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PDF requirements for e-filing in the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department

State courts · New York · NYSCEF e-filing · Last verified

  • 100 MBmaximum per PDF
  • 8.5 × 11letter pages expected
  • Requiredsearchable text

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What the court requires

Each e-filed document may be up to 100 MB. Documents must be text-searchable PDF/A. Briefs and records need bookmarks linking the table of contents to the matching pages, page numbers that match the paper copy, and a PDF initial view that opens the bookmarks panel. NYSCEF rejects documents containing JavaScript or open actions.

PDF requirements for the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department
E-filing systemNYSCEF
Maximum size per PDF100 MB
Page sizeLetter (8.5 × 11 in) expected
Text-searchable PDFRequired
BookmarksRequired
PDF/A (archival format)Required
Passwords / security settingsNot allowed (the system must be able to open the file)

Source: www.nycourts.gov. Rules change; confirm with the clerk's office before filing.

Common reasons filings are rejected

  • A scanned record has no searchable text.
  • The PDF is not PDF/A.
  • A brief or record has no bookmarks for its table of contents.
  • The PDF contains JavaScript or an open action, often from fillable forms.
  • The PDF is password-protected or has security restrictions, so the court's system can't open it.

Questions about the NY App. Div., 1st Dept.'s PDF rules

What is the maximum PDF file size for the NY App. Div., 1st Dept.?
100 MB per PDF.
What should I do if my PDF is too large for the NY App. Div., 1st Dept.?
Split it into consecutive parts that are each under 100 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 NY App. Div., 1st Dept. require text-searchable PDFs?
Yes. Documents saved directly from a word processor are searchable and much smaller than scans; for paper documents, OCR adds searchable text.
What page size does the NY App. Div., 1st Dept. 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 NY App. Div., 1st Dept. require bookmarks in PDFs?
Yes. Briefs and records need bookmarks linking the table of contents to the matching pages, and the PDF should open with the bookmarks panel showing.
Does the NY App. Div., 1st Dept. require PDF/A?
Yes. In Word, choose File › Save As › PDF › Options › "PDF/A compliant". Docket Prime checks whether a file is labeled PDF/A but cannot fully validate compliance.

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