Contracts are PDFs because they're signed on paper. Once executed, they often need to be searched, compared with other contracts, or reviewed by AI for risk. None of those work well on PDF. Markdown conversion preserves the numbered-clause structure that makes contracts easy to navigate.
Clause structure preservation
Standard contract numbering (1., 1.1, 1.1.1) is detected and emitted as a Markdown ordered-list hierarchy or as numbered headings, depending on depth. Cross-references inside the document ("subject to Section 4.2") remain as plain text — they don't become hyperlinks, which is intentional: legal review software treats hyperlinks differently and you usually don't want auto-linked references in contract text.
Parties, dates, and exhibits
Defined terms (the capitalised "Provider", "Client" etc.) come through unchanged. Dates in the preamble are preserved verbatim, not normalised. Exhibits and schedules attached to the main document are emitted as separate sections after the main body, each labelled with their original "Exhibit A" / "Schedule 1" identifiers.
Frequently asked questions
How are numbered contract clauses preserved?
Sequential numbering (1.1, 1.2, 1.2.1) is detected and emitted as Markdown ordered-list nesting or as numbered headings. The exact representation depends on depth and whether the original used indentation — both forms render correctly and remain searchable.
Are party names and defined terms kept as-is?
Yes — defined terms (capitalised "Provider", "Client", "Confidential Information") are preserved unchanged, including their first-occurrence definition formatting. The converter does not paraphrase legal text under any circumstances.
How do schedules and exhibits convert?
They become separate sections in the output Markdown, labelled with their original identifiers (## Exhibit A, ## Schedule 1). The numbering scheme stays internal to each exhibit, so cross-references in the main body remain valid.
Can I use this for legal due diligence?
Yes — Markdown contracts are vastly easier to grep, compare with diff tools, and feed to AI for risk review. For privileged content, use the API with our zero-retention plan; documents are processed in memory and deleted immediately.
Are signatures and seals preserved?
Signature blocks are kept as text where readable, with a placeholder note marking the position of any rendered signature image. Notarial seals get a [seal] placeholder. The original PDF should be retained for legal force; the Markdown is for review and search only.