Court Document Formatting

General Federal Requirements

• 8.5" x 11" paper
• 1" margins (all sides)
• 12-point font (Times New Roman or similar)
• Double-spaced body text
• Consecutively numbered pages
• Line numbers (many courts)

Caption Elements

• Court name
• Case number
• Party names
• Document title

Common Local Variations

• Page limits
• Font requirements
• E-filing specifications
• Certificate of service format
• Exhibit formatting

Best Practices

• Always check local rules
• Review judge's individual practices
• Use court's preferred forms
• Include all required certifications
• Proofread caption details

E-Filing Considerations

• PDF/A format often required
• File size limits
• Bookmarks for long documents
• OCR for scanned documents