Entity object

The Entity object functions as the central location for people, companies, organizational groups, and their metadata. Relativity Legal Hold, Processing, and Analytics all leverage the Entity object.

Required security permissions

Object Security Tab Visibility Other Settings
Entity - View, Edit Entities

Overwrite Inherited Security disabled for the Classification field.

  • Set this through the Edit Permissions option on the Classification field layout.

There are several ways to add a new entity:

  • Manually create an entity from the Entities tab. See Creating and editing an entity.
  • Load and sync entities via Integration Points. See Integration Points.
  • Load entities via the Relativity Desktop Client. See Importing entities through the RDC.
  • Run Analytics name normalization to identify entities from email headers. See Name normalization.
  • Manually create a key entity in the Review Interface. A key entity is one that has the multi-choice field Classification set to either Key Person or Key Organization on the Entity object. These values are set automatically when you create an entity with either one of the respective views (Key People and Key Organization.) See Case Dynamics for more information on creating a key entity.

Creating and editing an entity

To create an entity, complete the following:

  1. From the Entities tab, click New Entity.
  2. Select a layout from the drop-down list. For more information, see the following:

    Note: Layouts only appear for the applications you have installed.

    1. Legal Hold Custodian layout
    2. Processing Entity layout
    3. Entities - Communicators Layout
    4. Default Case Dynamics layouts
  3. Complete the fields in the layout.
  4. Click Save.

Importing entities through the RDC

You can add multiple entities by uploading a .CSV or .DAT file via the Relativity Desktop Client.

Use the following basic steps for importing entities through the RDC.

  1. Compile or locate the entity load file you wish to import. For more information about the load file, see the following:
  1. Log in to the RDC and select the workspace into which you want to import these entities and eventually publish data.
  2. From the object drop-down list in the RDC, select the Entity object.

  1. Click Tools | Import | Entity Load File.

  1. Click the ellipsis next to the Load File field and select the file containing all of your entities.
  2. Map the Relativity entity fields to the fields included in your load file.
  3. Complete the import. For more information, see Importing through the RDC.

Deleting an entity

You can use the Mass delete operation to delete aliases. For more information, see Mass delete. You can only delete an entity if it's not associated with any alias, Processing data source, or Legal Hold project.

Note: If the Legal Hold application is installed in the workspace, it will negatively impact the performance of the Mass delete operation.

Legal Hold entities

The following section contains entities information specific to Legal Hold.

Legal Hold layout

The Legal Hold Custodian detail layout contains the following fields:

Basic Contact

  • First Name - the entity's first name.
  • Last Name - the entity's last name.
  • Email - (Optional) the entity's email address.

    Note: Legal Hold entities can share the same email address.

  • Middle Name - (Optional) the entity's middle name.

Company

  • Company - (Optional) the entity's company.
  • Current Title - (Optional) the entity's job title.
  • Department - (Optional) the entity's department.
  • Manager - (Optional) the entity's manager. Select a person from the available entities to designate as the new entity's manager. The designated manager will receive any Escalation communication for this entity.
  • Employee Number - (Optional) the entity's employee number.
  • Employment Status - (Optional) the entity's current employment status.
  • Employment Start Date - (Optional) the date the entity's position started.
  • Employment End Date - (Optional) the date the entity's position ended.
  • Username - (Optional) the entity's employee username at the company.
  • Domain - (Optional) the company's network name. For example, "Relativity.corp".
  • Phone Number - (Optional) the entity's phone number.

Location

  • Address 1 - (Optional) the entity's home address.
  • Address 2 - (Optional) the second line of the entity's home address.
  • City - (Optional) the entity's home address city.
  • State/Province - (Optional) the entity's home address state/province.
  • Zip/Postal Code - (Optional) the entity's home address zip/postal code.
  • Country - (Optional) the entity's home address country.
  • Location - (Optional) An optional field used to denote a specific building/office or to provide a friendly name for different business unites.

