper CSA outside of Common Paper, are ready to renew that customer and want to do it through the platform, simply upload the original signed agreement and then you'll have the option to send a new order form. Read more

June 14, 2023

Support for Signing Uploaded Documents

We're excited to release a new feature that allows Common Paper users to sign uploaded documents! Now users can start a Common Paper agreement, download it as Word doc or PDF and negotiate outside the system (if need be), then upload it back into Common Paper and send it through a signing workflow. Read more

May 31, 2023

Embedded Language Library

We've released an exciting feature that brings our ever growing Language Library of agreement modifications right into the template and agreement creation process. Common Paper users can now click to easily add these clauses as part of the Other Changes section of each agreement, as well as link out to the library for more details about each addition. Read more

May 20, 2023

Effective Date Flexibility for the NDA

We've released a minor update to the NDA that allows Common Paper users to optionally set a specific effective date instead of the default effective date (date of last signature). This new flexibility allows for sending a backdated NDA (to formalize an informal NDA) or to postdate an NDA if it is meant to start at some point in the future. Read more

April 20, 2023

Common Paper API v1.0

We're very excited to release the first version of the Common Paper API! Common Paper users can now programmatically access agreement information, as well as send new agreements and perform in-flight agreement operations such as resending emails and reassigning recipients. This new release will enable developers to bring Common Paper data and functionality into their own applications. Read more

April 10, 2023

Common Paper Pages – Recipient Initiated NDAs

Common Paper users can now set up a public form that prospects and customers can use to initiate agreements. While most NDAs are likely initiated through the Common Paper web app, this new feature allows a different path: prospects or customers can fill out a short web form at a public URL, and generate an agreement automatically from an existing NDA template. Read more

March 24, 2023

Download Sample Agreements

Common Paper users can now generate sample agreements from their templates. Sample agreements include the values in a template, but are not directed or customized to a particular customer. They can be used to introduce recipients to how Common Paper agreements are structured before the formal sales process begins to help eliminate any legal concerns ahead of time. Read more

March 15, 2023

EUR/GBP Currency Support for Cloud Service Fees

Common Paper users can now change their Cloud Service Fees in the CSA to be represented in Euros or British Pounds in addition to US dollars. This change only affects Cloud Service Fees and does not alter insurance minimums, general/increased caps, or anywhere else that currency appears. Read more

March 6, 2023

Managed Renewals and Upsells

We're excited to release a new feature that allows Common Paper users on our Standard Plan to issue renewals / upsells on top of completed CSAs. These new order forms reference the underlying signed agreements for the key terms and only show the order form information for recipients to see, negotiate and sign. Read more

February 24, 2023

Post-Signature Payment Links

Users can now attach a link to their CSAs, PSAs and Design Partner agreements that direct recipients to provide payment information. This new feature makes it easy for Common Paper users to add their Stripe Payment Links or any other checkout/form links and have them be presented to a recipient immediately after they sign their agreement. For more information, check out our help docs. Read more

February 21, 2023

Automated Reminders Interval Configuration

We've added a small feature that allows Common Paper users to set the number of days between automated reminder emails, giving greater control on how often recipients get email reminders. The default is three days, but can now be adjusted on the Settings page. Read more

January 28, 2023

Adding Reassigned Recipient to Informed Users

We've released a small feature that allows anyone reassigning an agreement to move the original recipient of an agreement to the 'keep informed' list. This is great for recipients to stay in the loop as agreements move to other parts of the organization for review or signature. Read more

January 26, 2023

Test Agreements

Common Paper users can now send test agreements so that they can experience the full agreement process from end to end before sending agreements to real customers. Test agreements are marked in the system as such, and use the same process and flow as regular agreements (including esignature) but are not legally binding. Read more

January 26, 2023

Custom Fees for the Design Partner Agreement

We've released a minor feature that provides greater flexibility to specify a fee structure for design partner agreements. Now when creating a new design partner agreement, users have the option to either use the default fee structure or provide a their own using Markdown. Read more

