right|thumb|Bates Automatic Numbering-Machine, approx 1906, with a number printed by the machine

Bates numbering (also known as Bates stamping, Bates branding, Bates coding, Bates labeling or crash numbering) is a method of sequentially numbering pages or documents with a reference number. A hand-operated Bates numbering device is used to "stamp" a number on a page, and the number automatically advances after each stamping. The mechanism -- an improvement patented by Edwin G. Bates in 1891 -- automatically changed the number, making quick work for staff. and in 1895 he received a Longstreth award from the Franklin Institute for his invention of a typographic number machine.

The earliest patent claimed a "new and useful improvement in Consecutive-Numbering Machines", indicating that Bates was not the originator of the idea.

Operating as Bates Manufacturing Company since its incorporation in 1890,<gallery>

File:Bates.png|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

File:Bates2.png|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

File:Bates5.png|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

File:Bates3.png|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

File:Bates8.png|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

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Usage

thumb|Bates Numbering Machine in the Newspaper

Bates numbering is commonly used as an organizational method to label and identify legal documents. Nearly all American law firms use Bates stamps, though the use of manual hand-stamping is becoming increasingly rare because of the rise in electronic numbering, mostly in Portable Document Format (PDF) files rather than printed material.

Bates numbering is neither universally used nor consistently applied; for example, The Bluebook style guide does not reference it. But, consistent with The Bluebook, the first citation should make it very clear what is being referenced, such as (Bates Jones000001) or (Bates d123-002), and subsequent consecutive cites should follow the usual practice of Id. followed by the page number, such as (Id. 000017) or (Id. -017).

  • How to use Bates Numbering in PDFs, by Adobe
  • How to add Bates Stamp to a PDF document via YouTube