With content controls in Microsoft Word, you can protect specific sections of text from being edited. This feature is useful, for example, when you want to define certain sections in templates that should not be accidentally modified or deleted by users.
Setting up the Control in Your Layout File
You may want to lock specific clauses in an exported Word document while allowing other text areas to remain editable.
How to Add a Content Control
1. Enable Developer Tools (only necessary the first time):
- Click File > Options > Customize Ribbon.
- Check the box for Developer.
2. Place the cursor at the desired location in your Word document.
3. Select Rich Text Content Control from the Developer tab.
4. Place your desired text anchor within the control, e.g., {@TEXT1}.
Attention
Make sure to set the text anchor in your LAWLIFT template accordingly so that protection is only activated for the text containing the anchor (e.g., {@TEXT1}). You can find instructions on how to change text anchors here.
Activate Protection
1. Click the inserted content control.
2. Select Properties in the Developer tab.
3. Enable:
- Content cannot be edited
- Control cannot be deleted
4. Then, highlight the control and activate grouping using the Group option in the menu.
5. Confirm with OK.
Tip
You can also activate write protection for the entire document. Instructions for doing this can be found here.
Please note that content controls can be removed, so individuals with access to the Developer tools in Word can disable the protection. However, in most cases, the Developer tools are not enabled by default.
Here you can download a layout that already includes a content control. Feel free to use and customize it according to your needs.