Other

  • Secondary Email - (Optional) the entity's secondary email address.
  • Notes - (Optional) use this field to add any applicable notes regarding the entity.
  • Unique ID - (Optional) use this field when, for example, performing Active Directory data imports using Integration Points. Because you must reference a unique field when setting up the import, you can specify the UniqueID field as unique and map it to an Active Directory field such as ObjectGuid.
  • Entity Interaction - (Optional) determines the level of interaction the Legal Hold application has with the entity. You can select None, Full, Limited, Redirected.
    • Full - the entity receives standard communication functionality. This is the default behavior.
    • None - the entity no longer receives communications. Entities set to None do not appear in the Communication Summary report or the Open Tasks report and have N/A in the responded field on Entity reports. If an entity sends a message to an admin, the admin can respond to the entity.
    • Redirect - the entity communications are redirected to a Redirect Recipient, another entity, to act on behalf of the original entity. If a redirect recipient is acting on behalf of another entity, the information can be found in the database.

    Note: If an entity is selected to receive redirected communications, they then cannot be removed from Legal Hold nor set to None. For more information, see Custodian Interaction level.

Custodian Interaction level

When creating or editing an entity, there is a Custodian Interaction level that can be set. You can find this setting within the Other tab. Custodians have three different interaction levels: Full, None, Redirect.

Full is the default and the entities with this setting get all communications as normal. None is a setting for entities who should not receive any communications. The Redirect setting is used for entities that need communications and questionnaires sent to another entity, or redirect recipient, that is able to acknowledge on behalf. When acting as a Redirect Recipient, the entity cannot be deleted, as they are acting on behalf of other entities within the project.

When a custodian's Interaction level is set to None or Redirect, the entity does not appear in the Redirect Recipients dialog. Custodians that have their Custodian Interaction level set to None, will not appear on the Communication Summary report and the Open Tasks report.

Different communication actions and different interaction level settings combined with the Silent Custodian setting can get complicated. In order to make sure the correct entity, if any, gets the correct communication, see the chart below.

Entity Interaction Level Action Do Not Notify (Is set) Target Entity Receives Email
Full Send General Notice Communication False Yes
Full Send BCC True Yes
Full Send BCC False Yes
Full Send BCC Not on project Yes
Full Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) True Yes
Full Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) False Yes
Full Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) Not on project Yes
Full Send Reminder/Automatic Reminder False Yes
Full Global Reminder False (for at least one project they are active on) Yes
Full Release Entity False Yes
Full Send Alert Notice True/False/Not on project Yes
Full Resend Expired Portal Link False Sends out link
Full Resend Expired Portal Link True Sends out link
Full Responses False Yes (never redirect)
Full Send Portal Link True No (button disabled)
Full Send Portal Link False (for at least one project they are active on) Yes
Full Send Escalation to CC recipients True/False/Not on Project Yes
Redirect Send General Notice Communication False Redirected
Redirect Send BCC True Redirected
Redirect Send BCC False Redirected
Redirect Send BCC Not on Project Redirected
Redirect Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) True Redirected
Redirect Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) False Redirected
Redirect Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) Not on Project Redirected
Redirect Send Reminder/Automatic Reminder False Redirected
Redirect Global Reminder False (for at least one project they are active on) Redirected
Redirect Release Entity False Redirected
Redirect Send Alert Notices True Redirected
Redirect Send Alert Notices False Redirected
Redirect Send Alert Notices Not on Project Redirected
Redirect Resend Expired Portal Link False Sends out link to original entity
Redirect Resend Expired Portal Link True Sends out link to original entity
Redirect Responses False Yes (never redirect)
Redirect Send Portal Link True No (button disabled)
Redirect Send Portal Link False (for at least one project they are active on) Redirected
Redirect Send Escalation to CC recipients True/False/Not on Project

No
None Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) True Yes
None Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) False Yes
None Send Escalation/Automatic Escalation (Manager) Not on project Yes
None Send Portal Link True No (button disabled)
None Send Portal Link False (for at least one project they are active on) No (button disabled)
None Send Escalation to CC recipients True/False/Not on Project No

Entity console

Use the Entity console to take an action related to that entity and run reports specific to that entity across multiple projects. Buttons are shaded gray when the action is unavailable or may not appear if you don't have the correct permissions. See Securing a project.

Custodian

Use Portal As - view the Legal Hold portal as a specified entity in a separate tab. Use this feature to acknowledge participation in a project or answer a questionnaire on someone else's behalf. For example, use this feature during a guided entity interview.

Send Portal Link - send a communication to the entity that contains the link to their Entity portal home page. Entities can enter their email address to access the portal.

Note: Custodians can only receive communications if they have their email address on their entity record.

Reports - run a project-specific report from this section. The report appears inline. See Report types for more information about each report. Note that you may not be able to view all reports depending on your permissions.