January 25, 2023

Branding Support

Common Paper users can now upload a logo to help personalize their agreements to match their company. The logos appear on both the web and PDF versions of agreements. Users can upload their logos on the settings page. Read more

January 12, 2023

Common Paper Professional Services Agreement v1.0

We're proud to announce the release of our latest standard, the Common Paper Professional Services Agreement (PSA). Drafted and vetted by our committee of experts, the new standard is designed to serve a wide range of professional service needs. Available for free to download or for use in our app today! Read more

January 10, 2023

Enhanced CSA Fees

We've released an update to our Cloud Services Agreement that gives users more options for detailing the fees associated with the agreement. Users can now create a fees table with line items that are charged, included as well as discounts and the inclusion of a calculated total. There's now also an additional space to include additional details in Markdown format. As part of this change, we've simplified use limitations. Read more

December 21, 2022

Automated Email Reminders

Common Paper users can now turn on automated reminders for agreements that are in-flight. When turned on, recipients will receive an email every 3 days in which they haven't taken an action - reviewed an agreement, reviewed proposed changes, etc. Read more

December 16, 2022

Shareable Agreement Links

Users can now generate links to agreement requests to include in emails or otherwise give directly to recipients. These links bring up a read-only version of the agreement, and require the primary recipient to have to verify their email address in order to propose changes or sign the agreement. Read more

December 14, 2022

Expiring Agreement Requests

Common Paper users can now attach expiration dates to agreements that are sent out to their customers. As an agreement request nears the expiration date, recipients are notified of the pending expiration and urged to review and signed. Once agreements are expired, recipients can no longer access them.

December 13, 2022

Enhanced Export as CSV

With this latest release, Common Paper users can get access to the full structured data for their agreements! Read more

December 7, 2022

Draft Mode

An oft-requested feature, we're excited to launch Draft mode for agreements! This new functionality allows users to save an agreement as a draft instead of sending the agreement directly to a customer. Read more

December 1, 2022

Agreement Interview Guides

We're excited to announce the release of TurboTax-style guided interviews for several of our Common Paper agreements. These guides take users step by step through each of the terms to help customize them for each individual business. Read more

November 18, 2022

Including Terms by Default

After a review of usage and feedback from customers, we’ve made a minor change to enable including the Standard Terms in generated documents by default when creating a new template. Existing templates are unaffected, and it’s easy to toggle off this setting at both the template and individual agreement level.

October 21, 2022

Pagination, Sorting, Searching and Filtering

We've released a number of improvements to the agreements section of the app to make it easier to navigate as users send and sign more and more agreements. Read more

October 17, 2022

Other Changes Added to the DPA

We've released a minor change that adds the ability to include 'Other Changes' to a DPA template / agreement. Additionally, we've changed it so that if the 'Other Changes' aren't populated on any agreement, the entire section is hidden when viewing the agreement both in the app or in PDFs/Word Docs. Read more

October 7, 2022

Add Organization Name When Sending Agreements

While recipients have always been able to add their organization name (along with address) to agreements they've been sent, it's now possible for the sender to specify the recipient's org when sending. Read more

September 27, 2022

Template Duplication

We've added a new feature that makes it very easy to duplicate existing templates, enabling users to easily create similar templates for different products, customer types, etc. Read more

September 22, 2022

Streamlined CSA Onboarding

With our Cloud Service Agreement having dozens of fields to navigate, we've heard feedback that trying to get it set up can be a daunting process. We've just released a streamlined version of creating a new CSA template. Read more

September 21, 2022

Upload Signed PDF Agreements

Common Paper users can now upload signed PDF agreements into the platform, either as standalone files or to close out existing agreements that are still in progress. This new feature lets customers keep all their signed agreements in one place, even if those agreements are not based on Common Paper standard terms. Read more

September 21, 2022

Reply to Automated Emails

We've released a minor update that adds the email address of the user that sent an agreement or proposed changes to the reply-to field on the automated emails that get sent. This makes it easier for replies to those emails to get routed the right person. Read more

September 15, 2022

Duplicating Templates

Common Paper admins can now duplicate templates making it easy to craft multiple versions of the same template, or start a new template using the base of an existing template. This feature is available from the templates list page or when viewing a template.

