Business Partner Dispute? Build a WhatsApp Timeline | ThreadRecap
When a business partnership is breaking down, the dispute is almost never about one message. It is about months of accumulated decisions, half-promises, and different memories of what was agreed.
The conversations that matter most happened on WhatsApp: quick texts, voice notes sent while driving, approvals buried in a group chat at 11 PM. Now each side remembers a different version, and every conversation about the future gets derailed by arguments about the past.
The fastest way to stop that cycle is to build a facts-only timeline from the actual conversation. Not a narrative. Not a complaint. A structured record of what was said, when, and what came of it.
Why a timeline works better than "going through messages"
When you scroll through a WhatsApp conversation during a dispute, you find what you are looking for. Confirmation bias is unavoidable. You skim past the messages that weaken your position and highlight the ones that support it.
A timeline forces neutrality because it follows chronological order and includes everything relevant, not just the parts that favor one side. It also makes patterns visible: commitments that were made and not kept, scope changes that were never formally agreed, or decision points where things went wrong.
What a timeline reveals that scrolling does not
When you read a long WhatsApp conversation as a flat scroll, you lose the structure of time. Weeks collapse together. A commitment made in March looks like it belongs to the same conversation as a complaint made in June, even if nothing relevant happened in between. A proper timeline separates those moments and gives each one a date stamp, so the sequence becomes undeniable.
This matters especially in partnership disputes where one party argues that a decision was made before or after a particular event. The chat export includes WhatsApp's native timestamps on every message, which are reliable enough to establish basic sequencing even if they are not accepted as legal evidence without further verification. A timeline built on those timestamps is far more defensible than either party's memory.
How voice notes change the picture
Many business partnerships conduct entire decision-making conversations over WhatsApp voice notes rather than text. These are easy to overlook when building a dispute record because they require extra steps to review. WhatsApp exports voice notes as .opus files on Android and .m4a files on iPhone. ThreadRecap transcribes both formats using OpenAI Whisper, reaching approximately 95% accuracy on clear audio. A transcribed voice note sits in the timeline alongside text messages, so nothing gets dismissed as "I can't remember exactly what I said."
What you need before you start
Export the WhatsApp chat. Include media if voice notes contain important commitments. If the export is not working, check the export troubleshooting guide.
Decide on the time window. Not every message from the last two years is relevant. Narrow it to the period where the dispute started forming.
Know your purpose. Are you building this for a mediation meeting? For a conversation with a lawyer? For your own clarity before a tough conversation? The level of detail changes depending on the audience.
Understanding what the export file contains
When WhatsApp generates an export, the result is always a .zip archive. Inside that archive is a _chat.txt file containing every text message in the selected conversation, with timestamps and sender names. If you chose to include media at export time, the .zip also contains the attached files: images, documents, and voice notes. The _chat.txt file references each media item by filename so the relationship between a message and its attachment is preserved.
For a dispute with a long history, the export can be large. ThreadRecap handles WhatsApp exports containing 60,000 or more messages and accepts .zip files up to 2 GB, which covers even the most active multi-year partnerships without requiring you to split or pre-filter the conversation.
Dispute timeline template
Header
Context: [One paragraph describing what this dispute is about]
Time window: [Start date] to [End date]
Participants: [Names and their roles]
Chronological timeline
[Date or week]
Topic: [What was discussed]
What was said: [Neutral summary]
Outcome: Agreed / Not agreed / Unclear
Source: [Short quote or paraphrase from the chat]
[Date or week]
Topic: [What changed or escalated]
What was said: [Neutral summary]
Outcome: Agreed / Not agreed / Unclear
Source: [Short quote or paraphrase]
_(Continue chronologically)_
Commitments ledger
For each commitment made during this period:
Who committed: [Name]
What they committed to: [Specific deliverable or action]
Upload the export to ThreadRecap. The file is extracted in your browser first so you can preview the message count, date range, and participants before anything is processed.
For a dispute timeline, two analysis passes work best:
First pass: Use Meeting Recap (2 credits) to get a structured overview with decisions, action items, and open questions.
Second pass: Use Custom Prompt (3 credits) with this prompt:
Create a chronological timeline of the dispute. For each entry include: date, topic, what was said (neutral language), and outcome (agreed / not agreed / unclear). Extract all commitments made by either party with status. List unresolved issues at the end. No opinions, no moral judgment. If content came from a voice note, include it as normal. Finish with 5 suggested next steps for a resolution meeting.
Step 3: Build the commitments ledger
Run a second Custom Prompt focused specifically on commitments:
List every commitment made by either participant. For each: who committed, what they committed to, any deadline mentioned, and whether later messages show it was completed. If unclear, mark as unclear.
This is where the real value is. It transforms "he said / she said" into a concrete list that both sides can review.
Understanding the credit cost
The full dispute analysis workflow costs 8 credits in total: 2 credits for the Meeting Recap pass, and 3 credits each for the two Custom Prompt passes. New ThreadRecap accounts receive free credits with no subscription required, so a first dispute analysis often costs nothing. Pay-as-you-go credits start at $5 if you need additional credits after the welcome allocation runs out. There is no monthly commitment.
Step 4: Review and share
Read through the output, correct anything the AI got wrong, and share the timeline with whoever needs it: your partner, a mediator, an advisor, or your lawyer.
Two rules that keep the timeline trustworthy
Keep it factual. Your goal is clarity, not winning the argument. If the timeline only supports your side, you probably left something out.
Anchor every claim to a message. If a point cannot be tied to something that was actually said in the chat, it does not belong in the timeline.
A note on legal admissibility
The admissibility of WhatsApp messages as evidence in formal proceedings varies by jurisdiction. In some legal systems, a printed or exported chat history is accepted as supporting documentation once its authenticity is established; in others, the chain of custody requirements are stricter. A timeline built from your chat is highly useful for mediation, internal resolution, and preparation work, but if you intend to submit it in a legal proceeding, consult a lawyer first. They can advise on what format, verification, and metadata is required in your jurisdiction before you present anything formally.
Privacy matters more during disputes
When the conversation is sensitive, privacy is not optional. Some things to look for in any tool you use:
Chat file is parsed locally in your browser, not uploaded as-is to a server
Photos and videos never leave your device
Raw chat text is not stored after analysis
Voice notes are only processed if you choose to include them
How local parsing protects you before you decide anything
When you load a WhatsApp export into ThreadRecap, the .zip file is unpacked and read inside your browser using client-side JavaScript. ThreadRecap shows you the message count, date range, and participant names before you confirm that you want to proceed. That means you can verify you have uploaded the right conversation and the right time window before any content is sent for AI analysis. For a dispute involving confidential business information, that confirmation step is not just a convenience feature; it is a meaningful privacy control.
What comes after the timeline
A timeline is a starting point, not an endpoint. Depending on where the dispute is heading:
If the dispute involves late payment, build a WhatsApp invoice trail with all payment promises and follow-ups
Ready to build a timeline from your WhatsApp chat?
Upload your export to ThreadRecap and generate a structured recap in minutes. Start with 5 free credits, no subscription required. Pay-as-you-go credits start at $5 if you need more.