Legal Hold entity load file

To load entities via the RDC, create a load file that contains at least the following:

  • Entity's full name
  • Entity's email address

Processing entities

The following section contains entities information specific to Processing.

Processing layout

The Processing Entity layout provides the following fields:

  • Type - select one of the following:
    • Person - select this to enter first and last name of the individual acting as entity of the data you wish to process.
    • Other - select this if the entity of the data you wish to process isn't an individual but is, for example, just a company name. You can also select this if you wish to enter an individual's full name without having that name include a comma once you export the data associated with it. Selecting this changes the Entity layout to remove the required First Name and Last Name fields and instead presents a required Full Name field.
  • First Name - the first name of the entity. This field is only available if you've set the Type above to Person.
  • Last Name - the last name of the entity. This field is only available if you've set the Type above to Person.
  • Full Name - the full name of the entity of the data you wish to process. This field is only available if you've set the Type above to Other. When you enter the full name of an entity, that name doesn't contain a comma when you export the data associated with it.
  • Document numbering prefix - the prefix used to identify each file of a processing set once the set is published. The prefix entered on the entity appears as the default value for the required Document numbering prefix field on the processing data source that uses that entity. The identifier of the published file reads: <Prefix> # # # # # # # # # #.
  • Notes - any additional descriptors of the entity.

Viewing or editing Processing entity details

Click the Edit link to the left of the Full Name column to access the Entity layout. On the Entity layout, you can edit an entity's name, enter a document numbering prefix, and add notes.

When you upgrade to Server 2024, existing entities are placed into the Last Name field on the Entity layout. If you need to edit an upgraded entity, you need to parse out the first and last names, as both of those fields require values when you save the entity.

You can view more details about an entity by clicking the entity's name from the list on the Entities tab. The Entity layout displays an additional section called Processing Data Source (Custodian).

The Processing Data Source (Custodian) associative object view contains the following fields:

  • Processing Data Source - all the data sources to which this entity is attached.
  • Status - the state of the processing jobs to which the entity is attached.
  • Source path - the file location entered for the Source path field on the data source to which the entity is attached.
  • Time zone - the value selected for the Time zone field on the data source to which the entity is attached.

Note: You can't delete an entity already associated with a processing data source. For more information, see Adding a data source.

Now that you've created an entity, you can associate that entity with a data source and then add the data source to a processing set. When you run the processing set, you'll be sending that entity's files to the processing engine to be inventoried, discovered, and published to a workspace. For more information, see Adding a data source.

Processing entity load file

The following is an example of a Processing entity load file that includes several individuals identified as entities for the data you wish to process.

Custodian load file for RDC

Analytics entities

The following section contains entities information specific to Analytics.

Analytics layout

The following fields appear when you select Entities - Communicators Layout from the drop-down list:

General

  • Full Name - the entity’s full name
  • First Name - the entity's first name.
  • Last Name - the entity's last name.
  • Middle Name - (Optional) the entity's middle name.
  • Classification - all entities created or impacted by name normalization in Analytics receive the classification value Communicator - Analytics. You can add new Classification choices to help keep track of groups of entities.
  • Type - the type can be one of the following:
    • Person - select this to enter first and last name of the individual acting as entity of the data you wish to process.
    • Other - select this if the entity of the data you wish to process isn't an individual but is, for example, just a company name. You can also select this if you wish to enter an individual's full name without having that name include a comma once you export the data associated with it.
  • Email - (Optional) the entity's email address.

Contact

Affiliations

Aliases - the aliases linked to the entity.

You can also create a new alias from the Entities - Communicators Layout.

  1. Click the name of an entity.
  2. Select the Entities - Communicators Layout layout.
  3. Click New.
  4. Complete the following fields: 
    • Name - the name of the alias.
    • Type - the type can be one of the following:
      • Proper Name - an alias that contains all letters.
        • Jane Smith
      • Email Address - a standard email addresses with no spaces or characters.
        • jane.smith@relativity.com
      • Extended Email Address - an email address with other content or characters.
        • Jane Smith [Jane.Smith@relativity.com]
      • Exchange - X500 and X400 formats.
        • Smith, Jane </O=RELATIVITY/OU=NA/CN=RECIPIENTS/CN=JSMITH>
      • Phone Number - an alias that contains only numbers and characters.
        • 123-456-7890
      • Undefined - an alias that doesn't fall into any of the categories above.
        • Jane Smith/RELATIVITY@relativityXgat
    • Domain (optional) - the full domain of the alias (everything after the @ sign).
      • us.relativity.com
    • Primary Domain (optional) - the domain of the organization.
      • relativity.com

Entities - Communicators Layout with New Alias button highlighted

Analytics entity load file

An alias object is created for each alias included in the entity import. When you run name normalization, these aliases are used to map documents to existing entities.

