FAQs - Pro Se Parties

Nwamaka Anowi, Clerk
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
1100 E. Main Street, Suite 501
Richmond, Virginia 23219-3517
(804) 916-2700

8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday, with the exception of holidays.

The clerk dockets the appeal and assigns a case number. If appropriate, the clerk issues an informal briefing order, copying all parties to the appeal. Under Local Rule 34(b), the court uses an informal briefing schedule in cases involving pro se litigants to facilitate briefing and consideration of the case on the merits without requiring the pro se litigant to comply with formal briefing requirements. For more information, see Pro Se Procedures.

Federal court fees are set by the U.S. Judicial Conference pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1913. Click here for the court's fee schedule.

The fee for a direct appeal from the district court is $605, payable to the Clerk, U.S. District Court, when the notice of appeal is filed.

Petitions for review or mandamus filed in the court of appeals should be accompanied by a $600 fee payable to the Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals, when filed.

If a party proceeded under the Criminal Justice Act in the district court and that status was never terminated, CJA status continues on appeal and no fee or further application is required. If a CJA application is required, a fee notice is issued to appellant and includes a CJA 23 application. The CJA 23 application is filed in the court of appeals.

If a party proceeded in forma pauperis in the district court and that status was never terminated, in forma pauperis status continues on appeal and no fee or further application is required. If an in forma pauperis application is required, a fee notice is issued to appellant and includes an In Forma Pauperis Application. The in forma pauperis application is filed in the court of appeals. 

When a prisoner notes an appeal in a civil, non-habeas, non-§ 2255 case, the prisoner must pay the $605 appeal fee to the district court or file in the court of appeals a PLRA application, a PLRA consent to collection of fees, and prisoner trust account statement. For mandamus petitions arising from civil cases, the prisoner must pay the $600 mandamus fee to the court of appeals or file the PLRA forms in the court of appeals. 

The court's median disposition time for cases decided on the merits is about eight months from notice of appeal to entry of judgment. Disposition times may vary widely from case to case.

Pro se litigants generally do not file documents electronically. The clerk will scan all pro se filings in paper format, including any pro se briefs, and attach the documents to the relevant docket entry. Pro se documents should be served on opposing counsel in paper form and filed in paper form addressed to:

Nwamaka Anowi, Clerk
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
1100 E. Main Street, Suite 501
Richmond, Virginia 23219-3517

Appellate docket sheets and documents can be viewed via PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records). Go to the PACER Registration Wizard for PACER account registration information. There is no registration fee. However, the Judicial Conference of the United States has established a fee for access to information in PACER. More information is available on the PACER website. One PACER account may be used to view publicly-accessible documents in all federal courts. If you need assistance with registration or technical issues, contact PACER at (800) 676-6856, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Central Time, Monday through Friday.

Go to www.ca4.uscourts.gov/caseinformationefiling/copies-of-documents for information on how to obtain copies of documents and related fees.

The CM/ECF (Case Management/Electronic Case Filing) system is used to file documents electronically. A pro se litigant who is a party in a case pending before this court may request permission to file documents electronically in that case by completing the court's registration requirements. Instructions for Pro Se Filers may be found in Register for eFiling.

The court of appeals will examine the record established by the trial court or agency, but does not receive additional evidence or hear witnesses.

The court's opinions are posted daily beginning at 2:30 p.m. and can be found under Daily Opinions. There is no fee for accessing opinions posted on the court's website. Opinions are available in PDF format; therefore, users will need Adobe Reader to view them. You can also register to receive opinions via email or an RSS feed each day.

A text-search of the court's opinions from 1996 to date is available on the court's Search Opinions page.

Review on writ of certiorari is not a matter of right, but of judicial discretion, and will be granted only for compelling reasons.  The time for filing a petition for writ of certiorari runs from the entry of judgment, not from issuance of the mandate.  If a timely petition for rehearing or rehearing en banc was filed, the time for filing a petition for certiorari does not begin to run until denial of the petition for rehearing or rehearing en banc. Additional information on filing a petition for writ of certiorari is available at www.supremecourt.gov or from the Supreme Court Clerk’s Office at 1 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20543.

Congress has created a procedure that permits any person to file an administrative complaint about the behavior of federal judges, but not about the decisions federal judges make in deciding cases. More information and a Judicial Complaint Form can be found on our web page, Judicial Conduct & Disability. Complaints against non-federal judges should be filed with the state agency or commission that handles complaints against judges.