September 9, 2022

Internal Notes for Agreements

We’ve added the ability to attach notes about either an in-flight or completed agreement on the agreement history page. These notes are only visible to you and your teammates and also support Markdown so you can use lists, bold, italic, etc.

September 8, 2022

Common Paper Design Partner Agreement v1.0

We've just launched our standard Common Paper Design Partner Agreement v1.0 to help founders ground relationships with their earliest users and customers on solid footing. It’s free to download or use in our app today! Read more

September 7, 2022

Help Center and Tooltips

A new Help Center is now available with initial articles focused around helping to understand and fill out the various terms for our Cloud Service agreement and Design Partner agreement. Read more

August 9, 2022

Dynamic Cloud Service Agreement Use Limitations

We’ve released a minor update to the CSA template – users can now add structured use limitations instead of just free text. This allows for more fine tuned control over how use limitations are presented in the contracts, as well as more streamlined negotiation.

August 4, 2022

Common Paper Data Processing Agreement v1.0

Our team has been hard at work alongside our committee of attorneys and we’re excited to announce our latest standard – the Common Paper Data Processing Agreement v1.0! Our DPA is designed as a straightforward way to help meet GDPR requirements and is available today in the product or on our website for download.

July 19, 2022

Generate DOCX Versions of Agreements

We’ve added the ability to generate a Word document version of any sent agreement either by the sender or the recipient to handle situations when offline document based negotiation is needed. Read more

July 14, 2022

Propose Changes improvements

We’ve released a minor update that allows senders to propose changes to their agreements at any time up to the point where it is signed. This is a great option to correct any issues with a sent agreement or to accommodate changes from a recipient that are proposed outside of the platform.

July 11, 2022

Agreement Event Webhooks

We're excited to launch a new feature that allows customers to receive webhook notifications for all events associated with an agreement. Read more

July 7, 2022

Keeping Additional Recipients in the Loop

Sometimes there are other people beyond the primary recipient that need to be involved with the agreement process. This new feature allows users to add up to 3 additional people that will have view-only access to an agreement in-flight and be copied on all the emails the primary recipient receives.

June 16, 2022

Common Paper SLA v1.0

We're proud to announce the availability of the Common Paper Service Level Agreement v1.0! Developed by our committee of attorneys, this SLA is designed to be used with our Cloud Service Agreement. Read more

June 1, 2022

Attaching PDFs to Agreements

We've released support for uploading and adding PDF attachments to Cloud Service Agreements in Common Paper! This new feature allows users to extend Common Paper agreements to include additional terms that are specific to their business. Read more

May 30, 2022

Better Mobile Device Support

We’ve made it easier for you and your recipients to be able to review and sign agreements on your mobile devices. The full desktop experience is still recommended for setting up templates and sending initial agreements.

May 26, 2022

Separating Senders and Signers

We’ve added a new feature that allows users to specify an internal user as the signer that can be separate from the user that’s handling the sending and negotiation of an agreement. The signer only gets involved when an agreement reaches the signature stage.

May 16, 2022

Controlling the Signing Order

We’ve added the ability to control whether your organization is the last to sign an agreement. A toggle at either the template or agreement level, this new setting allows a user to ensure that the recipient signs first in all scenarios including when changes are proposed.

May 13, 2022

Agreement Histories

You can now see the entire chain of events from agreement sent to agreement signed (and everything in between) laid out in our new agreement history feature! Clicking on any agreement in the agreement list will take you to a chronological list of activities, including who performed each action. Read more