> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.rytz.com.au/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Case Timeline > Chronological history of every event in your matter — what happened, when, and the supporting evidence. Distinct from the Case Planner's forward-looking calendar. import { Card, CardGroup, Note, Tip } from '@mintlify/components' The **Case Timeline** at `app.rytz.com.au/case-timeline` is the historical record of your matter — every event that has happened, in the order it happened, with links back to the underlying evidence. Where the [Case Planner](/court-process/case-planner) is the forward-looking calendar (what's coming, when), the Case Timeline is the rear-view mirror (what happened, when). Both tools work with the same date data; they just present it for different uses. ## Why a separate timeline view A few reasons: * **Affidavit drafting** loves chronology. Most affidavits walk events in date order; reading the Timeline before drafting puts you in chronological headspace. * **Cross-examination preparation** runs against a chronology — the other party will press you on the order in which things happened. Knowing your own chronology cold means you don't get caught. * **Pattern detection** is easier in a timeline view. Repeated changeovers always falling on Sundays. Communications consistently received late at night. Patterns are visual when displayed chronologically; invisible when displayed by category. * **Summarising the matter** to anyone (lawyer, friend, mediator) is cleaner from a chronology than from a category-organised set. ## What appears in the timeline The Timeline draws from the same sources as the Master Case File's chronology section but adds: | Source | Examples | | -------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Evidence Portfolio | Items, with the date the evidence relates to | | Court correspondence | Filings, directions, orders, judgments | | Communications | Material exchanges with the other party (tagged from Portfolio) | | Decisions | Strategic decisions you've made and recorded | | Consultations | Lawyer consultations, FDR sessions, other professional engagements | | Compliance moments | Service confirmations, filing receipts, payment of fees | Each entry includes: * **Date** — what the entry is about (not the date you recorded it) * **Type** — colour-coded by source (evidence / court / communication / decision / consultation) * **Title and short description** * **Source link** — click through to the underlying Portfolio item, court document, consultation note, or decision record * **Tags** — inherited from the source ## Three views Every entry, oldest to newest. Read top to bottom for the complete narrative. Useful for narrative segments — "show me only changeover-tagged events" produces a changeover-only chronology. Just evidence, just court events, just communications. Useful for affidavit drafting (typically you focus on one source-type per paragraph). Pick start and end dates. Useful for stage-specific bundles or for "what happened in the 90 days before the interim hearing?". ## Reading the timeline well A few practices: **Read the timeline before drafting any affidavit.** Even an experienced drafter loses the narrative thread when working from raw notes. A 5-minute scroll through the Timeline puts you in the right headspace before you start writing. **Print the timeline before any hearing.** A printed chronology in front of you (or a printed pdf) is harder to lose your place on than scrolling on a phone. Court rooms aren't always cellular-network-friendly. **Re-read the timeline quarterly even when nothing's happening.** Your view of events shifts over time. A communication that felt like a passing thing in February reads differently in November. Re-reading the timeline catches what your present-day filter would miss. ## Exporting the timeline The Timeline supports two export formats: * **Annotated chronology PDF** — formatted for human reading; printable; ideal for affidavit-prep or hearing-prep * **Plain-text bullet list** — paste-friendly into Word, email, or another platform; useful for quick lawyer briefings Both exports respect any filters you have applied. If you've filtered to changeover-tagged events only, the export contains only those events. For a more structured export (with strategy section, evidence matrix, etc.), use the [Master Case File export](/master-case-file/refresh-and-export) instead — the Timeline is the chronology component of the MCF, not a substitute for the full document. ## What the Timeline will not do * **It will not edit the underlying records.** Editing happens in the source surface (Evidence Portfolio for evidence items, etc.). The Timeline is a read-only view. * **It will not interpret events for you.** The Timeline shows what happened. The [Master Case File Strategy section](/master-case-file/what-it-shows) interprets it. * **It will not auto-include events you haven't recorded.** A communication you didn't capture in the Portfolio doesn't appear. Garbage in, garbage out — the Timeline is only as good as your capture habits. ## Common patterns | Pattern | What it usually means | | ---------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Long gaps between events | Either matter is genuinely quiet, or you're not capturing. The Timeline shows you — investigate. | | Cluster of events around a date | Something happened. Investigate which evidence items the cluster contains; often that's the moment to consult a lawyer. | | Many one-sided events (only your captures, none of theirs) | You're capturing your own perspective but not their actions. The Portfolio's source-classification helps balance — track their communications, their filings, their delays. | | Cross-source clusters | A court date with associated communications, prep milestones, and evidence captures. Healthy. | ## Where the Timeline connects * **Master Case File** — the Timeline is the data behind the MCF's Chronology section * **Affidavit Preparation** — drafting wizards reference the Timeline for date-order prompts * **Case Planner** — forward-looking complement to the Timeline's rear-view * **Evidence Portfolio** — most Timeline entries are evidence items; Timeline entries link back to the Portfolio * **AI assistant** — "summarise events between \[dates]" returns Timeline output * **Strategic Planning** — Strategic Planning uses Timeline patterns as inputs ## What's next The forward-looking calendar. The synthesised case document where Timeline data lives as Chronology. Where Timeline patterns inform strategy. Source of most Timeline entries.