Electronic & in-person filing
Electronic filing through the Online Portal is always permissible in every district court and the supreme court. A filer may use the Online Portal for any filing, in any case, at any time.
In-person filing is not required to be permitted by any court. The district court and the supreme court may, at their own discretion, accept in-person filings at the clerk's office during regular business hours, but neither court is obligated to do so.
Where a court does accept in-person filing, that option is limited to commencing a new case only. Once a case has commenced, every subsequent filing in that case, including motions and all other documents, must be made exclusively through the Online Portal and may not be filed in person.
Currently in effect: no court is accepting in-person filings at this time. All filings, new cases and subsequent filings alike, must be submitted through the Online Portal.
Clerk review. When a document is filed, the clerk reviews it and either accepts or denies it. Either way, the filer is notified of the outcome through the Online Portal.
Clerical review applies to filings that commence a case. Once a case has already commenced, supplemental filings, such as motions and other documents filed in that case, do not require clerical review.
Filing requirements
Accepted file formats. Documents must be submitted as one of the following:
- Flattened, text-searchable PDF. Capped at 5 MB and may not contain photographs, scanned images, or other non-text items (pictures of signatures are the one exception). A single filing cannot be split into multiple files to get around the size cap; anything over the limit, or containing non-text items, must instead be filed as a linked drive file.
- Google Docs. Only where permitted or required, and only with sharing settings that let the court view and edit. This is a temporary format: it must be converted to PDF or a linked drive file within 14 days of filing, or within 3 days of any order issued on the filing, whichever comes first (extendable by the court for good cause, up to 90 days). A Google Docs filing can't be certified as a true copy until it's converted.
- Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, or Dropbox link. Only where permitted or required, with view access for the court. No file-size limit applies here.
A PDF filing that breaks the format or size rules will be stricken and deleted. The court has no duty to keep it on file. For a document filing a new case in Google Docs format that's never converted, the case itself can be dismissed without prejudice after a grace period of up to 30 days.
Paper filings. Where a document must be filed on paper: 8.5" × 11" pages; margins of 0.5"–1" (supreme court filings need at least 1" on all sides); 12-point type minimum, double-spaced (block quotes and footnotes may run 10–12 point, single-spaced); and any scanned pages must be legible.
Hyperlinks. Links to outside sources or cited authority are allowed for the court's convenience but never replace a proper citation. A party must have a good-faith, reasonable belief the link is relevant. An irrelevant or broken link is simply treated as if it weren't there, and doesn't affect the filing's validity.
Page limits (unless the court orders otherwise):
| Document type | Limit |
|---|---|
| Complaints and petitions | 30 pages |
| Motions and supporting briefs | 20 pages |
| Responses to motions | 20 pages |
| Reply briefs | 10 pages |
| Supreme court appellate briefs | 50 pages (appellant), 50 pages (appellee), 15 pages (reply) |
| All other documents | 15 pages, unless the court grants leave to exceed for good cause |
Signatures. Every filing must be signed by the filer or their attorney, either "/s/" followed by the signer's name or an image of a handwritten signature, with the signer's printed name underneath (unless a court-approved form leaves no space for it). Signatures are presumed valid unless a party or the court raises a concern, in which case the court may order the signer to establish authenticity.
Official court forms
Parties are required to use the official court forms published and maintained by the state court administrative office. These forms are free of charge and can be viewed and downloaded here:
Exceptions (MCR 7.303(B)). A standard court form is not required for civil complaints and motions where no specific form exists for that motion. Where no standard form is available for the type of document being filed, the party must prepare their own document that complies with the applicable formatting requirements under MCR 7.302.
Fee break for self-prepared documents (MCR 7.303(D)): when a party has to prepare their own document because no standard form exists, the court must waive the first $25 of the applicable filing fee upon written request, either by motion (which itself has its filing fee waived) or by including the request directly in the document at the time of filing.
Required caption. A self-prepared document must include a caption stating: the name of the court, the names of all parties, and the case number, or, if none has been assigned yet, a space to write one in later.
Notice & service
When a document is filed through the Online Portal in a case that has already commenced, a Notice of Electronic Filing is automatically sent to every party of record.
That automatic notice does not apply, and service must instead be made under the otherwise-applicable law, in three situations:
- The filing is the one that commences a new action;
- A court rule specifically requires service by a process server for that type of document; or
- The court has entered an order requiring process server service for a specific filing, based on a finding of good cause, raised either on the court's own initiative or on a party's motion.
Each party of record is responsible for monitoring the Online Portal for Notices of Electronic Filing in their own cases. A party cannot later claim they didn't have notice of a filing once a Notice of Electronic Filing was properly sent through the system.
A Notice of Electronic Filing normally costs, and never exceeds, $20 per notice.
The court can order process server service in place of a Notice of Electronic Filing, on its own initiative or on a party's motion, but only with a specific finding of good cause, stated on the record or in writing.
Corrections to filed documents
If a filer discovers a clerical error in a document they already filed, they may file a corrected version through the Online Portal within 7 days of the original filing, without needing the court's leave, as long as the correction doesn't change the substance of the document.
Any substantive amendment to a filed document instead requires leave of the court, under whatever procedural chapter applies to that filing.
A corrected document must be clearly marked as a corrected filing and must identify, on its face, what was corrected. Both the original and the corrected filing stay in the official case file, but the corrected filing supersedes the original for all purposes going forward.
Filing fees & waivers
Filing fees are set out in MCR 7.401.
Fees are paid in person at the court where the action was filed, within 14 days of filing, unless a fee waiver has been granted under MCR 7.403, payment has been deferred by court order under MCR 7.402, or another rule sets a different deadline for the specific procedure involved, in which case that rule's deadline controls.
Fee waivers. Submit a completed Form MC 20 to the court to request a fee waiver under MCR 7.403.
Different procedures can layer on their own restrictions around fees and deadlines. Always check the rules that apply to the specific type of case or motion being filed.
Certified copies
Certified copies of filed documents may be requested under MCR 7.801, subject to the applicable copy fees.