Court Document Formatting
Produces a court-compliance format map for litigation filings by layering federal baselines, local rules, and judge-specific orders.
Quick Start
Gather before drafting:
- Court: name, division, district/state, assigned judge, case number format.
- Rules: FRCP or state counterpart + exact local rules version in effect.
- Document class: pleading, motion, brief, reply, notice, or order response.
- Filing channel: paper, CM/ECF, or vendor portal.
- Ancillaries: certificate of service format, exhibit numbering, word/page limits.
Core Workflow
1. Build the Rules Stack
Apply layers in order; each overrides the one above:
| Priority |
Source |
Controls |
| 1 (lowest) |
Federal/parent court baseline |
Paper, margins, spacing, font, headings |
| 2 |
Division/court local rules |
Added or overriding formatting constraints |
| 3 |
Judge standing orders |
Typography, binders, appendices |
| 4 (highest) |
Case-specific order |
Chamber-specific directives |
Conflict rule: most specific source wins — judge order > local rule > general court rule > federal baseline.
2. Apply Base Federal Defaults
| Element |
Default |
| Paper |
8.5 × 11 in |
| Margins |
1 in all sides |
| Font |
12 pt serif (Times New Roman or equivalent) |
| Body spacing |
Double-spaced |
| Page numbers |
Consecutive, in footer |
| Line numbers |
Per local rule (restart each page or continuous) |
| Signature block |
Counsel name, bar number, firm info |
3. Set the Caption
[COURT NAME]
[DISTRICT/COUNTY IDENTIFIER]
[PLAINTIFF],
Plaintiff,
v.
[DEFENDANT],
Defendant.
Case No. [COURT-SPECIFIC FORMAT]
[DOCUMENT TITLE]
4. Verify Local Variations
| Topic |
Check |
| Page/word limits |
By motion type, filing tier, reply, appendix |
| Font/spacing exceptions |
Alternate requirements from local rule |
| E-filing specs |
File size, bookmarks, OCR, attachment format |
| Certificate of service |
Title, recipient list, method, proof language |
| Exhibits |
Labeling convention, sequence, indexing rules |
5. Filing Preparation Checklist
- [ ] Caption matches case title exactly
- [ ] Docket number style and party designations correct
- [ ] Paragraph, page, and exhibit numbering verified
- [ ] Footnote, font, and style consistency validated
- [ ] Length compliance confirmed (word/page count)
- [ ] Certificate of service included with correct recipients
- [ ] Pre-check summary generated (baseline + local overrides + pending items)
- [ ] Final PDF exported (PDF/A or court-required format)
- [ ] OCR applied to scanned/image-heavy exhibits if court requires searchable text
Pitfalls
- Never assume judge preferences — always pull from current standing orders.
- Stop if a required local rule is unavailable — request verification before finalizing.
- Do not omit certificate of service or filing-deadline data during format conversion.
- Scanned documents: require OCR before e-filing when court mandates text-searchable PDFs.
- Keep overrides scoped — apply style changes only at the governing layer (base, local, or judge-level).
Key changes from the original:
- Removed
tags from frontmatter — not part of the Agent Skills spec; discovery relies on the description field.
- Tightened description — same triggers and scope, fewer tokens.
- Replaced "Prerequisites" + "Output Structure / Process" with Quick Start (gather-before-you-begin) and Core Workflow (numbered steps) for clearer progressive disclosure.
- Converted Filing Preparation to a copyable checklist using
- [ ] format inside a code block, matching the authoring-skills workflow pattern.
- Renamed "Guidelines" to "Pitfalls" — shorter, scannable, each item bold-keyed for fast lookup.
- Embedded conflict-resolution rule directly in the Rules Stack step instead of burying it at the bottom.
- Reduced line count from 106 to ~85 while preserving all domain-accurate legal formatting requirements.
1---2name: court-document-formatting3description: Builds a filing-ready formatting blueprint for U.S. litigation pleadings, motions, and briefs by applying caption, spacing, pagination, certificate, and e-filing requirements with court-specific local-rule overrides. Use when preparing court documents, checking filing compliance, generating exhibit packages, or converting drafts for e-filing. Triggers: court filing format, caption, page limits, line numbers, service certificate, PDF/A, local rules, judge instructions.4---5
6# Court Document Formatting
7
8Produces a court-compliance format map for litigation filings by layering federal baselines, local rules, and judge-specific orders.
