Inviting a Client when creating a Case

You can invite a Client during the Members step of the Create Case wizard. The invitation goes by email and gives the Client access to the Case from their Client dashboard. This article explains how the invitation works, what the Client sees, and the things you should set before sending it.

Where the invitation lives in the wizard

Open the Create Case wizard. After Basics and Subjects, the Members step has a Client section. Enter the Client's email address. If you already have the Client in your contacts, they appear in the picker. The invitation is staged as part of the Case; nothing is sent until you click Create Case on the Review step.

What the Client receives

• An invitation email from NearbySpy with your name, the Case title, and a link to accept.
• Clicking the link sends them through the standard sign-in or sign-up flow. If they already have a NearbySpy Client account on that email, they sign in and land in the Case's Client view. If not, they create an account on the spot.
• Once accepted, they appear in the Case's Members list with the Client role.

The full Client experience is documented in Accepting a Case invitation.

What the Client sees inside the Case

By default, a freshly invited Client sees almost nothing. They see the Case exists, who you are, and any Operations you explicitly mark visible to Clients. They do not see internal Notes, hidden Operations, Evidence on hidden Operations, or other Members on the Case. You decide what to share, Operation by Operation. See Controlling what Clients see on Operations.

Inviting the right person

• Use the email address the Client actually checks. Reset and invitation emails are useless if they go to an inbox no one reads.
• If the Client is a law firm, invite the attorney or paralegal who is your day-to-day contact, not a general firm address. You can add additional Client contacts later from the Members tab.
• Be careful inviting personal Gmail addresses for sensitive matters. Consider whether the Client wants Case notifications going to a shared device.

What if the Client does not accept

• The invitation does not expire immediately. The Client can accept later from the same email link.
• You can resend the invitation from the Case's Members tab.
• Until the Client accepts, they have no access to the Case. Anything you set as "visible to Clients" simply waits until acceptance.

Inviting a Client later instead

You do not have to invite the Client during creation. Many investigators create the Case, run a few Operations, and only invite the Client once there is something concrete to show. To invite later, open the Case, go to the Members tab, and add a Client. The flow and behavior are identical to the wizard step.

Removing or replacing a Client

From the Members tab you can remove a Client from a Case. Removal is immediate; they lose access on the next page load. You can then invite a different Client. Removed Clients still appear in the Case audit trail (the audit trail is append-only and never edited).

Related articles

• Using the Create Case wizard
• Case roles: Owner, Admin, Investigator, Viewer, Client
• Controlling what Clients see on Operations