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Every filing in Effective is either managed or reference. A managed filing is one your team prepares in Effective: you build its package, check it, stage it to SERFF and answer objections. A reference filing is kept for context, such as a filing brought in from another source, and its source information is read-only. The difference is set when the filing is added and doesn’t change later.

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Tell them apart

Hover over the briefcase, or move keyboard focus to it, to see Managed in Effective. On a reference filing, the Overview tab opens with a Reference filing notice. To list only one kind, filter the Filings list by Filing mode.

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Work on a managed filing

A managed filing has Overview, Workspace, Manage, Documents and Activity tabs. A typical path through them:
  1. Build the package in Workspace. Workspace lays out the filing’s details and its schedules, and shows each open note where it applies. The bar at the top counts the open notes and objections; use its arrows to step through them. Resolve in chat asks Effective’s agent to work through the open notes together and ask you any questions at once.
  2. Attach documents in Documents. Upload files and attach them to the filing’s schedules.
  3. Run pre-review in Manage. Run pre-review starts every check that applies to the filing. Problems become notes on the filing or its documents. After a review finishes, use Rerun all checks, or Rerun check on one check, to check again. A check that could not complete explains why when you hover over its status. Overview shows a short summary of the latest review; View checks opens Manage.
  4. Stage to SERFF. Stage to SERFF in Manage creates a draft of the filing in SERFF. Staging doesn’t submit it; review and submit the draft in SERFF. Manage shows the filing’s owner, who is the person who created it. Only the owner can stage, using their own SERFF login for the chosen destination: Production — live SERFF or Beta — test environment. Add the login in Settings → Secrets → Logins first. When a note needs your answer before staging, Manage says so; Answer in Workspace takes you to it.
  5. Sync from SERFF in Manage after submission to bring the filing’s SERFF status and details back into Effective. Like staging, only the filing’s owner can sync, using their own SERFF login for the chosen destination, and syncing needs the filing’s full SERFF tracking number. The filing’s SERFF details are listed at the bottom of Manage.
  6. Answer objections. When a regulator objects, the Overview shows the objection and its due date. On the objection, Run triage posts a recommended response in each open item’s discussion.
Approvals, related filings and the history on Activity work as they do for other records.
Staging works in SERFF as you, with your login. Choose Beta — test environment while you are trying a filing out; Production — live SERFF creates the draft in your live SERFF account.

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What you can do with a reference filing

A reference filing has no Workspace, Manage or Documents tab; its SERFF details are on Overview. You can read it, and View SERFF filing previews its imported SERFF package in Effective, where you can also download the package as a ZIP. You can’t change its source information, prepare it, run pre-review, stage it or triage its objections. Trying to returns a message that reference filing source information is read-only. You can still edit Internal context in Details, which is your team’s own notes and is kept separately from the filing’s source information.

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How a filing becomes managed

A filing you create in Effective is managed, whether you create it from the Filings list or through the API. A filing’s mode can’t be changed afterwards, in either direction. To prepare a filing you only have as a reference filing, create a new managed filing for it. Some older filings show neither marker. They were added before Effective distinguished managed and reference filings, and they keep working as they did: they have every tab and you can edit their details. Pre-review, staging, sync and document uploads need a managed filing, though, and return “Only managed filings can be prepared”. Contact Effective to have one classified.

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Use the API

Filings read through the API include filingMode, which is managed, reference, or null for an unclassified filing. Only managed filings can be edited, prepared or commented on through the API. See Read filings and Create and edit filings.