- An attorney creates a document on his/her computer using a word processing program.
Instead of printing the document on paper, the attorney saves the file as a PDF document. The attorney
accesses the system via the Internet and establishes his/her identity by providing a court-assigned login
and password. The attorney types in the case number, selects the name of the party, and selects the type of
document (answer, motion, etc.) being filed. The system automatically creates a docket entry. Next, the system
sends an e-mail notification of the filing to all attorneys who are registered for CM/ECF on the case. If an
attorney in the case is not a registered CM/ECF user, a paper copy of the document must be mailed by the
filing party.
- Training sessions for filers (attorneys and support staff) will be conducted
by the Court. Presently, it is our intention to offer training sessions at the Greensboro and Winston-Salem
courthouses as well as at law firms which have appropriate facilities. The North Carolina State Bar has approved
our CM/ECF Training for 2.00 hours of general CLE credit. For additional information regarding
training, please call (336) 332-6003.
- Yes, the Clerk's Office will offer this service to the public.
- There are no fees to file electronically.
For viewing documents in cases, you get one free look at documents that are filed in cases on which you
are an attorney of record. For each subsequent viewing, you will be required to log in to PACER and pay a
fee of $.08 per page up to $2.40 per document. (We recommend you print or save the document during the first viewing to avoid these charges.)
If you do not have a PACER login and password, you can contact the PACER Service Center at 1-800- 676-6856.
- Pro se filers shall file paper originals of all complaints, pleadings, motions, affidavits,
briefs, and other documents which must be signed, or require verification or an unsworn declaration under
any rule or statute. The Clerk's Office will scan these original documents into CM/ECF, but will also
maintain a paper file.
- Yes, the filer must comply with privacy issues as described in the E-Government Act of 2003,
as well as
using Local Rule 7.1 (b).
- Yes, the filer must comply with privacy issues as described in the E-Government Act of 2003,
as well as
using Local Rule 7.1 (b).
To address privacy concerns created by Internet access to court documents, litigants may
modify or partially redact certain personal data identifiers appearing in pleadings or other papers. These
identifiers and suggested modifications are as follows:
Minor's names - Use the minor's initials
Financial account numbers - Identify the name or type of account and the financial institution where
maintained, but use only the last four digits of the account number
Social Security numbers - Use only the last four numbers
Dates of Birth - Use only the year and other data as permitted by order of the Court.
- Virtually yes, however, if maintenance or repairs are needed, the system may be down temporarily.
- All registered CM/ECF users will receive e-mail notification of all filings,
which includes a hyperlink to the document. Participants who are not registered users must be
mailed a copy of the filing.
- Proposed orders must be e-mailed to chambers. The e-mail addresses are listed in
the Civil and Criminal Administrative Procedures Manual.
- Briefs are now filed electronically in the same manner as other court pleadings. In CM/ECF,
the event "Brief" is found in the "Other Documents" sub-menu.
- The process of initiating a removal case is similar to filing a complaint. Please see "How to File a Complaint."
- When filing crossclaims, counterclaims, intervenor complaints, etc., you cannot
select more than one event at the same time. You will need to create two pleadings one entitled
"Crossclaim" and one entitled "Counterclaim" and file each document separately.
- To add counsel in a case, electronically file a Notice of Appearance.
- Right click in the window and select Reload Frame (Netscape) or Refresh (IE). If that does
not bring back all options have the user clear their cache or temporary internet files.
In Netscape:
Go to Edit...Preferences.
Double click on Advanced.
Click on Cache
Click Clear Memory Cache, click OK
Click Clear Disk Cache, click OK
In Internet Explorer:
Go to Tools...Internet Options
Click Delete Files..(Temporary Internet Files)
- Yes, sealed cases and sealed documents will be included in CM/ECF with restriction. A party
may electronically file a motion to file a document under seal. If the motion is granted, the assigned judge
will electronically file an order authorizing the filing of the document under seal. The filing party shall
then deliver the document to the Clerk's Office for conventional filing under seal.
- In order to file electronically in this Court, parties need the following:
- A personal computer running a standard platform, such as Windows or Macintosh.
