Word 2010 - Design Mode greyed out

Huh, maybe the download/install was wonky. Have you tried (seriously) reinstalling it?

If that doesn't work, sometimes the developer provides contact info and you can ask. There might have been a problem that creeped in after they made it available for download, and they don't know about that. Most people would love an opportunity to fix that kind of a problem.

Maybe the template author has enabled protection - as per
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/accounting-help/protect-a-word-template-from-unauthorized-changes-HP001173086.aspx

If you are using Word 2010, chances are your document is in compatibility mode, which means that it is restricting features to be able to open with a previous version of Word. Just go to file > Info and the first icon should say compatibility mode, click and it and you should be good to go.

THANKS for this answer. Very helpful!!