The other day one of our clients was interested in displaying the “Done/Not Done” information for to-do records under the Related tab of a Matter form.  While there is a button to set Related Records Options above the related records list in a Matter form, adding fields (and therefore columns) to this view only works if the customized data type is the only one being displayed.  If all related record types are being displayed (e.g. Contacts, To-Do’s, Events, Notes, etc.), Time Matters will use the default column headers.

Our client did not want to filter the related records within a matter to only display To-Do’s.  There are a couple solutions for those wishing to view custom field information for related To-Do’s and Events:

I. Create a custom PowerView that displays the desired information.  This works well, but can be a little time consuming and complicated for those not wishing to jump into Html programming.

II. Create a custom List Data Area on the Matter form that contains To-Do’s and/or Events.  This is a great option for those that have not fully customized their Secondary and Additional tabs of their Matter forms.  To customize an area go into File, Setup, Template, Form Styles.  Select Matter, then the desired Form Style to customize.  You may right-click on an area, select Customize Area, then set the Area Type to List Data.

If you decide to do this be extremely careful as changes to Form Styles will affect all users.  And there is no “Undo” feature.

III. Finally – and I would recommend this one above the first two – you may customize your Matter Forms to display a To-Do tab containing the desired related To-Do information.  To do so follow the steps below:

1. Go into File, Setup, Templates, Form Tabs.  This will display the “Form Tabs” screen.

2. Under “Record Type” near the top select “Matter”

3. Click the “Add” button.

4. Under “Form Tab” select “To-Do” (leave Tab Label set to &To-Do’s)

5. Near the bottom select “Classification Codes” instead of “Quick Tabs”

6. Click OK – it will take you back to the “Form Tabs” screen.

7. Select To-Do (it will be near the bottom of the list), then click on the Up arrow near the top to move it near the center of the list.  Just below “Related Records” would be fine.

8. Click on the Close button.

When you open a Matter now you will see a tab for “To-Do.”  Click on the To-Do tab and you will see a list of all To-Do’s related to the matter you have open.

If you wish to customize the columns that appear (if “Done” is not listed, for example), open any Matter, select the new “To-Do” tab and click on the “Properties” button on the toolbar just above the To-Do list (near the middle of the screen).  Click on the “List” tab, then the “Edit List Layout” button.  You can select the “Done” field in the left column, then click “Add” to move it to the right column.  Click OK, then close the Matter and re-open it.  You should now see the “Done” column for all matters.