Pacing Yourself with PACER:
Federal court filings at
your fingertips
Amy Levine, Head of
Reference and
Research Services
Madeline Cohen,
Circuit Librarian
U.S. Courts Library,
1 0 th C i r c u i t
Denver, CO
16 August 2010
What is PACER?
 PACER stands for Public Access to Court
Electronic Records.
 It is an electronic public access service that
allows users to obtain case and docket
information from federal appellate, district
and bankruptcy courts via the Internet.
 PACER is a service of the U.S. Judiciary, but
each court maintains its own database with
case information.
Why Use PACER?
 The system is a fast, inexpensive and
comprehensive way to search and retrieve
case information.
 It is easy to use and requires no additional
software or training, other than what is
available through the PACER web page.
 The U.S. Courts Library offers a public
Internet terminal for accessing PACER.
What’s Available on PACER?
 List of parties to and participants in a case,
including attorneys, judges and trustees.
 Chronology of dates for case events entered into
the record.
 Summary of the cause(s) of action, nature of the
suit, and dollar demand.
 Imaged or scanned copies of documents.
 Judgments, opinions and case status.
PACER from the Internet
How to Access PACER
 Determine the court where the case originated or
to which it has been appealed.
 Select the hotlink that corresponds to the court.
 Follow the instruction to login to the PACER
system.
 Select a search strategy and enter required
information.
 Follow instructions to either download or print
your results.
OLD NEWS: U.S./Party Case Index
 Not all federal courts participated in the U.S.
Party/Case Index.
 In order to complete a nationwide search, you had
to search the data for each non-participating court
individually.
 You could search the index by Social Security
number, name or nature of suit.
 Results included party name, court of jurisdiction,
case number, filing date, nature of suit and
bankruptcy chapter.
New Case Locator!!
 National index for U.S. district, bankruptcy, and
appellate courts.
 A small subset of information from each case is
transferred to the PACER Case Locator each night.
 The system serves as a locator index for PACER. You
may conduct nationwide searches to determine
whether or not a party is involved in federal
litigation.
 As of 7/29/10, cases from the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit are NOT on Case Locator.
New Case Locator
Once you log on….
Case Locator – Search page
Results Page
More Information
Getting a Report/Docket
Query
Case Search
 The General Docket can include:
 Docket
number.
 Information about the court of origination.
 Party and attorney information.
 Case status.
 Case type information.
 Summary of actions, documents and pleadings.
Case Search
 Cases can be searched by:
 Case number range.
 Party name.
 Attorney name.
 Entering information will give you a “Case
Selection Table” with hotlinks to cases.
 By clicking on a hotlink , you can access the
General Docket for the case.
Case Searching
Example of a Case
Case Search
 Clicking on the “Case No.” link will give you the
summary of the case.
 Clicking on the “Short Title” link will give you the
names of parties, attorneys, links to the originating
case and the ability to form a query.
 Clicking on the “Originating Case No.” link will
give you a summary of the originating case.
 Can download information in XML or ASCII
formats.
Case Search Results -- KS
Civil Reports -- OKND
Opinions
 Clicking on the “Opinions” hotlink takes you
to the 10th Circuit Clerk’s case management
page.
 From this page, you can access:
 Today’s
unpublished opinions.
 Opinions from the entire week.
 Opinions from 1995 to present, searchable by
keyword or by date.
Orders and Judgments
 By selecting the “Orders/Judgments” hotlink, you
will have access to reports on:
Per curiam orders.
 Clerk orders.
 Opinions.
 Per curiam opinions.
 Judgments.
 Per curiam judgments.

 You can search by case number range or by the day
or month that a case was filed or entered.
Briefs
Briefs
Briefs
More Court Information
PACER FAQ’s
 Is PACER available on the Internet?

Yes. Please click here for links to courts providing access.
You will need a Javascript enabled browser.
 How do I register for PACER?

Go to the online registration page and fill out the form.
There is no charge to register.
 How do I pay for my transactions?

