Bates Numbering

Origin of the name

Bates numbering is named after the Bates Manufacturing Company, which invented a mechanical self-advancing numbering stamp in the 1890s. Law firms used these stamps to mark every page of evidence with a unique sequential number — a practice that eventually became mandatory in US legal discovery.

How Bates numbers look

A typical Bates number has three parts: a prefix, a separator, and a sequential number. For example:

• SMITH000001 — case name prefix + 6-digit counter
• ABC-DEF-2026-00042 — firm code + date + counter
• DEF-EX-A-00015 — party + exhibit + counter

The prefix identifies the producing party or case, and the number increments for every single page in the production — no gaps, no duplicates.

When it's used

• Legal discovery — both sides exchange documents and need to reference specific pages
• Litigation support — attorneys cite "SMITH000234" in depositions and briefs
• Evidence management — each exhibit page has a unique identifier
• Regulatory submissions — SEC, FDA, and other agencies require numbered submissions
• Internal audits — numbered audit trails for compliance

Rules and best practices

• Start before production — apply Bates numbers before producing documents, not after
• Use consistent prefixes — one prefix per producing party for the entire case
• No gaps — every page gets a number, even blank ones
• Fixed-width counter — use leading zeros (000001, 000002) so files sort correctly
• Non-removable — stamp in a margin where it won't obscure content, and flatten the PDF so numbers can't be edited
• Don't redo — once assigned, a Bates number follows a document forever

Bates numbering vs page numbering

Page numbers reset for each document (page 1 of this brief, page 1 of that memo). Bates numbers are globally unique across an entire production— no two pages in the case have the same Bates number, even if they're from different files.