PDF requirements for e-filing in the Santa Barbara County Superior Court

What the court requires

The limit is 25 MB per document. Santa Barbara's Local Rule 1007 limits each e-filed or e-lodged document to 25 MB; voluminous records and exhibits must be split into separate documents of 25 MB or less.

Common reasons filings are rejected

• A document is over 25 MB.
• Several exhibits were combined into one oversized PDF.
• The PDF is password-protected or has security restrictions.
• The PDF is password-protected or has security restrictions, so the court's system can't open it.

Questions about the Santa Barbara Superior Court's PDF rules

What is the maximum PDF file size for the Santa Barbara Superior Court?

25 MB per PDF.

What should I do if my PDF is too large for the Santa Barbara Superior Court?

Split it into consecutive parts that are each under 25 MB, never cutting a page in half, and file the first part as the main document and the rest as attachments named in order (for example "Exhibit A, Part 2 of 3"). For scanned documents, re-scanning in black and white at 300 dpi often shrinks the file enough to avoid splitting. Docket Prime can split the file for you in your browser.

Does the Santa Barbara Superior Court require text-searchable PDFs?

Yes. California Rule of Court 2.256(b)(3) requires e-filed documents to be text-searchable when technologically feasible.

What page size does the Santa Barbara Superior Court accept?

Letter size (8.5 × 11 inches) is expected. Legal-size or A4 pages may print badly or be refused, so resize them to letter.

Does the Santa Barbara Superior Court require bookmarks in PDFs?

They are recommended. Under Rule of Court 3.1110(f)(4), electronic exhibits need a bookmark to the first page of each exhibit.