New Jersey’s electronic filing requirements apply to most court submissions in the Superior Court: attorneys and government agencies must file civil, criminal, family, foreclosure, and Special Civil Part documents through the Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS) platform or eCourts, and self-represented litigants are strongly encouraged to do the same.1NJ Courts. Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS) The rules cover how documents look, how they are paid for, when they count as filed, and what has to be scrubbed out before you hit submit. Miss one of those, and the clerk can reject the filing without pausing your deadline.
Who Has to File Electronically
Attorneys handling Superior Court matters are required to e-file unless a court order says otherwise. Government agencies fall under the same mandate. The requirement reaches civil, criminal, and family cases, along with foreclosures and Special Civil Part actions.1NJ Courts. Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS)
Self-represented litigants are encouraged to use JEDS but can ask the court for a paper filing exemption if they lack reliable internet access, have a disability that prevents electronic filing, or are incarcerated. The request is made by motion or affidavit and decided case by case. Attorneys almost never qualify. And even with an exemption, the court may still require electronic copies for its internal processing.
If you send paper without an exemption, the clerk will reject the submission, and the rejection does not stop the clock on any deadline running in your case.
Registering for JEDS and eCourts
Attorneys register through the New Jersey Courts website, which verifies bar credentials before granting access.2NJ Courts. Attorney Registration Self-represented litigants register directly through the JEDS portal: create a User ID and password, enter contact information, set security questions, and enroll in two-factor authentication using an email address and a mobile number that can receive text messages.3NJ Courts. Self Represented Litigants Access to Restricted Cases – SRL – JEDS and eCourts
The system sends an activation email after you complete the form. Click the link inside to finish registration. The first time you use eCourts, you also acknowledge a participation agreement and accept electronic service of documents.3NJ Courts. Self Represented Litigants Access to Restricted Cases – SRL – JEDS and eCourts Access is role-based, so you will only see cases where you are a registered party.
How Documents Must Be Formatted
Court rules set specific formatting standards. Use a legible font such as Times New Roman or Arial at 12 points or larger, double line spacing, and one-inch margins on all sides. Leave roughly three inches of blank space at the top of the first page for court notations.
Every document must be uploaded as a text-searchable PDF. Scanned images that are not text-searchable are one of the most common causes of rejection. Give each file a descriptive name. Motions, certifications, and exhibits should be uploaded as separately labeled files rather than merged into one PDF unless the court specifically permits it.
Electronic signatures use a typed name preceded by “/s/” — for example, /s/ Jane Smith. If a document requires notarization, include either a digital notary seal or a scanned copy of the notarized page.
File Size and Scan Settings
eCourts limits each individual document to 7 MB, and the total size of a single filing submission cannot exceed 25 MB. When you scan paper, 200 x 200 DPI produces enough quality without inflating the file. Scans saved as TIFF, JPG, or PNG must be converted to PDF before upload.4NJ Courts. eCourts – Guidelines for Preparing Documents for e-Filing
The Judiciary’s statewide call center handles technical problems Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. at 609-421-6100. Live chat runs weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.5NJ Courts. Get Help
Filing Fees and Payment
Fees depend on the court division and case type. The amounts below reflect the Judiciary’s official schedule, which includes Rule 1:43 surcharges added to the base statutory amounts.
- Civil complaint (Law Division): $250 for the plaintiff’s first paper, covering clerk fees through final judgment.6NJ Courts. New Jersey Court Filing Fees
- Chancery Division complaint, including foreclosure: $250.6NJ Courts. New Jersey Court Filing Fees
- Special Civil Part complaint: $15 for a small claims action with one defendant; $50 for other civil actions above the small claims limit.7Justia. New Jersey Revised Statutes Section 22A:2-37.1
- Motion in a pending Law Division civil case: $175.8NJ Courts. Filing Fees – Clarification of Certain Rule 1:43 Fees
- Motion in Chancery (General Equity or Family dissolution): $50.8NJ Courts. Filing Fees – Clarification of Certain Rule 1:43 Fees
- Appeal to the Appellate Division: $250.6NJ Courts. New Jersey Court Filing Fees
- Petition for certification to the Supreme Court: $250.6NJ Courts. New Jersey Court Filing Fees
Payment runs through the Judiciary’s online system, which accepts credit cards, debit cards, and ACH transfers. Attorneys pay through their Judiciary Account Charge System (JACS) accounts.9New Jersey State Publications Digital Library. Notice – Judiciary Account Charge System (JACS) Accounts One quirk matters near deadlines: the credit card payment system goes offline from 11:30 p.m. to midnight every day.10NJ Courts. What Are the Deadlines for eCourts Appellate Some payment methods add a convenience fee.
