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Clio File: E-File and E-Serve Documents

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Clio File is an all-in-one solution for e-filing and e-service. Built directly into Clio Manage, and certified by the courts, Clio File allows you to electronically file documents with your local courts and e-serve legal notice to parties right from a matter in Clio Manage. With Clio Manage's built-in e-filing solution, you have everything you need to file, serve, manage, and monitor your court filings, all from the same platform you use to run your law firm.   

Note: At this time, Clio File is only available for courts in Texas, United States. 

Sign up for Clio File

You can sign up for Clio File in your Clio Manage settings or from any matter's Dashboard. Once activated, you can add firm user filers and begin electronically filing court documents and serving notice to parties directly from Clio Manage. 

Note: Only administrators can sign up for Clio File.

Settings Matter's Dashboard
  1. Go to Settings > E-filing.
  2. Click Activate today.
  3. Complete the required fields for your firm's information and check the box for the terms and conditions. 
  4. Click Activate.

 

Add and view firm user filers

Firm filers are users on your firm account who can electronically file and serve court documents. You can designate any firm user on your account as a firm filer. Users not listed as firm filers can still initiate filings for any matter if an administrator has activated Clio File on the firm account and the user has the necessary permissions to access the matter. Once these users begin the filing process, they will automatically be added to the firm filer list.

Note: Only administrators can add firm user filers on the settings page and view the list of all firm filers.

  1. Go to Settings > E-filing.
  2. Check that you are viewing the E-filing account subtab.
  3. Click Add filer.
  4. Under Filer name, select a firm user.
  5. Optional: Under Bar number, enter the firm user's bar number.
  6. Click Save.

 

File and serve court forms and documents

Any firm user can file documents from a matter in Clio Manage and receive real-time updates to instantly know which documents have been accepted, rejected, or are pending. Once a document is accepted and stamped by the court, it will automatically populate in the matter's Documents subtab. You can file from a new matter that does not have a court-assigned case number yet or file a subsequent filing for an active matter that already has a court-assigned case number.

Important: Check that all the filing information is accurate before submitting the filing. Once you submit a filing, you cannot cancel it on your own. For now, you will need to contact Clio's support team for any cancellations. In the future, you will be able to cancel filings on your own. 

Case initiation

Follow the steps listed below to electronically file documents to your local court and electronically serve legal notice to parties for a new case/matter.

  1. Go to the matter for which you want to initiate a case filing.
  2. Select the matter's Documents subtab.
  3. Search for the document that you want to file in court.
  4. Under the Actions column, click the Edit arrow beside the document and then select E-file.
  5. Select Case initiation and then click Start e-filing.
  6. Complete the filing workflow sections as described below:
Case info

In this section, you can select the county and court where you want to file, along with the category and type of case.

  1. Under County, Court, Case category, and Case type, select an option from each dropdown. All of these fields are required to be completed. 
  2. Click Next to move on to the Parties section.
Parties

In this section, you can make the appropriate selections for the filer's information and enter relevant details for parties and service contacts. The court that you selected will configure the type of case and the type of parties required. There is no limit to the amount of parties and service contacts you can add.

  • Filer information: Here, you can select the contact on the matter and the attorney submitting the filing.
  • Parties: Here, you can select the appropriate parties for the case. The available fields will vary depending on the state or county that you selected.
  • Service contacts: Here, you can add the appropriate service contacts to whom you want to serve legal notice for this filing.

Complete each component of the Parties section as follows:

  1. Under Primary contact, select the contact for the matter.
  2. Under Filing attorney, select yourself or the filing attorney on whose behalf you are filing.
    • If the filing attorney is not on the list, click Add filing attorney. You will be prompted to select the attorney's name and enter their bar number.
  3. Click one of the "add" buttons to add parties from existing contacts or create new parties for the filing. The available options will depend on your case type. Click Add party to add any optional case parties. If the party is your client, check the Client box or This is my client in the modal.
    • In the new modal, use the Select from contacts dropdown to add an existing contact to the filing. You can use the Select address dropdown to pick from the contact addresses or add a New Address. If you edit the contact at this stage, check the box to Save changes to contact records.
    • If the party is not an existing contact, select New case party from the dropdown, choose whether the party is a Person or Company contact, and then complete the necessary contact fields. To add a new party as a contact, check Save party to contact records.
  4. After adding a party, you can do the following:
    • Check the box under Client to mark a party as your client. 
    • Click the pencil icon to edit the party's details. You can only edit parties before the filing has been submitted. Once you submit the filing, you cannot make changes to the parties on any filing.
    • Click the X icon to remove the party from the filing. You can only remove parties before the filing has been submitted. Once you submit the filing, you cannot make changes to the parties, even for a subsequent filing on the same court case. 
  5. Click Add service contact to start adding contacts to that you want to serve.
    • In the new modal, you will need to enter details for the contact. If the contact is a service contact from your firm, check the box for Firm service contact. If you want the contact to be e-served legal notice, check the box for E-serve this contact.  
  6. After adding a service contact, you can do the following:
    • Check the box under Firm contact to mark the contact as a contact from your firm.
    • Check the box under E-serve to electronically serve legal notice to this contact.
    • Click the pencil icon to edit the service contact's details.
    • Click the X icon to remove the service contact from the filing. 
  7. Click Next to move on to the Documents section.
Documents

In this section, you can review documents, add supporting documents for the case, and select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs. You can add documents from documents already stored in Clio Manage or upload new documents. Once added, you will need to set a lead document and categorize the remaining documents by type to move on to the next section.

Note: Some courts prefer to have all documents submitted as one PDF file or may have certain requirements for documents. Take a look at your court's official website for more updated and detailed filing requirements. 

