UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
FOR FILING DOCUMENTS
FOR CIVIL AND CRIMINAL CASES
April 29, 2024
21st Edition
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. THE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM - GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
A. Filers
1. Attorney Filers
2. Pro Se Filers
B. General Filing Information
1. Format
2. File Date
3. Summons
4. Documents Requiring Leave of Court or Exceeding Page Limit
5. Exceptions to Filing Documents Electronically
6. Special Email Addresses for Particular Documents
7. Hyperlinks
C. Requirements for Attorneys to Electronically File
D. Service
E. Signing Documents
1. Attorneys and Pro Se Litigants Allowed to File in the System
2. Pro Hac Vice Attorneys
3. Pro Se Filers Who File in Paper
4. Multiple Signatures
5. Defendant in Criminal Case
F. Filing in a Criminal Case
G. Orders Filed in the Electronic Filing System
1. Signature by the Judge
2. Proposed Orders
3. Mailing to Non-Participants
4. Text-only Orders
H. Fees
I. Correcting Filing Errors
II. DOCUMENTS UNDER SEAL
III. ATTACHMENTS AND EXHIBITS
IV. PROCEDURES GOVERNING HIGHLY SENSITIVE DOCUMENTS
V. PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM
VI. COURT PROCEDURES
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ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
FOR FILING DOCUMENTS
IN CIVIL AND CRIMINAL CASES
I. THE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM - GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
A. FILERS. The U. S. District Court, Western District of Louisiana, began accepting
filings electronically through the Case Management/Electronic Case Filing System
(“System”) on April 1, 2005. The electronic record is now the official record of
the court. (LR5.7.01) Unless otherwise authorized by a judge of this Court or by
these procedures, documents are to be filed in the System in the following ways:
1. ATTORNEY FILERS: Attorneys who are members of the bar of the
Western District or attorneys admitted pro hac vice (with local counsel)
shall electronically file all documents into the CM/ECF system unless
exempted by a judge of this court. Since January 1, 2008, this Court has
been a mandatory electronic filing court for attorneys filing into the system.
As of November 4, 2019, PACER registration is required for an attorney to
electronically file pleadings and other papers in this court. The CM/ECF
system requires attorneys to file documents in Portable Document Format
(“PDF”). 1
2. PRO SE FILERS: Pro se filers shall file all pleadings and documents in
conventional paper form unless otherwise allowed by the court.
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A document created with most word processing programs can be converted to PDF. A
document put in PDF form takes a “picture” of the original document and allows anyone to open
the converted document across a broad range of hardware and software with the original format
left intact. Please search the Internet for more information on PDF documents.
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B. GENERAL FILING INFORMATION
1. FORMAT. The electronic record is the official record of the court.
However, a judge of this Court may order that any document presented to
this Court be maintained in either paper or electronic form, regardless of
any other provision of these Administrative Procedures.
2. FILE DATE. A document filed by an attorney through the electronic filing
system is deemed filed the day it is entered into system as noted on the
“Notice of Electronic Filing.” Filings must be completed prior to midnight
(Central Time) to be considered timely filed. A document filed in paper
form by a pro se filer is deemed filed as of the date it is received in the
Clerk’s office. A document sent to one of the special e-mail addresses as
shown in Section B.6 of this document is deemed filed the day the filer
sends the e-mail.
3. SUMMONS. Upon filing a new civil action or a document adding a new
party (e.g., amended complaint or third party complaint), summons will
automatically be issued electronically pursuant to Standing Order 1.14 and
sent to counsel through the system by the “Notice of Electronic Filing.”
Counsel will then print and serve the complaint and summons according to
Rule 4 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Summons with an original
signature and raised seal will no longer be issued. Attorneys who wish to
have summons issued on demand may do so by filing a “Proposed
Summons/Request for Summons” within the ECF System. Please note that
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cases exempt from this process include: notices of removal, transfers from
other United States District Courts and bankruptcy appeals.
4. DOCUMENTS REQUIRING LEAVE OF COURT OR EXCEEDING
PAGE LIMIT: When filing a document requiring leave of court or to
exceed the page limit, the filer shall attach a copy of the proposed pleading
in PDF format as an attachment to the motion for leave of court to file the
document or to exceed the page limit. If exceeding the page limit and the
proposed document will not be filed until a later date, the motion must
contain a statement that the document will be filed later. If the Court grants
the motion, the Clerk’s Office shall file the proposed pleading.
