STEP 1:

CONFIRM YOUR ELIGIBILITY AT RIGHT, AND IF YOU ARE ELIGIBLE, REVIEW OUR ECF TRAINING RESOURCES.

(Registration requests submitted prematurely will be rejected since it will appear to the clerk as if you are ineligible.)

You are eligible to submit your e-filing registration request if you are:

• An attorney already admitted to practice in the Eastern District of Texas (EDTX) who is in good standing (check your admission and e-filing status here);
• An attorney participating in a case transferred to EDTX pursuant to order by the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation (Pursuant to JPML Rule 2.1(c), an attorney appearing in the case in the transferor district may appear in the transferee district without seeking pro hac vice (PHV) status.);
• An attorney who has already been approved to appear PHV after following the instructions for filing an application to appear PHV. Please note:
  
  • The clerk will confirm PHV eligibility to an attorney by sending an approval of the PHV application, and
  • PHV status obtained in a transferor court does not carry to the EDTX;
• An attorney who is submitting an Application for Admission to Practice in EDTX; or
• A non-prisoner pro se litigant with a pending civil case who has already filed one document in paper.
• Your e-filing access may be disabled by the clerk after closure of your case and disposal of any appeal taken or expiration of time to file an appeal, or upon the Court's determination that that your e-filing access should be disabled for any reason.

STEP 2:

ONCE ELIGIBLE, VISIT PACER’S WEBSITE TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO PRACTICE PACKET OR ECF REGISTRATION REQUEST.

To submit your Application for Admission to Practice packet or ECF registration request:

If you do not have a PACER account yet, use the appropriate link to create the account and submit your request: Attorney registration / Non-attorney registration.

If you have a PACER account,

• Go to PACER’s Manage My Account screen (This screen is also the location where you must maintain your contact information, including your email address, whenever it requires updating.);
• Select the “Maintenance” tab; and
• Select “Attorney Admissions/E-File Registration” if you are an attorney or “Non-Attorney E-File Registration” if you are a non-prisoner pro se litigant. Further Instructions for completion of the registration form are available on the screen.

STEP 3:

AFTER YOU ARE NOTIFIED THAT THE CLERK HAS APPROVED YOUR APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION OR ECF REGISTRATION REQUEST, YOU MUST E-FILE ALL ELIGIBLE DOCUMENTS USING YOUR PACER CREDENTIALS.

Advisories to a Pro Se Litigant Approved for E-Filing:

• You do not need to file the Invitation to Electronic Filing/Consent to Receive Electronic Notice form as your registration to e-file results in your email address being used by the ECF system to provide service to you under Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(b)(2)(E). As you will no longer receive notice in paper, you must click the document number link in the Notice of Electronic Filing that you will receive via email to view the document. (To avoid PACER's page access fees, you must click this link within 15 days of the document's entry on the docket. Second attempts to access the link or attempts made after expiration of the 15-day window will result in the accrual of PACER fees. When necessary, you may ask the clerk to regenerate the NEF to you to reopen a new free look period.)
• You must abide by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Eastern District of Texas' Local Rules, and the court’s ECF training resources;
• Fed. R. Civ. P. 11 applies with full force and effect to the documents you file; and
• In addition to filing a notice of change of address in your case, you must update your contact information, including your e-mail address through the Manage My Account screen available on PACER’s website.