WILLIAM M. MCCOOL

CLERK OF COURT

111 N. ADAMS STREET

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA 32301-7717

850.521.3501

850.521.3656 FAX

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

OFFICE OF THE CLERK

Visit our web site at www.flnd.uscourts.gov

SHEILA HURST-RAYBORN

CHIEF DEPUTY CLERK

111 N. ADAMS STREET

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA 32301-7717

850.521.3501

850.521.3656 FAX

Reply to: Division

July 9, 2010

MEMORANDUM

TO: Pro Se Litigant(s)

FROM: U.S. District Court Clerk’s Office

SUBJECT: 5:10CV183 RS/AK - J P OWENS, JR v. WALTER A MCNEIL

1. Your habeas corpus petition has been received and filed in the to: Division and

assigned case number 5:10CV183 RS/AK. Refer to this number on all future

pleadings and correspondence and include the judge’s initials following the

number.

2. The U.S. Magistrate Judge assigned to your case will perform all initial screening

and processing, in accordance with the local rules of this district (N.D. Fla. Loc.

R. 72.2 and 72.3). If you are asking to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), the

Magistrate Judge will enter an order granting or denying your request. If IFP is

granted, the Magistrate Judge may direct that your complaint or petition be

served on the opposing party and the costs of service will be prepaid in

accordance with 28 USC § 1915.

3. When the opposing party files an answer or any responsive pleading with the

Clerk’s Office, he will send you a copy of that answer or pleading. Pursuant to

Rule 5 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, you must send a copy of all future

pleadings to the attorney(s) for the opposing parties and indicate in writing at the

end of each pleading that you have sent the copies to the attorney(s). This is

called a certificate of service, and an example is included in the sample form on

the reverse side. Do not mail the opposing parties’ copies of the pleadings to the

Clerk because we cannot mail them to the opposing parties for you. You are

responsible for mailing the copies directly to the opposing parties or their

attorneys.

The mission of the Office of the Clerk of the Northern District of Florida is to provide superior service to the public and the Court.

Gainesville Division

401 SE 1st Avenue, STE 243

Gainesville, Florida 32601

352.380.2400

352.380.2424 FAX

Pensacola Division

1 N. Palafox Street

Pensacola, Florida 32502-5658

850.435.8440

850.433.5972 FAX

Tallahassee Division

111 N. Adams Street

Tallahassee, Florida 32301-7717

850.521.3501

850.521.3656 FAX

Panama City Division

30 W. Government Street

Panama City, Florida 32401

850.769.4556

850.769.7528 FAX
4. You should keep one copy of all documents you file or receive in this case for

your personal records. Any documents you request to have copied from the

court file must be accompanied by a check or money order to cover the costs of

copying. The rate is 50 cents per page. Photocopy work must be paid in

advance and you must pay for copies even if you are granted leave to proceed

IFP.

5. All documents filed in this case must be in compliance with the Federal Rules of

Civil Procedure, the Local Rules for the Northern District of Florida, and the

instructions attached to the face of the civil rights/habeas corpus forms. In

addition, all pleadings tendered for filing in this case must generally conform to

the format depicted on the reverse side of this letter and must contain the correct

divisional office, case style and case number. All documents must be

typewritten or legibly printed on 8 1⁄2 x 11 inch white paper and the bottom

margin of the first page of every pleading must have at least a two-inch

margin so the file date stamp can be easily seen. Your original signature is

required on the document to be filed. Failure to comply with these instructions

will cause unnecessary administrative delays in the handling of your case and

may result in the return of your documents.

6. Throughout this case, you are required to advise the Clerk’s Office in writing of

any change in your mailing address by filing a Notice of Change of Address. As

stated in paragraph 3, you should send copies to the opposing parties or their

attorney(s) and include a certificate of service. You will be notified as soon as

any action is taken in your case. This office will mail to you a copy of every order

entered by the Judge or the Magistrate Judge.

7. All documents should be filed with the Clerk’s office. Judges and Magistrate

Judges cannot discuss matters pending before them. Therefore, you should not

correspond with or contact the Judges, Magistrate Judges or anyone in their

offices. All inquiries should be in writing and addressed to the Clerk’s Office. 

Please be advised that the Clerk and his deputies are prohibited from giving you

any legal advice.

enc. Sample Pleadings Format

Privacy Notice
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

 DIVISION

,

(enter your full name and prisoner number)

Plaintiff,

vs. Case No. 

,

(enter full name(s) of all defendants)

Defendant(s).

TITLE OF YOUR PLEADING

The body of your pleading should state the nature of your request and what you

want the Court to do for you.

(signature and prisoner number)

(Mailing address)

(city, state and zip code)

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing (insert name of

document here) has been furnished by regular U.S. Mail to counsel for the defendant,

(insert name of defendant’s attorney here) at (insert address of defendant’s attorney

here), on this date, (date you mailed the copy to the defendant’s attorney).

(your signature)
Notice of Electronic Availability of Civil Case File Information

Effective Date: November 1st, 2004

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida accepts

electronically filed pleadings and makes the content of these pleadings available on the

court’s Internet website via the Case Management/Electronic Case Files (“CM/ECF”)

system and/or PACER.1

 Any subscriber to CM/ECF and/or PACER will be able to read,

download, store, and print the full content of electronically filed documents. The clerk’s

office will not make electronically available documents that have been sealed or otherwise

restricted by court order.

You should not include sensitive information in any document filed with the court

unless such inclusion is necessary and relevant to the case. You must remember that any

personal information not otherwise protected will be made available over the Internet via

CM/ECF and/or WebPACER. If sensitive information must be included, the following

personal data identifiers must be partially redacted from the document, whether it is filed

traditionally or electronically: Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, dates

of birth, and the names of minor children.

In compliance with the E-Government Act of 2002, a party wishing to file a document

containing the personal data identifiers specified above may

(a) file an unredacted document under seal, or

(b) file a reference list under seal.

The court may, however, still require the party to file a redacted copy for the public file.

In addition, exercise caution when filing documents that contain the following:

1. Personal identifying number, such as driver’s license number;

2. Medical records, treatment and diagnosis;

3. Employment history;

4. Individual financial information; and

5. Proprietary or trade secret information.

Counsel are strongly urged to share this notice with all clients so that an

informed decision about the inclusion of certain materials may be made. If a redacted

document is filed, it is the sole responsibility of counsel and the parties to be sure that

all pleadings comply with this notice requiring redaction of personal data identifiers. 

Likewise, counsel and the parties will be solely responsible for any unredacted documents

filed. The Clerk’s Office will not review documents for compliance with this notice,

seal on its own motion documents containing personal identifiers, or redact

documents, whether filed electronically or on paper.

1

Remote electronic access to pleadings filed in civil social security cases is

limited to counsel of record and court staff. Non-parties have direct access to the

pleadings on file at the Clerk’s Office.