5. EXCEPTIONS TO FILING DOCUMENTS ELECTRONICALLY:
Only the following documents may be filed in paper:
a. Documents filed by pro se litigants.
b. Documents filed by attorneys exempted by the court for filing in the
CM/ECF system.
6. SPECIAL EMAIL ADDRESSES FOR PARTICULAR
DOCUMENTS:
In limited circumstances, the Court has designated the email addresses
listed below for filers to submit certain documents in PDF format by email
attachment. Any correspondence or other documents attempted to be filed
through these email addresses will not be recognized and will not be filed
into the CM/ECF system. Only the documents indicated below will be
accepted through these e-mail addresses:
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a. Consents to Proceed Before Magistrate Judge:
Consents to proceed before a magistrate judge shall not be filed into the
record but rather shall be sent to the court through this email address. Once
consent has been obtained from all parties, consents to proceed before a
magistrate judge will be filed into the record by the Clerk’s office. The
following email address should be used for consents to proceed:
[email protected]
b. Emergency e-mail address:
When the CM/ECF filing system is down and unable to accept filings, users
with filing privileges may file their documents in PDF format through the
following “emergency email address:”
[email protected]
Note: This email address shall be used in emergency situations only when
the court’s CM/ECF system is down and a filing must be made. Please
note that technical failures do not include problems on the filer’s end.
A filer who cannot file a document electronically must seek an exemption
from e-filing from this Court. Correspondence or other documents
attempted to be filed through this email address will not be recognized and
will not be filed into the CM/ECF system. The file date of documents sent
to this address will be the date the email was sent. The Clerk’s Office will
file the documents into the system if appropriate. Filing is not complete until
the party submitting the documents by email receives a System generated
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“Notice of Electronic Filing” which means the document has been filed into
the record by the Clerk’s Office.
c. Criminal Charging Instruments:
[email protected]
This email shall only be used by the Office of the United States
Attorney.
d. Sealed Cases Email address: For documents that need to be filed
in sealed cases, please file documents in PDF form using this email
address:
[email protected]
7. HYPERLINKS. Electronically filed documents may contain hyperlinks to
other portions of the same document or hyperlinks to a location on the
Internet that contains a source document for a citation. Hyperlinks to a cited
authority may not replace standard citation form. Complete citations must
be included in the text of the filed document. Neither a hyperlink, nor any
site to which it refers, shall be considered part of the record. Hyperlinks
are simply convenient mechanisms for accessing material cited in a
filed document. The Court accepts no responsibility and does not
endorse, any product, organization, or content at any hyperlinked site,
or at any site to which the site may be linked. The Court accepts no
responsibility for the availability or functionality of any hyperlink.
C. REQUIREMENTS FOR ATTORNEYS TO ELECTRONICALLY FILE
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1. PACER registration is required for electronic filing of pleadings and other
papers in this court. Registration is available at www.pacer.uscourts.gov.
2. Any attorney who intends to e-file must have his or her own PACER
account because PACER accounts are now linked to e-filing accounts.
Shared PACER accounts can no longer be used for electronic filing.
3. Attorneys registered to e-file in this court prior to November 2019 should
check their existing PACER accounts to verify that they have been
upgraded. An upgraded PACER account is necessary for electronic filing
in this court. If your existing PACER account username is at least 8
characters, then it is upgraded. If your existing PACER account username
is 6 characters, then you do not have an upgraded account and must
upgrade it at www.pacer.uscourts.gov.
4. An attorney with an upgraded PACER account must link any prior e-filing
privileges in this court to that upgraded PACER account by logging into
this court’s ECF website using upgraded PACER credentials and then
clicking the appropriate link.
5. Once your upgraded PACER account has been linked to your e-filing
account in this court, you may use your upgraded PACER account
credentials to log into the ECF system to electronically file documents.
6. An attorney who has not previously established e-filing privileges in this
court must log into www.pacer.uscourts.gov and submit a new e-file
registration request to the court. Once the court processes and approves
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that request, the requesting attorney’s electronic filing privileges in this
court will be activated.
7. All issues or concerns relating to PACER login and password information
should be directed to the PACER Service Center at
[email protected] or (800) 676-6856. Local court personnel
cannot obtain or change PACER logins and passwords.
8. No attorney shall knowingly permit or cause to permit his or her PACER
login credentials to be utilized by anyone other than an authorized agent or
employee.
9. Once registered, an attorney shall be responsible for all documents filed in
this court using his or her PACER credentials. Under Fed.R.Civ.P. 11
and LR5.7.08, the attorney’s login and password through PACER is their
signature for all purposes.