- Software to convert documents from a word processor format to portable document format (PDF). Adobe Acrobat PDF writer is recommended
- Internet Service (high speed recommended)
- Netscape Navigator version 4.6 or 4.7 (Netscape 6 is not recommended for use with CM/ECF) or Internet Explorer 5.5. Netscape
7.02 and IE 5.0 are being tested to certify compatibility, and some users have had positive results
- Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available for free is needed for viewing PDF documents.
- A scanner may be necessary to create electronic images of documents not in your word processing system.
- If the motion was filed by one defendant, the order will only appear on that
defendant's docket sheet, even though the order pertains to all defendants. This is a problem in
the CM/ECF system and a fix has been requested. The work-around is to run a docket sheet for all
defendants.
- If you are an attorney of record in a case, you will not be charged the first
time you view a document. However, the next time you view the same document, you will be charged
8 cents per page up to $2.40 per document. PACER will bill you after your account reaches $10.00 in a calendar year.
- Attorneys of record receive one free electronic copy of all documents filed electronically
if receipt is required by law or directed by the filer. Attorneys will receive an e-mail message containing
a hyperlink to the document filed. Use the hyperlink to view the document. The hyperlink will expire after
the earlier of these two events: the first use or 15 days. Any time that same hyperlink is accessed after
it has expired, the user will be asked for a PACER login and will be charged to view the document. All users
should be advised to print or save the document during the initial viewing period in order to avoid
future charges.
- No, you can use your firm's password for PACER. However, each attorney does need a separate CM/ECF login and password.
- Billable pages are calculated in two ways in CM/ECF. A formula is used to
determine the number of pages for an HTML formatted report. Any information extracted from the CM/ECF
database, such as the data used to create a docket sheet, is billed using a formula based on the number
of bytes extracted. For a PDF document, the actual number of pages are counted to determine the number
of billable pages. For report data retrieved from the CM/ECF system that is printed, the print job will
not always match the number of pages billed. The number of pages printed is dependent on individual
printer and browser settings. All users are charged equally for the same information regardless of the
browser settings or printer configurations. A transaction receipt and the Review Billing History option
are provided under Utilities for reviewing charges. Also, Review Transaction History is available on the
PACER Service Center site in Account Information for reviewing transactions from all courts. The
transactions are updated on the PACER Web Site by the middle of each month.
- Go to the PACER Service Center's website at www.pacer.psc.uscourts.gov, and
complete the online form as instructed. You may also call the center toll free at 1-800-676-6856
to register.
- All electronic case filings are accessed through PACER. In order to review a
case filing, you must be registered on PACER.
- In the event that you are charged for accessing a document that should have been free, you
should keep track of the occurrences. When you receive your quarterly statement, send a written request
for credit by mail or e-mail. The transactions for which the problem occurred should be annotated. A credit
will be applied to your PACER account.
To obtain the detailed information for each search, you can login to "Account Information" at PACER's home website,
and then "Review Transaction History." The information provided will be the date, time, case number, type
of document (i.e. docket, image, etc.). As a suggestion, enter "Free Look" in the client code when you are
asked to login to PACER, but feel it should be a free peak. This will also show in the transaction history.
This may assist you in tracking the transactions.
NOTE: For criminal, and social security cases you will always by required to login to PACER, but the
first look at the document should be free.
- The system will not accept documents which have any of Adobe's own document security
measures on, including password protection. Remove the security features from the document and try again.
- In Adobe Acrobat Reader, go to Edit...Preferences. Highlight Options, and uncheck "Allow Fast Web View"
- Adobe calls this Aflowing." Depending on the font, the printer selected, and other
characteristics of the context, a document may undergo some changes when it is rendered into PDF.
Using Distiller, instead of PDFwriter, is supposed to better preserve the document's original appearance,
according to Adobe. Adobe has a good set of technical documents at their website.
- PDF documents that are scanned can not be larger than 2MB in size. When scanning, be sure
to set your scanner to black and white and 200 dpi. If your scanned document is larger than 2MB you can
seperate it into multiple smaller files.
To check the size of the file, right click on the file and select properties. (1MB = 1000KB)
- Start the Adobe Acrobat program, go to the File menu and choose Open. If the designated
location is correct, and the file is in PDF, Adobe Acrobat Exchange loads the file and displays it on the
screen. If the document consists of several pages, use the scroll bar to move through the document.
