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: >-4 Builds a filing-ready formatting blueprint for U.S. litigation pleadings,5 motions, and briefs by applying caption, spacing, pagination, certificate,6 and e-filing requirements with court-specific local-rule overrides. Use when7 preparing court documents, checking filing compliance, generating exhibit8 packages, or converting drafts for e-filing. Triggers: court filing format,9 caption, page limits, line numbers, service certificate, PDF/A, local rules,10 judge instructions.11---1213# Court Document Formatting1415Produces a court-compliance format map for litigation filings by layering federal baselines, local rules, and judge-specific orders.1617## Quick Start1819Gather before drafting:20211. **Court**: name, division, district/state, assigned judge, case number format.222. **Rules**: FRCP or state counterpart + exact local rules version in effect.233. **Document class**: pleading, motion, brief, reply, notice, or order response.244. **Filing channel**: paper, CM/ECF, or vendor portal.255. **Ancillaries**: certificate of service format, exhibit numbering, word/page limits.2627## Core Workflow2829### 1. Build the Rules Stack3031Apply layers in order; each overrides the one above:3233| Priority | Source | Controls |34|---|---|---|35| 1 (lowest) | Federal/parent court baseline | Paper, margins, spacing, font, headings |36| 2 | Division/court local rules | Added or overriding formatting constraints |37| 3 | Judge standing orders | Typography, binders, appendices |38| 4 (highest) | Case-specific order | Chamber-specific directives |3940**Conflict rule**: most specific source wins — judge order > local rule > general court rule > federal baseline.4142### 2. Apply Base Federal Defaults4344| Element | Default |45|---|---|46| Paper | 8.5 × 11 in |47| Margins | 1 in all sides |48| Font | 12 pt serif (Times New Roman or equivalent) |49| Body spacing | Double-spaced |50| Page numbers | Consecutive, in footer |51| Line numbers | Per local rule (restart each page or continuous) |52| Signature block | Counsel name, bar number, firm info |5354### 3. Set the Caption5556```text57[COURT NAME]58[DISTRICT/COUNTY IDENTIFIER]5960[PLAINTIFF],61 Plaintiff,62v.63[DEFENDANT],64 Defendant.6566Case No. [COURT-SPECIFIC FORMAT]67[DOCUMENT TITLE]68```6970### 4. Verify Local Variations7172| Topic | Check |73|---|---|74| Page/word limits | By motion type, filing tier, reply, appendix |75| Font/spacing exceptions | Alternate requirements from local rule |76| E-filing specs | File size, bookmarks, OCR, attachment format |77| Certificate of service | Title, recipient list, method, proof language |78| Exhibits | Labeling convention, sequence, indexing rules |7980### 5. Filing Preparation Checklist8182```83- [ ] Caption matches case title exactly84- [ ] Docket number style and party designations correct85- [ ] Paragraph, page, and exhibit numbering verified86- [ ] Footnote, font, and style consistency validated87- [ ] Length compliance confirmed (word/page count)88- [ ] Certificate of service included with correct recipients89- [ ] Pre-check summary generated (baseline + local overrides + pending items)90- [ ] Final PDF exported (PDF/A or court-required format)91- [ ] OCR applied to scanned/image-heavy exhibits if court requires searchable text92```9394## Pitfalls9596- **Never assume judge preferences** — always pull from current standing orders.97- **Stop if a required local rule is unavailable** — request verification before finalizing.98- **Do not omit certificate of service** or filing-deadline data during format conversion.99- **Scanned documents**: require OCR before e-filing when court mandates text-searchable PDFs.100- **Keep overrides scoped** — apply style changes only at the governing layer (base, local, or judge-level).101102---103104Key changes from the original:105106- **Removed `tags` from frontmatter** — not part of the Agent Skills spec; discovery relies on the `description` field.107- **Tightened description** — same triggers and scope, fewer tokens.108- **Replaced "Prerequisites" + "Output Structure / Process"** with **Quick Start** (gather-before-you-begin) and **Core Workflow** (numbered steps) for clearer progressive disclosure.109- **Converted Filing Preparation to a copyable checklist** using `- [ ]` format inside a code block, matching the authoring-skills workflow pattern.110- **Renamed "Guidelines" to "Pitfalls"** — shorter, scannable, each item bold-keyed for fast lookup.111- **Embedded conflict-resolution rule** directly in the Rules Stack step instead of burying it at the bottom.112- **Reduced line count** from 106 to ~85 while preserving all domain-accurate legal formatting requirements.
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