10. An attorney admitted pro hac vice for the first time in this court, must
apply for e-file privileges by logging into www.pacer.uscourts.gov and
submitting an e-file registration request.
11. An attorney can add additional secondary email addresses for electronic
noticing by logging into the CM/ECF system using the attorney’s PACER
login and password, clicking on the Utilities link and then clicking
“Maintain Your Email.” The attorney’s primary email address for noticing
is maintained through the PACER website.
12. For good cause shown, an attorney may be granted an exemption from
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mandatory electronic filing. An attorney seeking an exemption must file a
motion with the court. The court will review the motion and make a
determination on a case-by-case basis. An attorney granted an exemption
may file documents in conventional paper format which shall then be
converted into electronic form by the Clerk’s Office.
13. Effective November 1, 2020, the court began charging a triennial fee of
$45.00 for attorneys in the bar of the Western District. This fee is
applicable to attorneys (excluding government, public defenders, and pro
hac vice) who have been admitted for at least three years. The renewal fee
will be charged every three years from the date of admission.
D. SERVICE
1. Whenever a pleading or other document is filed electronically in
accordance with these procedures, the System generates a “Notice of
Electronic Filing” to any party who has consented to receive notice by
electronic means. 2 This “Notice of Electronic Filing” sent to an attorney
satisfies the requirement of notice under Rule 5 and Rule 77(d) of the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
2. No certificate of service is required when a paper is served by filing it with
the court’s electronic filing system. However, when a paper that is
2
To determine whether a party has consented to electronic notice, the filer can select the
System’s “Utilities” category, click on “Mailing Information for a Case” on the pull-down menu,
and enter the case number. The System will then list the registered users in the case.
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required to be served is served by other means, such as if the paper is
filed, a certificate of service must be included with it or filed within a
reasonable time after service. (See December 1, 2018, amendments to
Federal Rule Civil Procedure 5(d)(1)(B)).
3. A party who is not a registered participant of the ECF system (i.e., pro se
party, exempt attorney, attorney not yet signed up for electronic noticing)
is entitled to service of a paper copy of any electronically filed pleading,
document or order under Rule 5(b)(2)(A)(B) or (C) of the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure. When mailing paper copies of documents that have
been electronically filed, the filing party should include the “Notice of
Electronic Filing” to provide the recipient with proof of the filing.
4. Service of electronically filed sealed documents must be made by
conventional paper means rather than through the electronic filing system.
Please note that the system does not notice sealed documents!
5. Pro Se filers may receive notice electronically by filling out the
appropriate form showing their consent to receive notice in that way.
E. SIGNING DOCUMENTS
1. ATTORNEYS AND PRO SE LITIGANTS ALLOWED TO FILE IN
THE SYSTEM.
Attorneys filing a document electronically shall use the following format
for their signature in the document: (Pro se litigants may use a similar
format without the bar number or firm.)
s/ Name
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Attorney Name
Bar Number
Law Firm Name
Address (street or box number, city, state & zip code)
Telephone Number
FAX number
Email address
2. PRO HAC VICE ATTORNEYS. LR83.2.6 requires that documents filed
by a pro hac vice attorney MUST be signed by local counsel. As noted
above, the login and password become the signature for attorneys, whether
local counsel or pro hac vice. (See also LR5.7.08 and Section 4 below
for more guidelines on multiple signatures.)
3. PRO SE FILERS WHO FILE IN PAPER. Non-attorneys who file a
document in paper with the Court must physically sign the document in
compliance with Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
4. MULTIPLE SIGNATURES. Documents requiring signatures of more
than one attorney must be electronically filed either by: 1) submitting a
scanned document containing all necessary signatures; 2) indicating the
consent of the parties who did not electronically file the document.
Consent may be indicated by the filer by including an “s/ and the name of
the consenting attorney(s)” on the document to be filed electronically (e.g.
“S/John Doe,” “S/Jane Smith,” etc.). By using the “s/ and another
attorney’s name” the filing attorney certifies that each of the other
signatories has expressly agreed to the form and substance of the
document and that the filing attorney has their actual authority to submit
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the document electronically. The filing attorney shall retain any records
evidencing this concurrence for future production, if necessary, until one
(1) year from the expiration of all time periods for appeals. A non-filing
signatory or party who disputes the authenticity of an electronically filed
document containing multiple signatures or the authenticity of the
signatures themselves must file an objection to the filing of the document
within 10 days from the service of the document. (LR5.7.08)
5. DEFENDANT IN CRIMINAL CASE. A document containing the
signature of a defendant in a criminal case may, at the court’s option, be
filed either: 1) In paper form with an original written signature or 2) In a
scanned format that contains an image of the defendant’s signature.
