---
title: Case lifecycle
category: cases
order: 3
lastUpdated: 2026-06-08
featureAvailability: GA
roles: [facilitator, admin, teacher]
navigationPath: Cases → (open a case) → Status
serverFunctions: [updateCaseStatus]
auditActions: [status_change]
relatedArticles: [cases/creating-cases, cases/closing-cases, cases/reopening-cases, cases/follow-ups]
---

## At a glance

- **Who uses it:** Facilitators and admins managing cases.
- **Purpose:** Document the case status model so transitions are consistent across facilitators.

## The status set

- **New** — Just created, not yet picked up.
- **Assigned** — Owner assigned, work not yet started.
- **In Progress** — Active coaching underway.
- **On Hold** — Temporarily paused (student absent, awaiting parent meeting, end-of-term break). Follow-up date preserved.
- **Resolved** — Plan complete, observing for sustainability. Often paired with a final follow-up.
- **Closed** — Finished. Outcome captured. Cleared from active dashboards.

**Open statuses:** New, Assigned, In Progress, On Hold, Resolved.
**Terminal status:** Closed.

## Common transitions

```text
New → Assigned → In Progress → Resolved → Closed
                  ↑       ↓
                  └── On Hold
```

Any open status can also move directly to Closed (e.g. duplicate, transfer-out). Closed cases can be moved back to any open status — see [Reopening cases](/help/cases/reopening-cases).

## What happens on transition

- The status change is audit-logged (`status_change`) with actor and timestamp.
- The attached teacher receives a notification (per their settings).
- Closing the case **clears** any follow-up date.
- Moving to On Hold **preserves** the follow-up date.

## Step-by-step: change a status

1. Open the case.
2. Click the **Status** menu in the header.
3. Pick the new status.
4. Confirm. The change is audit-logged and the teacher is notified.

[SCREENSHOT: case-status-menu]
_Cases → open case header with the Status menu open showing all six statuses._

## Tips & best practices

- Use **On Hold** for genuine pauses, not for "haven't gotten to it yet" (that's still In Progress).
- Use **Resolved** as a deliberate "watching to confirm sticking" stage before Closed — it gives you a chance to reopen without paperwork if things slip.
- Don't skip status updates because the case will close soon — outcome reporting is stronger with clean transition history.

## Related articles

- [Creating a case](/help/cases/creating-cases)
- [Closing cases](/help/cases/closing-cases)
- [Reopening cases](/help/cases/reopening-cases)
- [Follow-ups](/help/cases/follow-ups)

## FAQ

**Can I customize statuses for my district?**
The status set is fixed across orgs so cross-org reporting (especially district rollups) is comparable. Custom states are not on the near roadmap.

**What if I close a case by mistake?**
Just reopen it — move the status back to any open value. The audit log preserves the original close timestamp.