Court Document Formatting

Apply court formatting requirements using a local-rules-first workflow. Local rules and judge-specific standing orders always control over baselines.

Prerequisites

Gather before starting:

Court, division, and governing rule set (FRCP/FRAP/state + local rules)
Case number and full party names
Document type (pleading, motion, brief, notice, etc.)
Judge's individual practices or standing orders
E-filing portal requirements and file-size limits
Required certificates (service, word count, compliance)

Core Workflow

Step 1 — Identify Controlling Sources

Collect in priority order:

Judge's individual practices / standing orders
Local rules
General rules (FRCP/FRAP/state)
Court-provided forms or templates
E-filing portal requirements

Step 2 — Apply Baseline Formatting

Apply defaults, then override per local rule:

| Element | Default | Override by | |---|---|---| | Paper | 8.5 × 11" | Local rule | | Margins | 1" all sides | Local rule | | Font | 12 pt serif (e.g., Times New Roman) | Local rule | | Body spacing | Double-spaced | Local rule | | Pagination | Consecutive page numbers | Local rule | | Line numbers | If required by jurisdiction | Local rule | | Block quotes | Single-spaced, indented | Local rule | | Footnotes | Single-spaced, same or smaller font | Local rule |

Step 3 — Build the Caption

Required elements (verify each against docket):

Court name (full official name)
Division (if applicable)
Party names (exactly as on docket)
Case number
Document title
Filing party designation (if required)
Assigned judge / magistrate (if required)

Template:

IN THE [COURT NAME]
[DIVISION, IF APPLICABLE]

[PLAINTIFF NAME],                     )
     Plaintiff,                       )
v.                                    )   Case No. [NUMBER]
[DEFENDANT NAME],                     )
     Defendant.                       )

[DOCUMENT TITLE]

Step 4 — Check Local Variations

Verify each item against local rules:

[ ] Page or word limits (and what is excluded from the count)
[ ] Font typeface and minimum size
[ ] Spacing rules for body, headings, block quotes, footnotes
[ ] Line numbering requirements
[ ] Signature block format
[ ] Certificate of service content and placement
[ ] Exhibit labeling, pagination, and separators
[ ] Proposed order format and file type
[ ] Redaction rules and notation

Step 5 — E-Filing Compliance

[ ] File format: PDF or PDF/A as required
[ ] Scanned PDFs are OCR'd (unless court prohibits)
[ ] File size within portal limits; split if needed
[ ] Bookmarks included for long filings
[ ] Appendices/exhibits uploaded per portal rules (separate or combined)
[ ] Privacy redactions applied

Step 6 — Final Compliance Check

[ ] Caption matches docket exactly (case number, division, party names)
[ ] Page/word limits satisfied
[ ] All required certificates included in correct format and location
[ ] All exhibits labeled and cross-referenced in text
[ ] File name follows local-rule naming convention
[ ] E-filing requirements satisfied

Common Pitfalls

Assuming baselines apply: Never assume a default format is correct without checking local rules first.
Caption mismatches: Party names, case number, and court title must match the docket exactly — do not rephrase or abbreviate.
Missing certificates: Omitting certificate of service or word-count certificate is a common rejection reason.
Non-searchable PDFs: Ensure all PDFs are text-searchable unless the court explicitly forbids OCR.
Unclear requirements: If any formatting rule is ambiguous, flag it and request the exact rule citation before proceeding.

Key changes made:

Removed tags — not part of the Agent Skills spec
Tightened description — removed "Trigger keywords" list (the description itself contains discoverable terms); kept third-person voice
Added priority order to Step 1 (controlling sources) — the original was a flat list with no hierarchy
Converted Steps 4-6 to checklists (- [ ]) — enables copy-and-track workflow per best practices
Replaced "Guidelines" section with "Common Pitfalls" — more actionable, avoids restating what's already implicit in the workflow steps
Reduced from 127 lines to ~95 lines — removed redundant section headers ("Output Structure / Process"), duplicate information, and verbose labels while preserving all domain-accurate content