Vt. R. Elec. Filing. 7

As amended through October 8, 2024

Rule 7 - Format of Documents

(a)Format Requirements for Electronic Documents. An electronically filed document must:

(1) be created, saved as, or converted to, PDF format as specified in (b), unless the court orders that it be filed in a different format;

(2) comply with the size limit specified in the efiling instructions;

(3) not contain a virus detected by the electronic filing system;

(4) be consistent with Rule 5(g) and (h), if applicable;

(5) be accompanied by a certification of compliance with the Rules for Public Access to Court Records by the method specified in these rules,;

(6) not contain any password protection or other security device, and;

(7) Not contain an embedded hyperlink or internal bookmark.

(b)Required PDF format. To comply with subdivision (a)(1):

(1) a document, other than those excluded in paragraphs (2) of this subdivision, that is efiled or submitted pursuant to Rule 1(g) must be in the form of a text-searchable Portable Document Format (PDF) or a text searchable Portable Document Format/A (PDF/A) file and be directly converted to PDF rather than scanned if possible.

(2) a document that is an attachment or exhibit that is a scanned image of its original form may be in standard PDF format and need not be text searchable.

(c)Format Requirements for Nonelectronic Documents. A nonelectronically filed document must:

(1) be clearly legible, with all text visible and dark enough to be readable on a scanned image;

(2) contain a certification that it complies with Rule 7(a)(1) of the Vermont Rules for Public Access to Court Records.

(d)Relation to Form and Formatting Requirements in Other Procedural Rules. The formatting requirements in this rule are in addition to, and do not supplant, form and formatting requirements imposed by other procedural rules.

Vt. R. Elec. Filing. 7

Adopted Dec. 10, 2019, eff. 3/2/2020; amended July 13, 2021 eff. 7/15/2021.

Reporter's Notes-2020

Rule 7 provides the formatting requirements for electronically and nonelectronically filed documents. The requirements are mandatory and are largely self-explanatory. Failure to follow them can result in the rejection of a filed document.

The general requirement is that a document be filed in PDF format, but the court can order a different format. The court may order the filing of a specific document in another format-for example, the court could order a proposed order or findings of fact to be filed in MS Word so that the content can be more easily edited and used by the court. A filer who is filing a document in a different format pursuant to this exception must also file the court order authorizing use of this format so the staff reviewing the filing is aware of the court authorization.

Subdivision (b) states that the PDF format be text-searchable so the text can be captured for different purposes. For instructions on creating or converting a document to text searchable PDF see U.S. Ct. of App. for the Second Circuit, Making a PDF Text-Searchable, http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/clerk/case_filing/electronic_filing/how _to_use_cmecf/text_searchable_pdfs.html [https://perma.cc/6L6B-LY73].

The requirement that the document be text-searchable does not apply to attachments and exhibits as they are not documents created for litigation.

Rule 7(c) provides formatting requirements for nonelectronically filed documents. The rule provides that generally documents should be legible with text visible. Because court staff will scan these documents, it is highly recommended that filers do not use staples to secure pages or exhibit separator pages.

Reporter's Notes-2021 Amendments

This rule is amended in connection with the introduction of efiling in the Vermont Supreme Court. Subdivision (a) is amended to modify the cross-reference to Rule 5 to reflect the relettering of the applicable sections and to make clear that the cross-reference to Rule 5 is only to subdivisions that apply to the efiler. It is also amended to reflect another system requirement that the document not contain an embedded or live hyperlink or internal document. The document may contain an internet path that is not live but can be used by copying it into an internet browser.

Subdivision (d) is added to make clear that the formatting requirements of this rule are additional to any form or formatting requirements imposed by other procedural rules. An example of such rules are the formatting requirements contain in the 2021 amendments to V.R.A.P. 32.