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Generating the NI Grouping List

Generating the NI Grouping List

The grouping list is generated once amendments have been grouped together into similar topics.

How to generate a Grouping List

Before you can generate the Grouping List, you will need to assign the tabled amendments to a group.

Step 1: Assign amendments to groups

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Move amendments to a group dialog box

  1. From the Amendment Manager, toggle the view to grouped view using the button in the top left of the page.

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  2. Filter the amendments to Tabled using quick filter

  3. Select the amendments to assign to the first group and use Amendment Actions > Move Amendments to Group

  4. Select the appropriate action and update your amendments

  5. Continue with the remaining amendments

Options when managing amendments in groups

  1. Add amendments to a new group if you are creating a new group. You will need to add the name of the new group, ignoring the group number e.g. “Minimising alcohol related harm in society“

  2. Add amendments to an existing group if you are moving amendments between groups. You will need to select the relevant group from the drop-down menu. If there are no amendments left in a group, the empty group will be deleted.

  3. Remove amendments from any group if you want to move them back to the ‘ungrouped’ category. If there are no amendments left in a group, the empty group will be deleted.

Step 2: Generate the Grouping List

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Grouping List dialog box

  1. From the Amendment Manager, select Amendment Actions > Create Official List

  2. Select Grouping List

  3. Update the relevant information in the dialog box and click on Create

  4. The Grouping List will appear in a new tab in the Editor, containing all specified groups and their associated amendments.

How to update the footer with list number

If there is more than one Grouping List produced at any amending stage, the amendment list number displayed in the footer of the list will need updating.

  1. Select Document Information in the right-hand panel

  2. Update the List Number field

  3. Wait for the spinner to finish

  4. Save your changes

  5. Generate a PDF as normal and the footer information will have been updated.

When your grouping list has been checked and is ready for printing/publishing, you need to publish the list in Lawmaker in order for automated processes in the amendment list generation logic to work.

Process and logic for auto-generating the Grouping List

Amendments will appear in the Grouping List if they were they were assigned to a group for the selected stage and bill version.

You can add extra groups to the list or add extra amendments if you spot any mistakes, but it would be better for you to add these via the Grouping set up stage to ensure that the Speaker’s Brief is correctly populated

You must have a published bill version for the selected bill version in order to generate a Grouping List.

Amendment descriptions are formatted as follows—

  • New Clause amendments = "Amendment x - New Clause"

  • New Schedule amendments = "Amendment x - New Schedule"

  • Amendment to amendments = "Amendment x - Amendment to Amendment y"

  • Stand part motions = "Opposition to {Clause x or Schedule y}"

  • All other amendments = "Amendment x"

The group numbers "Group 1", "Group 2" etc. are automatically assigned based on the first amendment in each group.  The group with the first amendment (sorted first using the Marshalled List sort logic) is always Group 1.  Group 2 will be the group whose first amendment is the next soonest amendment to appear in the sorted Marshalled List - and so on for the other groups.