To load entities via the RDC, create a load file that contains at least the following:

  • Entity's full name
  • Aliases

We also recommend you add known email addresses, name variations, and exchange IDs to the alias field for best results. Avoid adding any generic aliases such as "John."

Merge

The Merge mass operation is a mass operation on the Entities tab that only appears if you have Analytics installed. This operation lets you select and merge multiple entities into a single entity.

You need the following object security permissions to merge entities:

  • Alias—View, Edit

  • Entity—View, Edit, Delete

  • Field—View, Edit

Note: To limit the impact on Processing and Legal Hold workflows, do not merge entities if two or more of those entities are associated with a Processing data source or Legal Hold project. Doing so can cause downstream errors with publish jobs.

To merge entities:

  1. From the Entities list, select the checkboxes next to the entities that you want to merge.

    Note: No more than 50 entities can be merged at one time.

  2. From the actions menu at the bottom, select Merge from the second drop-down menu.

  3. Click Merge Entities.

If a conflict occurs when merging entity fields, the value of the entity associated with either a Processing data source or Legal Hold project takes priority followed by the value of the entity with the lowest Artifact ID.

Case Dynamics entities

Case Dynamics comes with four layouts on the Entity object.

For an entity to appear in Case Dynamics, either Person or Organization must be selected for the Type field and Key - Case Dynamics must be selected for the Classification field. For these four layouts, there is an event handler that sets the Type field to save the user time.

The following sections contains entities information specific to Case Dynamics.

Key entities

For an entity to appear in Case Dynamics, it must be classified as Key - Case Dynamics.

To mark an existing entity as Key - Case Dynamics from the Entities tab:

  1. Go to the Entities tab.
  2. In the row of the entity that you want to mark as Key - Case Dynamics, click Edit.
  3. Select one of the Case Dynamics entities layouts. See Default Case Dynamics layouts.
  4. In the Classification field, select Key - Case Dynamics.
  5. Click Save.

You can also create and mark existing entities as Key - Case Dynamics from the Review Interface, inline edit lists, and Outlines. See these topics:

Ensuring you do not create duplicate entities

Case Dynamics has several features to ensure that you do not create duplicate entities.

If you highlight text in the Viewer or an Outline and select to a create a Key Person or Key Organization, Relativity compares the highlighted text to existing entities in the workspace to see if there is a possible match. The table below lists the possible match types.

Match type Pop-up name Options
Key entity match Key Entity Match

  • Link this Key Entity - the key entity becomes linked to the document.
  • Create New Entity - creates a new key entity and links the key entity to the document.
  • Cancel - closes the pop-up and does not link the highlighted text to an existing entity or create a new entity.
Entity match Possible Match

  • Classify as Key Person or Classify as Key Organization - classifies the existing entity as key and links the key entity to the document.
  • Create New Entity - creates a new key entity and links the key entity to the document.
  • Cancel - closes the pop-up and does not classify an existing entity as key or create a new entity.
No match found Create New Entity

  • Create New Entity - creates a new key entity and links the key entity to the document.
  • Cancel - closes the pop-up and does not create a new entity.

  • Search Existing Entities - enables you to search existing entities to see if the entity already exists under a different spelling variation. Through the view that opens, you can search and filter on fields.

When you start typing the entity name that you want to add in the Create New Entity pop-up, the auto-complete feature returns a list of existing entities that match what you typed. Select the entity you want from the list or finish typing the name of the new entity that you want to create. If the entity you select is not classified as Key - Case Dynamics, it becomes classified as Key - Case Dynamics once you save it.

When you click on an existing entity, the fields on the Create New Entity pop-up show the name of the entity you selected and the field becomes read only. Click the Remove entity icon to remove the existing entity you selected. If an existing entity option displays warning icon, go to the Entities tab, and edit the entity with the warning icon. Be sure to fill out all required fields.