A statement will be mailed to you once you accrue charges of
$10.00 or more. The cost per page is $.08. There is a $2.40
cap for any given document, regardless of the number of
pages it contains.
Taken from http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov/faq.html
New PACER Fee Schedule
 28 U.S.C. § 1913, 1914, 1926, 1930, 1932)
 $.08/page, with the total for any document, docket sheet,
or case-specific report not to exceed the fee for 30 pages
(transcripts of federal court proceedings not subject to the
30-page fee limit)
 No fee is owed under this provision until an account holder
accrues charges of more than $10 in a quarterly billing cycle
 $.10/page for printing copies of any record or document
accessed electronically at a public terminal in the
courthouse
 $26/item or name for every search of court records
conducted by the PACER Service Center
Fee Schedule, cont.
 $.50/page for the PACER Service Center to reproduce on
paper any record pertaining to a PACER account, if this
information is remotely available through electronic access
 $45 for a check paid to the PACER Service Center that is
returned for lack of funds
 Provide other local court information at no cost. Examples
of information that can be provided at no cost include: local
rules, court forms, news items, court calendars, opinions,
and other information – such as court hours, court location,
telephone listings – determined locally to benefit the public
and the court
PACER FAQ’s
 How do I bill my clients for PACER charges?

You can set up client codes in PACER, which must be entered at the
time of the transaction. PACER also has a “Review Transaction
History” function that allows you to sort and total transaction by
client code.
 Is anyone exempt from user fees?

No, everyone is subject to user fees, including government agencies.
 Are there any additional fees for using PACER?

No, there is no per minute charge, only a per page charge.
 How often is case information updated?

Case information appears on the PACER system in real time and is
available for retrieval immediately.
PACER FAQ’s
 Is there a way to get free PACER access?

You must petition the court in order to waive PACER fees. Fees may
be waived to avoid unreasonable burdens and to promote public
access to such information. A party must demonstrate that both
standards have been met in order for a court to grant an exemption
from payment of this fee.

The PACER Pilot Project
 How far back does case information go?

Since each court maintains its own case information database, there
will be some variations among jurisdictions as to the date ranges of
information offered. Contact the court directly to find out how far
back case information is available on PACER in a particular
jurisdiction.
PACER FAQ’s
 Are there restrictions on using data obtained from
PACER?

No, the information is public record and may be used without
restriction. PACER users assume all responsibility for consequences
of unrestricted use.
 What does PACER do to protect privacy?

Social Security numbers, dates of birth, financial account numbers
and names of minor children will be modified or partially redacted
by the litigants. Electronic public access to documents will not be
available for criminal cases, although a court may allow electronic
public access to counsel, the U.S. Marshal and other court units.
PACER FAQ’s
 How do I save a file from a PACER website?

Go to “File” and select “Save as”. You can then open the file using
your word processing software. Formatted reports will be saved in
HTML format.
 Can I use PACER on a Macintosh computer?

Yes.
 How do I print from PACER?

If there is a frame, click on the specific frame you want to print or
else just click in the body of the text. Click on the “print” button on
your browser.
What is CM/ECF?
 A new case management system for all bankruptcy, district
and appellate courts.
 Allows online filing and retrieval of court documents via the
Internet.
 The public can access case data in CM/ECF unless it has
been sealed by the court; it will require a user to enter a
PACER login and password.
 For assistance, please refer to the CM/ECF FAQ’s, contact
the court Help Desk or visit the U.S. Courts Library (303844-3591).
CM/ECF for Attorneys
 Attorneys must be registered to file electronically within a
specific court.
 Each court will have its own specific guidelines for filing
and retrieving information.
 Attorneys will receive a login and password for CM/ECF
(provided by the court) that is separate from the PACER
login and password.
 For additional assistance in using the CM/ECF service,
please refer to the FAQ’s, call the specific Help Desk
number for your court, or visit the U.S. Courts Library
(303-844-3591).