United States District Court
Eastern District of North Carolina

PLEASE NOTE:

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Public Notice Regarding Changes to Miscellaneous Court Fee Schedules Effective December 1, 2023.
The Judicial Conference approved inflationary adjustments to fees on the miscellaneous fee schedule will become effective December 1, 2023. Please review the District Court Fee Schedule under the "Public" tab at www.nced.uscourts.gov. Updated fees will be posted as of December 1, 2023.

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NextGen CM/ECF

Eastern District of North Carolina CM/ECF is being upgraded to NextGen CM/ECF on August 29, 2022. Please click on the tabs to read more information on this upgrade.

About NextGen CM/ECF

The Federal Judiciary has developed a Next Generation (NextGen) Case Management/Electronic Case Filing (CM/ECF) system that will allow attorneys to use the same login and password for both PACER and electronic filing access. E-filers will be required to use an individual PACER login and password for access to the electronic filing system. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina plans to implement NextGen on August 29, 2022. After this implementation date, the username and password that an e-filer currently uses to access the Court's CM/ECF system will NOT work with NextGen.

What Is New For Attorneys In NextGen

One key feature of NextGen is "Central Sign-On," a new functionality that will allow attorneys, others with permission to electronically file, and parties receiving electronic service of court documents to maintain one account across all NextGen courts (appellate, bankruptcy, and district). E-filers will be able to use one login and password to e-file in every NextGen court where they have been granted e-filing privileges rather than having to remember a separate login and password for each individual court. The same login and password will be used to access the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system to view dockets and other case information for all federal courts, including those that have not yet upgraded to NextGen.

Preparing for NextGen CM/ECF

E-filers must do the following in order to file in NextGen:

  1. Obtain your own individual PACER account or upgrade your existing individual PACER account.
  2. Know your current Eastern District of North Carolina CM/ECF login and password. If unknown, please contact contact the Clerk's Office at (919)-645-1700. Alternatively, you may send an email to: NCED-attorney-update@nced.uscourts.gov.
  3. View the Preparing for NextGen Flowchart and complete the instructions.
  4. Refer to the Reference document for linking your Pacer account to ECF on the day we go LIVE.

NextGen CM/ECF – Information for CJA Panel Attorneys

CJA Panel Attorneys will need only one PACER account for filing and viewing in NextGen. If you have a separate exempt CJA account now, those exempt privileges will need to be added to your individual upgraded PACER account.

Upgrading Your PACER account
NextGen CJA Exempt Status Instructions
CJA Navigating from Current Gen CM/ECF to NextGen CM/ECF
NextGen Activating CJA Privileges

Frequently Asked Questions About NextGen CM/ECF

How do I know if I have an upgraded PACER account?

Upgraded PACER accounts have usernames that are at least 8 characters long. You may have already upgraded your PACER account recently if you practice in another court that has already upgraded to NextGen. North Carolina Middle and Western District Courts along with the Fourth Circuit are examples of courts that have already migrated. If your username is 6 characters, you do not have an upgraded account. Go to https://www.pacer.gov and click on Manage my Account to upgrade your PACER account.

What happens to my current Eastern District of North Carolina CM/ECF account after the transition to NextGen?

After the Court upgrades to NextGen, you must link your current CM/ECF account to your upgraded PACER account. After the accounts are linked, you will no longer need to use your current Eastern District of North Carolina username/login and password to file in this court.

My law firm uses a shared PACER account. Can we continue to use that account?

Not for e-filing. Each attorney must have an individual PACER account to use for electronic filing in NextGen. The law firm can create a PACER Administrative Account (PAA) to manage the billing for all individual accounts. Staff members who share a PACER account only for research can continue to share. NOTE: The PAA will not allow access to case information. For more information on PAAs please review Information regarding PACER Administrative Account. To register for a PACER Administrative Account, visit https://pacer.gov/reg_firm.html.

I linked my account when the Court of Appeals or another District or Bankruptcy Court converted. Do I have to link my account again?

Yes. Once the Eastern District of North Carolina is live on NextGen, you must link your PACER account to your Eastern District of North Carolina NextGen filing account before you can continue to electronically file in the Eastern District.

I am a CJA Attorney and I currently have two PACER accounts. Will I need two accounts with NextGen?

CJA Attorneys will only need one PACER account for filing and viewing in NextGen CM/ECF. If you have a separate exempt CJA account now, those exempt filing privileges will be added to your individual upgraded PACER account and your current exempt account will be canceled. For more information, please review the previous tab for CJA Panel Attorneys.

Help with NextGen CM/ECF

For assistance with creating a PACER account, please contact PACER at 1-800-676-6856 or visit the website at https://www.pacer.gov.

For assistance with your current Eastern District of North Carolina CM/ECF login and password or with linking your account AFTER the Court transitions to NextGen, contact the Clerk's Office at 919-645-1700 during normal business hours Monday-Friday (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) or send an e-mail to NCED-attorney-update@nced.uscourts.gov.