How the Bar Can Help the Clerk's Office

As a federal institution funded by taxpayers, the United States District Court for the Central District of California is committed to using public resources efficiently and effectively. To this end, we request the assistance and support of the attorneys who practice before the Court. Taking the following steps, and getting everyone in your firms to do the same, will help the Clerk’s Office immensely.

• Keep your e-mail address, and all other attorney information, up to date.  The Clerk's Office has staff members who verify e-mail addresses from "bounced" e-mail service, and erroneous e-mail addresses also lead to a costly increase in paper service.  In addition to filing a Notice of Change of Attorney Information, registered CM/ECF users must also update their attorney information in CM/ECF.
• Consult the Court's website at www.cacd.uscourts.gov before calling the Clerk's Office with questions.  In particular, consulting the Local Rules or the Frequently Asked Questions on the E-Filing homepage can eliminate the need to call the ECF Help Desk or other court staff.  Also, checking the website to ensure that you and your staff are using the most recent version of Court forms, and adhering to the instructions on the forms, may eliminate the need for the Clerk's Office to issue a deficiency notice.
• Check the "Judges' Procedures and Schedules" on the Court's website before contacting the judge's courtroom deputy clerk or the ECF Help Desk with questions.  Each judge's page contains extensive information about the judge's procedures and his or her standing, pretrial, and trial orders, which may include the answer to your question.  If your question isn't answered, each judge's page also informs you of the best way to contact his or her courtroom deputy clerk, either by telephone or by e-mail.  If you must contact the courtroom deputy clerk, adhere to his or her stated preference, and do not leave multiple messages regarding the same issue.  Also, do not contact the courtroom deputy clerk to determine if a proposed order/document has been signed/approved by the Court. If there is an urgent pending matter, the courtroom deputy clerk will contact you if appropriate
• Utilize the computer-based training modules on electronic filing on the Court's website.  Although this training is no longer mandatory, doing so is a good way for you and your staff to learn how to use the Court's CM/ECF system more fully and effectively, and can lead to a reduction in calls to our ECF Help Desk.
• Before calling the ECF Help Desk to ask about the appropriate docketing event to use when electronically filing a document, try using the "Search" feature on the CM/ECF menu bar.  Becoming acquainted with this feature not only reduces the need to call the ECF Help Desk, but can also lead to more accurate entry of docketing events, which would significantly reduce the amount of work and follow-up by Clerk's Office staff.
• If documents must be redacted, ensure that they are redacted before they are electronically filed.  When a document is inadvertently electronically filed prior to redaction and the Clerk's Office is notified, the Clerk's Office must take action to seal the document until the redacted version is filed.
• When another type of error is made in submitting an electronically filed document, wait for a Notice to Filer of Deficiencies in Electronically Filed Documents to be sent to you rather than calling the ECF Help Desk.  Doing so would decrease the number of unnecessary calls to our ECF Help Desk, as corrective action often is not necessary.
• As provided in Local Civil Rule 5-4.4.1, when a proposed order or other proposed document requiring a judge's signature accompanies an electronic filing, remember to include the proposed order or document in PDF format as an attachment with the electronically filed main document.  When a proposed order or other document is not lodged with a main document, remember to electronically lodge the proposed order or other proposed document as an attachment to a Notice of Lodging and, if the proposed order or other document is being submitted in response to a court order, to link the Notice of Lodging to that court order.
• Also remember to submit lodged proposed orders or other proposed documents requiring a judge's signature in WordPerfect or Word format to the assigned judge's generic e-mail address using the CM/ECF system pursuant to Local Civil Rule 5-4.4.2, and promptly to deliver mandatory chambers copies to the judge pursuant to the Judge's Procedures and Schedules.  When electronically filing documents requiring a judge's signature in unassigned criminal or magistrate judge (case type "mj") cases, remember to e-mail the document in WordPerfect or Word format to the appropriate criminal intake or duty chambers e-mail box.
• Confirm that the attorneys listed on pleadings filed with the Court are admitted to the bar of the Central District of California.  When a non-admitted attorney is listed on a pleading, the Clerk's Office must notify the attorney by letter and perform the necessary follow-up, creating additional work for staff.
• Notify the Clerk's Office of any errors or malfunctioning links on the Court's website by clicking on "Contact Us" in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage. We want the website to work well for you.
• Consider consenting to magistrate judge jurisdiction through the voluntary consent list or under the Direct Assignment of Civil Cases to Magistrate Judges Program.  Doing so could result in an earlier and firm trial date and faster disposition of the case, which will help the Clerk's Office.

Doing these simple things in the regular course of your business with the Court would cumulatively result in great savings in time, labor and costs for the Clerk's Office.