It's the filers responsibility to verify the correct pdf document is being submitted to the court.
- You are probably trying to scan the document using optical character recognition (OCR). PDF
can handle both text and scanned documents. Additionally, PDF can take scanned documents and perform OCR on
them, turning the image back into editable text; however, this process causes many problems and should not
be performed before a document is electronically filed. It is permissible to perform OCR on PDF documents
after they are in the CM/ECF system.
- All your documents must be converted to PDF before submitting them to the Court's
Electronic Case Files System (ECF). Install Acrobat Writer or PDF converter on your computer.
Open the document to be converted. Select the print option and in the dialog box, select the option
to change the current printer. A drop down menu with a list of printer choices is displayed. Select
Adobe PDFWriter or PDF converter. Print the file. The file will not actually print. Instead,
an option to save the file as a PDF file appears. Make a note of the file location so you can find the
document when you are ready to upload it to the system. You can change the location of the file by
clicking in the "Save as" area of the window.
- Check to see if "spam" filtering is turned on. When e-mail notifications are sent out,
the attorney's e-mail address is in the bcc field and is therefore mistaken for "spam" by some filters.
Customer will need to add "ncmd.uscourts.gov" as an accepted domain in their "spam" filter.
- You need to enter your PACER login and password.
1. For civil cases, the first time you click on a document link in your e-mail, the system should
display the document without requiring a login. For each subsequent viewing, you will be required to log
into PACER and pay a fee of $.08 per page up to $2.40 per document.
2. For criminal cases, the first time you click on a document link in your e-mail, the system requires
you to enter your CM/ECF login and password. Next, you need to enter your PACER login and password. You will
not be charged the first time you view a criminal document. If you do not have a PACER login and password,
contact the PACER Service Center at 1-800-676-6856.
- All registered CM/ECF users will receive e-mail notification of all filings, which
includes a hyperlink to the document. Participants who are not registered users must be mailed a
copy of the filing.
- Many firms have expressed an interest in making rules on their mail servers so they can
direct incoming notices of electronic filing to specific mailboxes. CM/ECF system will automatically send
notices using the following address: "ecf.notification@ncmd.uscourts.gov."
- The completion of the Attorney Registration Form, which includes your Internet
e-mail address, automatically signs you up for e-mail notification. You must keep your Internet
e-mail address current on CM/ECF.
- Log into CM/ECF Go to Utilities - Maintain your Account Click on E-mail Information.
A screen will appear requesting information for additional e-mail addresses. This data entry has a field
capacity of 250 characters. Click on - Return to Account Screen. Click on Submit at the bottom of the
primary Maintain User Account screen. The new e-mail addresses you added will now receive the Notices of
Electronic Filing.
- Log into CM/ECF and click on Utilities->Mailings->Mailing Info for a Case.
- The CM/ECF login and password, together with an "/s/" signature, constitute a valid
signature for the purposes of Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Just as counsel was
required to sign a paper pleading, documents filed electronically must bear counsel's "e-filing signature."
Please note that you do not need to register more than once. If you change firms, your electronic signature
remains valid; however, you must update your address and e-mail information.
- A login and password will be issued to the attorney once they and/or their staff have completed
the necessary training.
- Log into CM/ECF Go to Utilities - Click on Maintain Your
Account. Click on More User Information at the bottom of the screen. Delete the row of asterisks
and type in your new password. Click on Return to Account Screen. Click on Submit at the bottom of
the page. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOUR LOGIN NAME BE CHANGED.
- You may go to the Court's website, click on Attorney Registration Form, and complete
the form as instructed. To register for a training class, please contact Billy Crumley at (336)332-6003.
- Yes. Each attorney must have his/her own login and password to file documents in
CM/ECF. The login and password, along with the "/s/" on a document, constitute the attorney's signature.
However, all attorneys in the firm can share a PACER login and password for viewing documents. Attorneys
must secure their passwords and notify the Court if they learn a password has been compromised.
- The system is case sensitive. If you have the CAPS lock on, your login will fail.
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