What it does
- Combines the sections you choose — your Evidence Binder and your Draft Petition — into one PDF, instead of an attorney having to open several separate exports.
- Lets you pick which sections to include and reorder them with simple up/down controls; the exported PDF follows exactly the order you set.
- Is a pure compilation step: no AI call, no analysis, just assembling content you've already produced elsewhere in the case.
Portfolio only runs inside a case — there's no standalone free version and no case-independent mode. Every view still carries the standard compliance disclaimer band, since the assembled PDF includes narrative and evidentiary content from elsewhere in your case.
When to use it
Portfolio isn't a tracked step in the in-app Case Journey (unlike Petition Studio or Evidence Binder, it doesn't have its own journey stage) — it's the packaging step you reach for once you actually have finished sections worth combining: a completed Evidence Binder, and/or a Draft Petition produced by AI Drafter (Counsel-tier only). Run it whenever you need one file to hand to your attorney or keep for your own records, rather than at a fixed point in the journey.
Before you start
- At least one section you already have access to — there's nothing to export with zero sections selected.
- Cost: free. No
tool_costsrow exists for Portfolio; assembling and exporting the PDF spends no credits, on any plan. - Access is per-section, not all-or-nothing:
- Evidence Binder section — unlocked by your own personal plan's Evidence Binder entitlement (the same one that gates the standalone Binder tool).
- Draft Petition section — unlocked only through an attorney firm on the Counsel plan (AI Drafter is firm-gated, not available on an individual Pro plan at all).
- If neither section is unlocked for your case, the picker still opens, but both rows show as locked — there is no free section to fall back on.
Step by step
Open Portfolio from inside a case (or from
/dashboard/portfolio, which lists your cases so you can pick one — Portfolio has no case-independent view).Example output — a static placeholder is used here in place of a live screenshot; no fixture case in this pass had credentials available to capture the picker screen live. See the report's evidence table for exactly which steps this applies to.
Review the section picker. Each row shows a section name; locked rows carry a "Locked" badge and the specific reason (needs a plan that includes Evidence Binder, or needs an attorney firm on the Counsel plan).
Check the sections you want included — only unlocked sections can be selected.
Reorder with the up/down arrows next to each row. The exported PDF follows this exact order, top to bottom.
Select "Export Portfolio PDF." If your case has more evidence items than a single export can currently render reliably, you'll see a specific "This case is too large to export right now" message instead of a silent failure.
Download the combined PDF once export completes.
Warning: If your subscription is in a trial state that doesn't include exports yet, you'll see an "Exports unlock with your plan" prompt instead of a download — this is a real, distinct gate from the section-locking above, tied to your subscription status rather than section access.
Reading the result
- Section picker rows — one per available section (currently Evidence Binder and Draft Petition), each either selectable or shown locked with its specific unlock requirement.
- Order controls — up/down arrows that set the section order in the final PDF; there is no drag-and-drop, just the two directional controls per row.
- The exported PDF itself — a cover page, a contents page listing what's included, then each selected section's content in the order you set. There's no separate "analysis" to read here — the value is entirely in the combined, ordered, single-file result.
Free vs Pro for this tool
- Portfolio itself never charges credits — the compilation and export are free on any plan, forever.
- What actually gates it is which sections you have: the Evidence Binder section needs a personal plan that includes Evidence Binder (the Free plan's own tool list is empty, so this in practice means Pro); the Draft Petition section needs an attorney firm on the Counsel plan specifically — a personal Pro subscription does not unlock it on its own.
- The 7-day Pro trial (to unlock the Evidence Binder section) requires a card upfront at Stripe checkout, and is cancel-anytime afterward through the self-serve billing portal.
- Start your free trial from
/dashboard/billingto unlock the Evidence Binder section of your Portfolio export — the Draft Petition section requires a firm relationship on Counsel, which a personal trial doesn't grant.
Ready to put this to work on your own case? Start free — no credit card required, or start your free trial to unlock the full Pro toolset. For more background from Merito's parent site, see EB1 Mentor's EB-1A criteria service overview.
Common mistakes
- Opening Portfolio expecting a free preview section. There isn't one — both current sections are gated (personal-plan Evidence Binder, or firm-level Counsel Draft Petition), so a Free-plan solo user without purchased sections will see everything locked.
- Trying to export with nothing selected. The tool tells you directly to select at least one section — it won't silently produce an empty PDF.
- Assuming the Draft Petition section unlocks with a personal Pro plan. It specifically requires an attorney firm relationship on the Counsel plan — a Pro subscription alone doesn't reach it, only the Evidence Binder section does.
- Not checking your subscription's export-unlock status separately from section access. A trialing subscription can have sections that show as "available" in the picker but still hit the "Exports unlock with your plan" gate at the actual export step.
Frequently asked questions
Does exporting a Portfolio PDF cost credits?
No — Portfolio has no `tool_costs` row on any plan. It's a free, deterministic compilation step.
Why do I see both sections locked even though I'm logged in?
Locked means the entitlement behind that specific section isn't met yet — Evidence Binder needs a plan that includes it, and Draft Petition needs an attorney firm on the Counsel plan. Being logged in doesn't unlock either on its own.
Can I reorder sections after I've already exported once?
Yes — reordering and re-exporting is unlimited; there's no per-export cost or history limit described in the product.
What happens if my case has a lot of evidence?
There's an explicit size ceiling on how much a single PDF export can render reliably. If your case exceeds it, you'll see a specific message telling you so rather than a silent failure or a broken file.
Is a Draft Petition section available if I'm on Pro but working solo, without a firm?
No — that section specifically requires an attorney firm relationship on the Counsel plan, which is a separate axis from your own personal plan tier.
Does the exported PDF include any AI-generated commentary of its own?
No — Portfolio itself performs no analysis. It assembles content that Evidence Binder and AI Drafter already produced elsewhere in your case.
Merito is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice or predict approval odds. This is a readiness review to help you and your attorney strengthen your case.