M.D.N.C. LR 5.3

(a) Electronic Filing Required. Except as expressly provided by this rule or in

the exceptional circumstances preventing electronic filing, all documents shall be filed

electronically.

(1) The following are exempted from the requirement of electronic

filing:

(a) Sealed and Qui Tam Cases;

(b) Pretrial hearing and trial exhibits;

(c) Consent to Proceed before Magistrate Judge;

(d) All pleadings and documents filed by pro se litigants

(prisoner and non-prisoner);

(e) The charging document in a criminal case, such as the

complaint, indictment, and information, as well as the criminal

synopsis form;

(f) Applications/Affidavits for search and arrest warrants and

related papers;

(g) CJA 23 Financial Affidavit;

(h) Fed.R.Crim.P. 20 and Fed.R.Crim.P.5 papers received from

another court; and

(i) Any pleading or document in a criminal case containing the

signature of a defendant, such as appearance bonds, Orders

Setting Conditions of Release, a waiver of indictment or plea

agreement, letters from a defendant requesting specific relief.

(2) An attorney may for good cause apply to the assigned Judge for

permission to file documents conventionally. Even if the assigned Judge initially

grants an attorney permission to file documents conventionally, the assigned Judge

may withdraw that permission at any time during the pendency of a case and

require the attorney to file documents electronically using the System.

(b) Significance of Electronic Filing. Any document electronically filed or

converted by the Clerk’s Office to electronic format is the official record of the

Court.

(c) Registration for Electronic Filing.

(1) Attorneys admitted to the bar of this Court and those making a

special appearance pursuant to LR 83.1(d), shall register as filing users of the

Court's CM/ECF system prior to filing any pleadings. The registration process is

performed online through PACER.gov. To be properly included on a case’s docket

sheet as an electronic filer, attorneys should electronically file a notice of

appearance or a pleading. Any attorney making a special appearance shall file a

Notice of Special Appearance and pay any appearance fee required by this Court.

(2) Upon the approval of the assigned Judge, a party to a case who is not

represented by an attorney may register as a CM/ECF Filing User in the CM/ECF

System solely for the purpose of the action.

(3) Registration constitutes consent to service of all documents by

electronic means as provided in these procedures.

(4) Within ten days after receiving their initial password, attorneys must

select a new password of their own choosing. Filing Users agree to protect the

security of their passwords, and, if an attorney believes the security of an existing

password has been compromised, the attorney must change their password

immediately.

(d) Filing and Service of Civil Case Opening Documents

(1) Except for cases requesting to be placed under seal, cases shall be

filed electronically using CM/ECF with filing fees being paid online using a credit

card.

(2) Counsel should complete the summons form in Adobe interactive

format, which is located on the Court’s website, and e-mail it to

newcases@ncmd.uscourts.gov for issuance.

(3) When filing a case with a motion for a temporary restraining order

(TRO), the filing attorney shall notify the Clerk of Court by phone that a motion

for TRO will be filed and submit the proposed TRO to clerk@ncmd.uscourts.gov.

(e) Signatures

(1) If an attorney scans and files a document with original signatures

and the attorney believes the signatures have intrinsic value, the attorney shall

retain the original document until two (2) years after the expiration of the time for

filing a timely appeal of a final judgment or decree, or after receipt by the Clerk of

Court of an order terminating the action on appeal.

(2) The filing user of any document requiring more than one signature

(e.g., pleadings filed by visiting lawyers, stipulations, joint status reports) must

include either an image of the other signatures or an “/s/” before the typed name

where the signature would otherwise appear. By submitting such a document, the

filing attorney certifies that each of the other signatories has expressly agreed to

the form and substance of the document and that the filing attorney has their actual

authority to submit the document electronically.

(3) When a lawyer electronically files a document, that lawyer only

enters an appearance for himself or herself, and the mere listing of another

lawyer’s name or signature on the document does not add that lawyer to the

electronic docket or constitute an appearance. Any other lawyers listed must enter

a separate notice of appearance. Lawyers should not be included in a signature

block or listed as of counsel for a document filed in a case unless they are the ECF

electronic filer of the document, or they have filed or are promptly filing a Notice

of Appearance or Special Appearance in the case.

(f) Entry of Court Orders.

(1) All orders, decrees, judgments, and proceedings of the Court will be

filed electronically by the Court or Court personnel in accordance with these rules,

which will constitute entry on the docket kept by the clerk. Orders may be issued

as "text-only" entries on the docket, without an attached document. Any order

filed electronically has the same force and effect as if the Judge had signed a paper

copy of the order and it had been entered on the docket in a conventional manner.

(2) In accordance with Local Rules 7.3(j) and 77.2, a moving party shall

submit to the District Judge after filing a motion for which no supporting brief is

required, a proposed order granting the motion and setting forth the requested

relief. The proposed order should be docketed as an attachment to the motion and

a copy e-mailed to the appropriate Judge’s e-mail address as specified in the

NCMD CM/ECF Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual.

(3) Proposed orders on motions for enlargements of time made pursuant

to Local Rule 77.2, requests for entry of default and proposed temporary

restraining orders in new cases should be filed as an attachment and shall be e-mailed to clerk@ncmd.uscourts.gov. No other documents or pleadings may be

sent to the Clerk’s Office at this e-mail address.

(g) Technical Failures

(1) A technical failure does not relieve a party of exercising due

diligence to timely file and serve documents. The Clerk’s Office shall deem the

Court’s CM/ECF site to be subject to a technical failure on a given day if the site

is unable to accept filings continuously or intermittently over the course of any

period of time greater than one hour after 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time that day.

Known systems outages will be posted on the Court’s web page, if possible.

(2) If the Court’s CM/ECF site experiences a technical failure, a Filing

User may submit documents to the Court that day in an alternate manner provided

that the documents are accompanied by the Filing User’s affidavit stating that the

Filing User attempted to file electronically at least two times in one hour

increments after 10:00 a.m. that day.

(h) Text Searchable Documents. Any document, including attachments and

exhibits, filed in CM/ECF should be in a text searchable format.