1

 Plaintiff also makes reference to the Court’s policy on its website that “[i]n

order to file initiating pleadings (i.e. Complaints, Removals, etc.) electronically, an

attorney must be admitted to the bar of this court” and receive CM/ECF training. 

PACER is used for reviewing documents, and CM/ECF is used for filing them. As

Plaintiff has already filed her complaint in this action, the policy she cites is

irrelevant. No fee is charged for filing documents with CM/ECF, but the Court will

not waive its policy that only attorneys admitted to its bar are granted access to file

documents electronically. Plaintiff is advised, however, that she can file documents

by mailing them to the Clerk of Court.

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO

EASTERN DIVISION

Sara E. Siegler,

Plaintiff

 v.

Ohio State University, et al.,

Defendants.

:

:

:

:

:

Civil Action 2:11-cv-170

Judge Watson

Magistrate Judge Abel

ORDER

For good cause shown, Plaintiff’s motion for leave to exceed page limitations

in filing her opposition to the Magistrate Judge’s initial screening report and

recommendation (Doc. 14) is GRANTED.

Plaintiff has also filed a motion for exemption from PACER fees (Doc. 15). 

She requests two things: first, that she be exempted from the payment of fees for

accessing documents electronically through PACER1

, and second, that the Court

address her concerns that the Court’s “Notice for PACER Fee-Exempt Users” might

prohibit her use of online document backup.

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2

The Judicial Conference of the United States has adopted the following

policies regarding PACER fees:

ELECTRONIC PUBLIC ACCESS FEE SCHEDULE

(Issued in accordance with 28 U.S.C. §§ 1913, 1914, 1926, 1930, 1932)

As directed by Congress, the Judicial Conference has determined

that the following fees are necessary to reimburse expenses incurred

by the judiciary in providing electronic public access to court records.

These fees shall apply to the United States unless otherwise stated. No

fees under this schedule shall be charged to federal agencies or

programs which are funded from judiciary appropriations, including,

but not limited to, agencies, organizations, and individuals providing

services authorized by the Criminal Justice Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3006A,

and bankruptcy administrator programs.

I. For electronic access to court data via a federal judiciary

Internet site: eight cents per page, with the total for any

document, docket sheet, or case-specific report not to exceed

the fee for thirty pages– provided however that transcripts of

federal court proceedings shall not be subject to the thirty-page

fee limit. For electronic access to an audio file of a

hearing in a district court, bankruptcy court, or the Court of

Federal Claims via a federal judiciary Internet site: $2.40 per

audio file.

Attorneys of record and parties in a case (including pro se

litigants) receive one free electronic copy of all documents filed

electronically, if receipt is required by law or directed by the

filer. No fee is owed under this provision until an account holder

accrues charges of more than $10 in a quarterly billing cycle.

Consistent with Judicial Conference policy, courts may, upon a

showing of cause, exempt indigents, bankruptcy case trustees,

individual researchers associated with educational institutions,

courts, section 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organizations, court

appointed pro bono attorneys, and pro bono ADR neutrals from

payment of these fees. Courts must find that parties from the

classes of persons or entities listed above seeking exemption

have demonstrated that an exemption is necessary in order to

avoid unreasonable burdens and to promote public access to 

information. Any user granted an exemption agrees not to sell

for profit the data obtained as a result. Any transfer of data

Case: 2:11-cv-00170-MRA Doc #: 25 Filed: 06/13/11 Page: 2 of 4 PAGEID #: <pageID>
3

obtained as the result of a fee exemption is prohibited unless

expressly authorized by the court. Exemptions may be granted

for a definite period of time and may be revoked at the

discretion of the court granting the exemption.

. . .

JUDICIAL CONFERENCE POLICY NOTES

Courts should not exempt local, state or federal government

agencies, members of the media, attorneys or others not members of

one of the groups listed above. Exemptions should be granted as the

exception, not the rule. A court may not use this exemption language

to exempt all users. An exemption applies only to access related to the

case or purpose for which it was given. The prohibition on transfer of

information received without fee is not intended to bar a quote or

reference to information received as a result of a fee exemption in a

scholarly or other similar work.

The electronic public access fee applies to electronic court data

viewed remotely from the public records of individual cases in the

court, including filed documents and the docket sheet. Electronic court

data may be viewed free at public terminals at the courthouse and

courts may provide other local court information at no cost. Examples

of information that can be provided at no cost include: local rules, court

forms, news items, court calendars, opinions, and other information –

such as court hours, court location, telephone listings – determined

locally to benefit the public and the court.

(Effective August 1, 2010.)(Emphasis added.)

PACER charges, at the present time, $0.08 per page retrieved, with a

maximum of $2.40 for any given document. Furthermore, fees are waived, for the

quarter, for users who accrue a total of less than $10.00 worth of charges in any

given quarter. See http://www.pacer.gov/psc/hfaq.html. Plaintiff is sent copies of

orders issued by the Court, and the applicable rules of civil procedure mandate that

Defendants must serve a physical copy of any documents they file upon Plaintiff. 

Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(b)(2); S.D. Ohio Civ. R. 5.2(a). She therefore receives the entirety

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2

 The Court observes that the substantial bulk of documents filed to date in

this action were filed by Plaintiff herself.

4

of the filings in this case. Plaintiff has not made a sufficient showing that she

either requires fee-waived access to PACER or that she is being billed a significant

amount of money for her access.2

 

Plaintiff’s motion for exemption of payment of PACER fees (Doc. 15) is

DENIED without prejudice. 

Plaintiff refers also to a notice issued to PACER users which cautions them

about the use of “RECAP” software to automatically publish documents obtained

from the Web. The Court advises Plaintiff that the use of “online document backup

using Google sites” is not barred by the Court or by the terms of use of PACER.

s/Mark R. Abel 

United States Magistrate Judge 

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