Why Formatting Issues Happen When Inserting Clauses
When working in a contract template and inserting clauses through the CLM Word Add-in, you might notice that the formatting of the inserted text such as bullet points, numbering, indentations, or fonts does not always match what you expect.
Common symptoms include:
- Bullet points disappearing or appearing incorrectly
- Numbered lists restarting unexpectedly
- Indentation levels changing
- Fonts or spacing appearing inconsistent with the rest of the document
These issues happen because Microsoft Word applies formatting based on the styles defined in the clause document unless you specifically tell it otherwise.
This guide explains how to avoid these issues by:
- Preparing your templates correctly before inserting clauses
- Choosing the right formatting option when inserting clauses using the CLM Word Add-in
Following these best practices will help ensure your final document looks clean, consistent, and professional.
The most important thing to know is:
All of the text in a Word document has a Style assigned to it, whether you meant to assign one or not. By defining a paradigm for your document's styles, you are able to control the way text is inserted from a clause in a predictable manner; otherwise, Word will make the best approximation using the styles that exist naturally in your template and clause documents.
Prepare Your Template out of Onit CLM in Microsoft Word
- Use Word Styles (e.g., "Normal", "List Bullet", "Heading 1") for all text formatting.
- Avoid manual formatting (no manual tabs, spaces, or custom bullets).
- Check styles using Styles Pane (Alt+Ctrl+Shift+S).
Why? Word relies on Styles to format inserted clauses correctly.
After you have inserted clauses to your template, the CLM Word Add-In gives users the ability to select three different Styling insertions:
- Keep Source Formatting
- Use Destination Styles
- Keep Different Styles
When do you use which option?
| Option | Use When | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Keep Source Formatting | Use when you want to preserve the Styles defined in the clause document over any Styles defined in the template document |
Original
bullets, fonts, indents preserved |
|
Use Destination Styles |
When you want to insert the clause according the Styles defined in the template document over anything defined in the clause document | Clause inherits the document's styles automatically |
|
Keep Different Styles |
When you want to merge the Styles of the two documents. It will use the Styles of the template document as available but take the clause document Styles when there are no matching template Styles to use |
Clause
keeps special formatting, even if it differs. |
- If bullets or numbers look wrong before adding any clauses from your Onit CLM Clause Library, try reapplying different styles using the Styles Pane
- When keeping the source formatting doesn't work, try one of the other options for using the destination styles or keeping different styles until you eliminate the problem style element
- Should none of these options work, go back to the source document and reset the Styles to default
Here are official Microsoft resources you can include:
🎯 Overview of Styles in Word - Microsoft guide to using, applying, creating, and modifying styles
🎯 Customize or Create New Styles - Microsoft guide for making and managing custom styles
🎯 Understanding Document Formatting and Templates - Microsoft guide for working with templates and ensuring Style consistency
🎯 Working with the Format Painter - How to use the Format Painter to apply the same formatting