Create New Entity remove existing entity

From the Create New Entity pop-up, you can also click Search Existing Entities to see the list of existing entities, select the entity that you want to link to the document, and click Set. If the entity you select is not classified as key, it automatically becomes Key - Case Dynamics when you click Set.

To edit the name of an existing entity, go to the Entities tab. The name update will be reflected across all applications using the entity object that are installed in the workspace.

Default Case Dynamics layouts

Case Dynamics has four entities layouts:

Key Organization Basic Layout

The Key Organization Basic Layout contains the following fields:

Key Organization Basic Layout

Key Organization Detail

  • Full Name - the organization's full name.
  • Type - set to Organization.
  • Classification - (Optional)
    • Communicator - Analytics - select this option if the entity is impacted by name normalization in Analytics.
    • Custodian - Processing - select this option if the entity is impacted by Processing.
    • Key - Case Dynamics - select this option to use the entity in Case Dynamics.
  • Location - (Optional) the entity's address.
  • Website - (Optional) the entity’s website.
  • Notes - (Optional) use this field to add any applicable notes regarding the entity.

Other

  • System Last Modified By - the name of the user who modified the system last.
  • System Last Modified On - the time the system was last modified.

Key Organization Extended Layout

The Key Organization Extended Layout contains the following fields:

Key Organization Extended Layout

  • Full Name - the organization's full name.
  • Type - set to Organization.
  • Classification - (Optional)
    • Communicator - Analytics - select this option if the entity is impacted by name normalization in Analytics.
    • Custodian - Processing - select this option if the entity is impacted by Processing.
    • Key - Case Dynamics - select this option to use the entity in Case Dynamics.
  • Location - (Optional) the entity's address.
  • Website - (Optional) the entity’s website.
  • Notes - (Optional) use this field to add any applicable notes regarding the entity.
  • System Last Modified By - the name of the user who modified the system last.
  • System Last Modified On - the time the system was last modified.

Key Person Basic Layout

The Key Person Basic Layout contains the following fields:

Key Person Basic Layout

Entity Key People Detail

  • First Name - the entity's first name.
  • Last Name - the entity's last name.
  • Type - set to Person.
  • Classification - (Optional)
    • Communicator - Analytics - select this option if the entity is impacted by name normalization in Analytics.
    • Custodian - Processing - select this option if the entity is impacted by Processing.
    • Key - Case Dynamics - select this option to use the entity in Case Dynamics.
  • Email - (Optional) the entity's email address.
  • Role in Litigation - (Optional) the entity's role in litigation.
  • Corporate Titles Case Dynamics - (Optional) - the entity's corporate title.
  • Notes - (Optional) use this field to add any applicable notes regarding the entity.

Other

  • System Last Modified By - the name of the user who modified the system last.
  • System Last Modified On - the time the system was last modified.

Key Person Extended Layout

The Key Person Extended Layout contains the following fields:

Key Person Extended Layout

  • First Name - the entity's first name.
  • Last Name - the entity's last name.
  • Type - set to Person.
  • Classification - (Optional)
    • Communicator - Analytics - select this option if the entity is impacted by name normalization in Analytics.
    • Custodian - Processing - select this option if the entity is impacted by Processing.
    • Key - Case Dynamics - select this option to use the entity in Case Dynamics.
  • Email - (Optional) the entity's email address.
  • Role in Litigation - (Optional) the entity's role in litigation.
  • Corporate Titles Case Dynamics - (Optional) - the entity's corporate title.
  • Notes - (Optional) use this field to add any applicable notes regarding the entity.
  • System Last Modified By - the name of the user who modified the system last.
  • System Last Modified On - the time the system was last modified.

Case Dynamics entity load file

To load a Case Dynamics entity that is a person via the RDC, create a load file that contains at least the following:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Full Name
  • Classification - enter Key - Case Dynamics
  • Type - enter Person

To load a Case Dynamics entity that is an organization via the RDC, create a load file that contains at least the following:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Full Name
  • Classification - enter Key - Case Dynamics
  • Type - enter Organization

Custom Case Dynamics layout requirements

When creating custom Case Dynamics layouts for the entity object, keep the following requirements in mind:

  • The layout should include the Type field, as well as, the Classification fields. Both fields should be editable so that entities can be tagged properly.

  • If you're creating entities with Organization selected for the Type field, then the Full Name field must be included on the layout.

  • If you're creating entities with Person selected for the Type field then the First Name, Last Name, and Full Name fields must be included on the layout.