How to Fax a Court Filing or a Clerk's Office

Courts moved to e-filing faster than almost any other institution, and in many of them fax filing is gone. But not everywhere, and not for everything. Federal courts do not take filings by fax, some state courts still take filings by fax under a local rule, many clerks accept correspondence, continuance requests, fee waiver paperwork and exhibits by fax, judges' chambers take courtesy copies by fax, and California keeps an entire chapter of its Rules of Court devoted to fax filing. This guide explains how to find out whether your court accepts fax, what California requires since it is the clearest published example, what goes on the cover sheet, and what counts as proof that the clerk received it.

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Find Out Whether Your Court Accepts Fax

Three places give the answer. The court's own website, under local rules or "how to file," which will say whether fax filing is permitted and for which case types. The clerk's office by phone, which will also tell you the fax number for the department you need, since civil, family, probate and traffic often have separate lines. And the notice or order you received, which sometimes prints a fax number for responses to that specific matter. A fax sent to a court that does not accept fax filing is not filed; at best it becomes correspondence in the file, and at worst it is discarded. Never assume.

Other courts set their own rules. In New York, papers may not be sent to a Supreme or County Court civil judge by fax without advance approval from the assigned justice. Federal courts do not take fax filings at all: the District of Connecticut and the Western District of Missouri both say so plainly, and federal filings go through the court's electronic filing system or on paper at the clerk's office, by mail or in person, under that court's local rules. The local rule governs, and it is published on the court's site.

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What California Requires for a Direct Fax Filing

Four things, and courts in other states that allow fax filing ask for close equivalents. First, the cover sheet: form MC-005, Facsimile Transmission Cover Sheet (Fax Filing), must be the first page, followed by any special handling instructions; the cover sheet is not filed in the case and the court need not keep it. Second, the notation: each document filed by fax must have the words "By fax" directly below its title. Third, the transmission record: your sending machine must produce a record of the transmission, and if a document is not filed because of a transmission error you did not know about, or because the court failed to process it, you may ask the court for an order filing it nunc pro tunc, meaning as of the original date. Fourth, fees: the cover sheet carries the card number, signature and expiration date authorizing the filing fee, and a rejected charge is treated like a returned check.

Rule 2.301 defines the transmission record as a printout from the sending machine showing the receiving fax number, the number of pages, the date and time, and any transmission errors. Your confirmation email from us shows the destination number, the page count and the time the court's machine accepted the pages, in Eastern Time. Keep it with your file copy, but remember that it only shows the fax was sent and is not the same as the court filing your document, so check the docket or ask the clerk for a conformed copy.

Correspondence, Chambers Copies and Exhibits

Even courts that do not accept fax filing usually accept fax for things that are not filings: a letter to the clerk about a scheduling problem, a request for a continuance where the local rule allows it in writing, a courtesy copy to chambers of something already e-filed, a fee waiver application in some courts, and exhibits or proof of service that the clerk has asked you to send. Each department publishes its own fax number for this, and the clerk will tell you which to use. Our jury duty excuse guide covers one common case: some jury offices take excuse and postponement requests by fax, and your summons says whether yours does.

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What to Put on Every Page

The case number, the case name, the court and department, and the date, on every page. Clerks file faxed pages by case number and a page without one is an orphan. The cover page should state what the document is, how many pages follow, your name, your role in the case (plaintiff, defendant, attorney for one of them), your phone and email, and whether a filing fee is attached or waived. If the court requires the "By fax" notation, add it under the title of the document itself before you scan it. Our legal documents guide covers scanning signed pleadings so signatures and stamps survive fax resolution.

Timing and Deadlines

The cutoff for a faxed filing is set court by court, so check the local rule. Lassen Superior Court in California, for example, file-stamps a fax received by 4:00 PM Pacific on a court day that same day and treats a later one as filed the next court day. If a deadline is today, send during business hours and confirm by phone that it arrived. Court fax lines are shared and busy; a failed transmission is refunded automatically and you can resend, but a failed transmission at 4:55pm on the last day is a problem no refund fixes. Send early. For service on the other party by fax, which is a separate question governed by separate rules, check whether the other side has agreed to accept fax service; in California, rule 2.306 allows service by fax only when the parties agree and confirm that agreement in writing.

Frequently Asked Questions