You may e-mail questions concerning electronic filing to ecfhelp@mad.uscourts.gov or call the ECF Help Desk at 866-239-6233.
Instructions, Manuals & Procedures
CM/ECF Frequently Asked Questions
CM/ECF Registration Form
Training Information
- CM/ECF Training Information for Attorneys and Staff
- Online Attorney Training Modules
- Register For Training
- Free PACER Training Site
A free-of-charge website offers access to a training database through
the PACER service. The site features data from real cases in the Western
District of New York over a six-month period in 2007. The training site
can be accessed under the Frequently Used section (PACER Training Site
link) on the PACER website at: http://www.pacer.gov. No registration is
required and a login and password are posted on the training site’s
Welcome Page.
Users can search the database to find cases to explore. As searches are
conducted, a transaction receipt display will explain what charge would
have been accrued on the PACER service. Reviewing the receipts will
help users understand their PACER charges and improve their searching
techniques to minimize charges.
Court Resources
Requirement Information
Get the Facts
Filers will need to meet the following hardware and software requirements in order to file documents using the CM/ECF electronic filing system:
- A personal computer running a standard operating system such as Windows or Macintosh.
- Internet service.
- A PDF-compatible word processor like Macintosh or Windows-based versions of Word Perfect or Microsoft Word.
- The newest version of the CM/ECF system has been certified to be compatible with Internet Explorer 6 and 7, Firefox 1.5 and 2.0 and Netscape 7.2
- Software to convert documents from a word processor format to portable document format (PDF). Adobe Acrobat PDF Writer is recommended. Acrobat Writer Version 5.x and up, adequately meet the CM/ECF filing requirements. (These versions have been certified to work with CM/ECF) If you attempt to open a pdf document with an older version of the adobe reader software, you will be prompted to update your version of the free adobe reader software.
- A scanner may be necessary to create electronic images of documents that are not in your word processing system.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available for free, is needed for viewing PDF documents and can be obtained here.