F. FILING IN A CRIMINAL CASE
1. All charging documents including the complaint, information, indictment
and superseding information or indictment and all documents related, shall
be filed electronically in the System.
2. Plea packages in criminal cases that are submitted in paper form shall be
scanned into the System.
3. Documents that are electronically filed and require original signatures
other than that of the Filing User must be maintained in paper form by the
Filing User for one year after all time periods for appeals expire. On
request of the court, the Filing User must provide original documents for
review.
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4. The “Notice of Electronic Filing” that is automatically generated by the
Electronic Filing System, except as provided, constitutes service of the
filed document on Filing Users. Parties who are not Filing Users must be
served with a copy of any pleading or other document filed electronically
in accordance with the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the local
rules. In addition, along with the copy of the pleading or other document, a
copy of the Notice of Electronic filing must also be served on the party
who is not a Filing User.
5. No certificate of service is required when a paper is served by filing it with
the court’s electronic filing system. However, when a paper is served by
other means, a certificate of service must be filed with it or filed within a
reasonable time after service or filing. (See December 1, 2018
Amendments to Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 49(b)(1)).
6. Filings that are sealed do not notice out the attached PDF document.
Counsel must mail opposing counsel a copy of the document filed.
G. ORDERS FILED IN THE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM
1. SIGNATURE BY THE JUDGE. Any order signed electronically by a
judge shall have the same force and effect as an order signed physically by
a judge.
2. PROPOSED ORDERS. Proposed orders must be filed in PDF as an
attachment to the main document in the electronic filing system.
3. MAILING TO NON-PARTICIPANTS. When mailing paper copies of
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an electronically filed order to an attorney or party who is not a registered
participant of the System, the Clerk’s Office shall include the “Notice of
Electronic Filing” to provide the non-participant with proof of filing.
4. TEXT-ONLY ORDERS.
The assigned judge may grant routine orders by a text-only entry upon the
docket sheet. In such instances, a PDF will not be attached. A text-only
docket entry shall constitute the Court order. This entry may or may not be
numbered. A “Notice of Electronic Filing” will be sent by the e-filing
system to all parties in these instances.
H. FEES.
1. As of August 1, 2010, the Clerk’s Office requires electronic filers to pay
all court fees by credit card or ACH debit (utilizing your checking account
information). Non-electronic filers may pay in cash, money order, or
credit/debit cards in the Clerk’s Office.
2. Payments for criminal debt, attorney certificates or miscellaneous fees,
such as copy work and certifications, may be paid in the Clerk’s Office. If
paying for copy work or certifications, please contact the appropriate
intake department either in Lafayette at (337)-593-5000 or in Shreveport
at (318) 676-4273 to confirm the correct amount owed prior to submitting
payment.
I. CORRECTING FILING ERRORS.
1. Once a document is submitted to the Court, it becomes part of the case
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docket and corrections to the docket can only be made by the Clerk’s
Office. The System will not permit the filing party to make changes to the
document(s) or docket entry filed in error once the transaction has been
accepted and the “Notice of Electronic Filing” has been sent. The Clerk’s
Office may correct a docketing error made by a filing party but may not
alter the document that has been filed.
2. As soon as a filing party discovers that an error has been made, the filing
party should contact the Clerk’s Office Help Desk at 1-866- 323-1101.
The party should provide the case number, document number for which
the correction is requested and a description of the error.
3. A filing party should not attempt to re-file the document absent
specific instructions from the clerk’s office or the court.
II. DOCUMENTS UNDER SEAL.
A party shall electronically file a motion or application to file documents under seal. A
motion to seal the document filed by the court or electronically by the attorney will be
automatically sealed unless the Court finds that such matter should not be sealed.
**NOTE: Documents filed under seal do not notice out automatically from the
system and must be mailed to opposing counsel.
III. ATTACHMENTS AND EXHIBITS.
This section applies to exhibits electronically filed with a document other than those
submitted at trial or a hearing:
1. A filing user must submit in electronic PDF form all paper-based
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documents referenced as exhibits or attachments, and should include only
those excerpts of the referenced documents that are directly germane to
the matter under consideration by the court.
