Migrate from eBrief Ready to Zoho CRM

eBrief Ready matters map directly to Zoho CRM Deals — the matter name becomes Deal_Name, the matter description migrates as the Deal notes field. Each matter becomes one Deal. Matter create-date and last-modified date are preserved as custom datetime fields (Original_Create_Date__c, Matter_Modified_Date__c) since Zoho's standard CreatedDate and ModifiedDate reflect the migration timestamp.

Each eBrief Ready party record (barrister, solicitor, client, expert witness, opposing counsel) migrates as a Zoho CRM Contact. The party's full name splits into First_Name and Last_Name. Role labels (e.g., 'Lead Counsel', 'Instructing Solicitor') are preserved in a custom pick-list field (Legal_Role__c). Multiple parties per matter link via Zoho Deal Contact Roles after migration.

Organisations named in eBrief Ready party records map to Zoho CRM Accounts. Firm name becomes Account_Name; website and address fields map where populated. When a matter involves an organisation without a named contact person, we create an Account record first and then link the Contact record.

eBrief Ready documents do not map 1:1 to Zoho Attachments because Zoho stores files by record attachment rather than as standalone objects. We re-upload documents to Zoho Files and attach them to the corresponding Deal record. The document's original filename, upload date, and eBrief Ready folder path are preserved as a Zoho Note (linked to the Deal) so users can reference the source organisation without opening every file.

eBrief Ready folders (e.g., 'Pleadings', 'Correspondence', 'Exhibits', 'Expert Reports') map to Zoho CRM Tags applied to Deal records. We generate a full folder-to-tag map during planning. Tags appear in Zoho's tag-filtered list views, giving teams the same structural navigation they had in eBrief Ready.

eBrief Ready chronology entries (date, event description, document reference) migrate as Zoho CRM Tasks with the chronology date as the Task due date and the event description as the Task subject. The linked document filename is stored in the Task description. This preserves the timeline view while making entries actionable within Zoho's task management.

eBrief Ready annotations are tied to specific document pages and cannot be fully reconstructed in Zoho CRM's flat-note model. We extract annotation text and page references and store them as a Zoho Note attached to the Deal, with a reference to the relevant document attachment. Users can rebuild annotations in Zoho's native note editor after migration.

eBrief Ready labels applied to documents or matters migrate directly to Zoho CRM Tags. Tag names are preserved verbatim. Zoho supports multiple tags per record, matching eBrief Ready's label model. Tags sync across modules via Zoho's tag API, allowing Contacts and Deals to share the same label vocabulary. We deduplicate tag names during import to prevent accidental duplication (e.g., 'Pleadings' and 'pleadings' normalize to one tag).

eBrief Ready user accounts (e.g., '[email protected]') are matched by email to Zoho CRM Users. Unmatched users are flagged before migration — teams either invite them to Zoho first or assign records to a designated fallback Zoho user. No Deal or Contact lands without a resolved Zoho OwnerId.

eBrief Ready Pro workflows (automatic document naming, bank-statement classification, chronological sorting) do not migrate. We export workflow definitions as a plain-text reference document so the Zoho admin can rebuild equivalent logic using Zoho Blueprint stages or Deluge custom functions. This is a manual rebuild task — not included in data-migration scope.