Fee Waivers
If you cannot afford the fee, apply for a waiver. To qualify, household income must be at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level, and liquid assets like cash or bank accounts must not exceed $2,500.11NJ Courts. Court Fees and Fee Waivers For 2025, the income line works out to roughly $23,475 for a single person and $48,225 for a family of four.
The application uses form CN 11208, which packages Form A (a financial certification) with Form B (a proposed order).12NJ Courts. How to File for a Fee Waiver – All Courts File the waiver request together with your case, because the clerk cannot process the case without either a fee or a pending waiver. If you later recover more than $2,000 in the case, the court will require you to repay the waived fees.11NJ Courts. Court Fees and Fee Waivers For Appellate Division waivers, apply first in the trial court; if denied, you have 20 days to apply directly to the Appellate Division.
When an E-Filing Counts as Filed
Electronic submissions follow the same deadlines as paper. A document received by the system before 11:59 p.m. is stamped with that day’s date. Anything received after 11:59 p.m. rolls to the next business day.10NJ Courts. What Are the Deadlines for eCourts Appellate Because the credit card payment system shuts down at 11:30 p.m., a card-paid filing that needs today’s date has to be complete by 11:30 p.m.
A few deadlines that come up often in e-filed matters:
- Most civil motions must be filed and served at least 16 days before the return date, with opposition due at least 8 days before the hearing and any reply at least 4 days before.
- A notice of appeal from a final judgment is due within 45 days of the judgment’s entry. Termination of parental rights appeals have a 21-day window.13NJ Courts. Guide to Completing Appeals Forms
If the System Is Down
When eCourts has gone down, the court has treated the outage day like a legal holiday for filing deadlines, effectively tolling them.14New Jersey State Publications Digital Library. Tolling Filing Dates for March 10, 2020 eCourts Outage That relief came through a specific court order after the fact, not an automatic rule. If the system is down and you have a deadline, call the help desk at 609-421-6100 and document what you saw and when.
Extension Requests
If you cannot meet a deadline, file an extension request before the original deadline expires. Courts grant extensions for good cause but look skeptically at requests that appear to be delay tactics. Appellate extension requests must include supporting certifications explaining why more time is needed.
Serving the Other Side After You File
Filing electronically does not automatically serve the other parties. Service is a separate step in most situations.
For attorneys registered in eCourts or JEDS, service happens through the system: when a document is filed, the platform generates an automated notice of filing to all registered participants, and that notice counts as service. No separate proof of service is needed between registered e-filers.15NJ Courts. Notice – Proof of Service for E-Filed Documents
For everyone else, the traditional methods apply: personal delivery, certified mail, or regular mail. A self-represented opposing party who is not registered in the system must be served by conventional means.15NJ Courts. Notice – Proof of Service for E-Filed Documents Initial complaints often require a sheriff or private process server. A proof of service describing the method, date, and recipient must be filed with the court.
Redacting Personal Information
Before you file, redact confidential personal identifiers. Under Rule 1:38-7, the following must be removed or obscured:
- Social Security numbers
- Driver’s license numbers
- Vehicle plate numbers
- Insurance policy numbers
- Active financial account and credit card numbers
An active financial account number may be shown by its last four digits when the account is the subject of the litigation and cannot otherwise be identified.16NJ Courts. Notice – New Rule 1:38 – Public Access to Court Records Personal Identifiers Redaction
One detail the rule does not make obvious: court staff are not authorized to reject filings solely because they contain unredacted personal identifiers.16NJ Courts. Notice – New Rule 1:38 – Public Access to Court Records Personal Identifiers Redaction The obligation is on the filer. A full Social Security number left visible can end up in the public record.
When a statute, court rule, or court order actually requires confidential identifiers to appear in the filing, those documents cannot be submitted through eCourts at all. They go to the court by standard mail instead.17NJ Courts. eCourts – eFiling How to Submit Filings That Contain Confidential Personal Information
Why Filings Get Rejected
The clerk reviews every electronic submission and can bounce anything that does not meet the rules. The most common reasons:
- Scanned PDFs that are not text-searchable.
- Formatting errors: wrong font size, single spacing, or narrow margins.
- Individual documents over 7 MB, or a total submission over 25 MB.
- Missing certifications, affidavits, or proof of service.
- Fees that did not go through an authorized payment method.
- A document filed after the deadline with no approved extension.
A rejection does not preserve your original filing date. Fixing the problem means submitting corrected documents or, in some cases, moving to address the deficiency. Give yourself at least a day of buffer before any deadline so a rejection does not push your filing past the cutoff.