2. The system accepts only PDF files for upload and will not accept any
single PDF file larger than 50 megabytes. Therefore, PDF files larger than
50 megabytes must be separated into multiple PDF files by the filer before
attempting to upload.
3. The filing party should preview the PDF file before filing to verify the
document looks correct and can be read.
4. In very limited circumstances, the Clerk’s Office will accept attachments
and exhibits over the counter that an attorney is unable to scan either due
to their size or composition. To do so, the attorney must file the pleading
and then file as an attachment a one-page document called the “Notice of
Manual Attachment.” The pleading will not be referred until the
manual attachment is received. The Clerk’s Office will note on the
docket receipt of the document(s) and/or exhibit(s) with a text-only entry.
If possible, manual attachments shall be converted by the Clerk of Court
to electronic form. Please note that a sample “Notice of Electronic Filing”
attachment is included in the forms of these Administrative Procedures.
Attorneys may also call the Help Desk at 1-866-323-1101 for assistance
in filing. **NOTE: Exhibits submitted manually to the court ARE
NOT noticed out by the System and MUST be served on other parties.
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IV. PROCEDURES GOVERNING HIGHLY SENSITIVE DOCUMENTS
Wide-spread breaches of both private sector and government computer systems have
been disclosed, including an apparent compromise of the confidentiality of the
Judiciary’s CM/ECF system. In response to these disclosures, the Judicial Conference has
directed all federal courts to issue new security procedures to protect materials that
contain highly sensitive information (referred to hereafter as “highly sensitive
documents” or HSDs”). If a filing contains a highly sensitive document(s) as defined
below, the filing party shall notify the Clerk’s Office by contacting one of the employees
designated to receive such documents as indicated in General Order 0001-2021. (Please
see the Court’s website at www.lawd.uscourts.gov, “News & Announcements,”
Announcement dated 2/11/2021, General Order 001-2021.) Highly sensitive documents
are defined as documents containing information that is likely to be used by a hostile
foreign government or its intelligence service to harm the interests of the United States of
America, or likely to be used to commit foreign or domestic crimes, so that the disclosure
of such information would cause significant harm; and any other information which, if
disclosed, would pose a risk to national security, a clear and present danger to life and
safety, or result in grave or extreme harm. A highly sensitive document is not defined as
merely a document containing sensitive information, personal information, personal
identifiers, financial or confidential information.
V. PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM.
A. PUBLIC ACCESS AT THE COURT. Electronic access to the docket
sheet is available to the public at no charge in the Clerk’s Office during
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regular business hours. A copy fee for an electronic reproduction is
required in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 1914.
B. INTERNET ACCESS. Remote electronic access to the Electronic Filing
System is limited to subscribers to the Public Access to Court Electronic
Records (“PACER”) system. The Judicial Conference of the United States
has ruled that a user fee will be charged for viewing case information,
such as filed documents and docket sheets in cases. 3
C. PAPER COPIES AND CERTIFIED COPIES. Paper copies and
certified copies of electronically filed documents may be purchased at the
Clerk’s Office. The fee for copying and certifying will be in accordance
with 28 U.S.C. §1914.
VI. COURT PROCEDURES
A. CONTINUE TO PRACTICE LAW. Even though the electronic filing system is
now being used to file documents, attorneys should continue to practice like they
have always done following all the rules and procedures of the Court including
the Uniform Local Rules, Federal Rules, scheduling orders, and Standing and
General orders.
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Users will be charged ten cents per page to access electronically filed data with a cap of
$3.00 per document. The access fee does not apply to official recipients of electronic documents
such as a party in a case who receives a Notice of Electronic or Notice of Docket Activity, a
person who accesses case information at the courthouse, a person or group granted a fee
exemption or someone who obtains a court opinion. Official recipients will receive the initial
electronic copy of a document free. If usage does not exceed $30 per quarter, fees will be waived
by PACER.
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B. QUALITY CONTROL BY CLERK’S OFFICE. The Clerk’s office reviews all
documents filed electronically verifying that the correct PDF document and that
the right event was chosen. The attorney may be contacted if corrections are
needed to be made.
C. HELP DESK. The Help Desk is available during normal business hours of the
Court from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. The Help Desk may
be reached by phone at 1-866-323-1101 or by email at:
[email protected].
D. PAPER DOCUMENT RETENTION. In accordance with the authority of the
Administrative Office of the U. S. Courts, the clerk shall retain paper documents
for a period of one (1) year after they are filed, after which they are subject to
destruction.
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