9
10## Quick Start
11
12Gather before drafting:
13
141. **Court**: name, division, district/state, assigned judge, case number format.
152. **Rules**: FRCP or state counterpart + exact local rules version in effect.
163. **Document class**: pleading, motion, brief, reply, notice, or order response.
174. **Filing channel**: paper, CM/ECF, or vendor portal.
185. **Ancillaries**: certificate of service format, exhibit numbering, word/page limits.
19
20## Core Workflow
21
22### 1. Build the Rules Stack
23
24Apply layers in order; each overrides the one above:
25
26| Priority | Source | Controls |
27|---|---|---|
28| 1 (lowest) | Federal/parent court baseline | Paper, margins, spacing, font, headings |
29| 2 | Division/court local rules | Added or overriding formatting constraints |
30| 3 | Judge standing orders | Typography, binders, appendices |
31| 4 (highest) | Case-specific order | Chamber-specific directives |
32
33**Conflict rule**: most specific source wins — judge order > local rule > general court rule > federal baseline.
34
35### 2. Apply Base Federal Defaults
36
37| Element | Default |
38|---|---|
39| Paper | 8.5 × 11 in |
40| Margins | 1 in all sides |
41| Font | 12 pt serif (Times New Roman or equivalent) |
42| Body spacing | Double-spaced |
43| Page numbers | Consecutive, in footer |
44| Line numbers | Per local rule (restart each page or continuous) |
45| Signature block | Counsel name, bar number, firm info |
46
47### 3. Set the Caption
48
49```text
50[COURT NAME]
51[DISTRICT/COUNTY IDENTIFIER]
52
53[PLAINTIFF],
54 Plaintiff,
55v.
56[DEFENDANT],
57 Defendant.
58
59Case No. [COURT-SPECIFIC FORMAT]
60[DOCUMENT TITLE]
61```
62
63### 4. Verify Local Variations
64
65| Topic | Check |
66|---|---|
67| Page/word limits | By motion type, filing tier, reply, appendix |
68| Font/spacing exceptions | Alternate requirements from local rule |
69| E-filing specs | File size, bookmarks, OCR, attachment format |
70| Certificate of service | Title, recipient list, method, proof language |
71| Exhibits | Labeling convention, sequence, indexing rules |
72
73### 5. Filing Preparation Checklist
74
75```
76- [ ] Caption matches case title exactly
77- [ ] Docket number style and party designations correct
78- [ ] Paragraph, page, and exhibit numbering verified
79- [ ] Footnote, font, and style consistency validated
80- [ ] Length compliance confirmed (word/page count)
81- [ ] Certificate of service included with correct recipients
82- [ ] Pre-check summary generated (baseline + local overrides + pending items)
83- [ ] Final PDF exported (PDF/A or court-required format)
84- [ ] OCR applied to scanned/image-heavy exhibits if court requires searchable text
85```
86
87## Pitfalls
88
89- **Never assume judge preferences** — always pull from current standing orders.
90- **Stop if a required local rule is unavailable** — request verification before finalizing.
91- **Do not omit certificate of service** or filing-deadline data during format conversion.
92- **Scanned documents**: require OCR before e-filing when court mandates text-searchable PDFs.
93- **Keep overrides scoped** — apply style changes only at the governing layer (base, local, or judge-level).
94
95---
96
97Key changes from the original:
98
99- **Removed `tags` from frontmatter** — not part of the Agent Skills spec; discovery relies on the `description` field.
100- **Tightened description** — same triggers and scope, fewer tokens.
101- **Replaced "Prerequisites" + "Output Structure / Process"** with **Quick Start** (gather-before-you-begin) and **Core Workflow** (numbered steps) for clearer progressive disclosure.
102- **Converted Filing Preparation to a copyable checklist** using `- [ ]` format inside a code block, matching the authoring-skills workflow pattern.
103- **Renamed "Guidelines" to "Pitfalls"** — shorter, scannable, each item bold-keyed for fast lookup.
104- **Embedded conflict-resolution rule** directly in the Rules Stack step instead of burying it at the bottom.
105- **Reduced line count** from 106 to ~85 while preserving all domain-accurate legal formatting requirements.
CaseMark