Court forms

Esqase keeps a catalogue of official court forms for the courts it covers, each listed with its code, its revision and the date it takes effect. When your firm follows a court, you can add its forms to your documents in one step: Esqase copies the official form into your firm's documents, where it works like any other file.

Before you begin

• Court rules must be turned on for your firm. Until then, From court form does not appear and forms cannot be added. See Turning on court rules and following courts.
• To add a form, your role needs Create access for Documents. To see a court date's forms, you also need View access for Court dates.
• The forms you can choose from are the published forms for the courts your firm follows, including forms that apply to the whole jurisdiction a court belongs to. On a matter, the matter's own court comes first.

Add a form from a court date

Esqase links some forms to the court rules they go with, so a calculated court date can offer the forms for that step.

1. On the matter's Court dates tab, open the date and click the Court forms tab, or choose Court forms from the row's three-dot menu.
2. Each form shows its code and title, with a line giving its revision label and its Effective date. When no forms are linked, the tab reads No court forms: No court forms are linked to this court date.
3. Click Preview to read the official form in a new browser tab, or Source to open the court's own page for it.
4. Click Add to matter. The Add court form dialog opens: Esqase copies the official form into your documents. The copy belongs to your firm and never changes when the court publishes a new version.
5. Under Save to, the form goes to the matter documents folder. To save it somewhere else, click Change folder and choose a folder.
6. Click Add to documents. A confirmation names the form's code.

Add a form from the Documents page

1. In Documents, open the folder you want the form in, if any.
2. Click New, then From court form. The From court form dialog lists Official forms for the courts your firm follows.
3. Search by code or title. Each form shows its code, its title, and the court or jurisdiction it belongs to with its revision.
4. Click Preview to read the form first, then Add.
5. In Add court form, check Save to (the folder you are in, or My documents), change it with Change folder if you need to, and click Add to documents.

Add a form from a matter's Documents tab

1. Open the matter and click its Documents tab.
2. Click New, then From court form. The dialog lists Official forms for this matter's court and the courts your firm follows.
3. Click Add on the form you want.
4. Save to starts at the folder you are in, or at the matter's documents folder. Esqase creates the matter's folder if it does not exist yet. Click Add to documents.

Forms Esqase cannot copy

Some publishers do not allow their forms to be copied. Esqase still lists these forms, with Download from the court in place of Preview and Add. On a court date, the form also reads Download this form from the court. Esqase lists it but cannot copy it into your documents.

1. Click Download from the court to open the court's page for the form.
2. Download the form from that page.
3. Add it to the matter's documents with New, then Upload files. See The documents workspace.

Work with your copy

The copy is an ordinary document in your firm's documents:

• It is saved in the folder you chose, and you are its owner.
• Its name is the form's code and title, and the documents list shows the form's code as a badge beside the name.
• You can share it, send it for signature, and fill it in outside Esqase and bring the completed file back with Upload new version, like any other file. See Sharing documents and Requesting eSignatures.

Court form details on the file page

When you open the copy, its Details tab has a Court form section with the form's Code, Title, Revision and Effective date, the Publisher when Esqase knows it, the Status, who added it (Added by), and a Source link, Open the court's page. A detail Esqase does not have reads Not listed.

The Status is one of:

When the court publishes a new version

Esqase never rewrites your copy. When the form changes, a banner at the top of the copy's file page tells you, and you decide whether to add the new version as a separate file.

• A newer version of this court form is available: the banner gives the new revision and says This file stays as it is. Click Add the new version to add it, saved by default to the folder the file is in.
• Esqase withdrew this version of the court form: Check the court's current form before you file this one. This file does not change. When a current version exists, click Add the current version to add it.

The banners do not show while the file is in the trash. The add buttons appear for members who can create documents.

Common questions

Does Esqase update my copy when the court revises a form? No. Your copy stays exactly as it was added. The banner on the file page tells you a newer version exists, and you can add it as a separate file.

Why can I only download some forms from the court? Their publishers do not allow Esqase to copy them. Download the form from the court's page and upload it to your documents.

Why is a form I need not listed? The list covers the published forms for the courts your firm follows. If you need a court that is not in the catalogue, email support@esqase.com.

What happens to our copies if court rules are turned off for our firm? The copies stay in your documents. Adding new forms waits until court rules are on again.

Related

• Working with court dates
• Applying court rules to a matter
• The documents workspace
• Sharing documents
• Requesting eSignatures