  1. Under Filing code, select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs. The list is predetermined by the court based on the type of case you are filing.
  2. Under Lead document, check that the lead document is accurate and select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs. You also have the option to add a different lead document.
    • Under Type, select the appropriate category for the type of document.  
    • Under Security, select whether the filing contains sensitive information.
    • Click the download icon to preview the document or the X icon to remove the document from the filing.
  3. Click Add documents to add supporting documents to the filing. Under Add documents, you can select from documents already stored in Clio Manage or drag and drop new documents into the Upload new documents modal.
    • Under Select from matter documents, choose documents from Clio Manage.
    • Under Upload new documents, upload any new documents needed for the filing.
    • Click the circle arrow icon to replace the selected document or the X icon to remove the document from the filing.
  4. Click Next to move on to the Review and pay section.
Review and pay

In this section, you can check the summary of what information was completed from the previous sections to ensure that everything is accurate, automate an expense entry for the filing, and review the estimated charges and fees. You can view final charges in your settings, as described in View payments for filings. Depending on the state and/or county-specific requirements, the charges can include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Electronic filing service provider (EFSP): An EFSP is a court-approved software vendor that collects filing submissions and fee payments in a centralized platform and distributes them to the appropriate EFM.
  • Electronic filing manager (EFM): An EFM is a software infrastructure that collects filing submissions and fee payments directly through a court-maintained web portal. 
  • Court services fees: Court services fees are fees set and charged by each court. 
  • Payment processing fees: Payment processing fees are fees charged by your payments processor to process your payment. 
  • State taxes: State taxes are taxes your state charges for filing submissions.
  • Clio File fees: Clio File fees are fees charged by Clio to use e-filing. 

Tip: After a filing is submitted and approved, you can add an expense entry from the filing table or the individual filing page. You can also generate bills to collect payment from your client, all in Clio Manage. 

  1. Under Case information, Filer information, Case parties, Service contacts, and Documents, check that the information you entered is accurate. Click Edit next to each section to make any changes.
  2. Under Estimated charges and fees, review the estimated cost of this filing.
  3. Optional: Under Estimated charges and fees, check the box to Automatically create an expense entry for this filing only when the firm is charged. You can view the estimated expense entry total on the filing table and will be notified by email if the entry creation is unsuccessful.
    • Once the filing is approved, you can manually edit the expense entry from the filing table and individual filing page.
  4. Under Payment method, review the payment method. The payment method should already be set up based on your existing Clio Manage account settings. 
  5. Optional: Under Message to filing clerk, enter a message about the filing for the court clerk. 
  6. Click Previous to go back to the previous page, Save draft to come back to the filing later, or Submit to submit the filing to the court.
    • You will be notified by email and in-app notifications when a filing is submitted, accepted, or rejected. 
Subsequent filing for existing case

Follow the steps listed below to electronically file documents to your local court and electronically serve legal notice to parties for an existing case for which you already have a court-assigned file number.

  1. Go to the matter for which you want to continue a case filing. The matter should already have a case number provided by the court when you started the case filing. 
  2. Select the matter's Documents subtab.
  3. Search for the document that you want to file in court.
  4. Under the Actions column, click the Edit arrow beside the document and then select E-file.
  5. Select Existing case and then click Start e-filing.
  6. Complete the filing workflow sections as described below:
Case info

In this section, you can select the county and court where you want to file, and enter the case number provided by the court when you initiated the case filing.

  1. Select the county and court. These fields are required to be completed. 
  2. Under Case number, enter the case number exactly as formatted by the court and then click Search. 
  3. Click Next to move on to the Parties section.
Parties

In this section, you can review the filer's information and party and service contact details from when the case was initiated. The court that you selected will configure the type of case and the type of parties required. There is no limit to the amount of parties and service contacts you can add.

  1. In the Filer information area, review the filer contacts and make any changes as necessary to the contact and/or firm filer.
  2. In the Parties area, review the parties for the case and make any changes as necessary. You cannot edit or remove parties, but you can do the following:
    • Click Add party to add a new party.
    • Check the box under Client to mark a party as your client.
  3. In the Service contacts area, review the appropriate service contacts and make any necessary changes. You can do the following
    • Click Add service contact to add a new service contact.
    • Check the box under Firm contact to mark the contact as a contact from your firm.
    • Check the box under E-serve to electronically serve the contact legal notice.
    • Click the pencil icon to edit a service contact that you added. You cannot edit service contacts that were added by anyone else.
    • Click the X icon to remove a service contact that you added. You cannot remove service contacts that were added by anyone else.
  4. Click Next to move on to the Documents section.
Documents

In this section, you can review documents, add supporting documents for the case, and select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs. You can add documents from documents already stored in Clio Manage or upload new documents. Once added, you will need to set a lead document and categorize the remaining documents by type to move on to the next section.

Note: Some courts prefer to have all documents submitted as one PDF file or may have certain requirements for documents. Take a look at your court's official website for more updated and detailed filing requirements. 

  1. Under Filing code, select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs. The list is predetermined by the court based on the type of case you are filing.
  2. Under Documents, select the appropriate filing code to determine e-filing costs.
    • Under Type, select the appropriate category for the type of document.  
    • Under Security, select whether the filing contains sensitive information.
    • Click the download icon to preview the document or the X icon to remove the document from the filing.
  3. Click Add documents to add supporting documents to the filing. Under Add documents, you can select from documents already stored in Clio Manage or drag and drop new documents into the Upload new documents modal.
    • Under Select from matter documents, choose documents from Clio Manage.
    • Under Upload new documents, upload any new documents needed for the filing.
    • Click the circle arrow icon to replace the selected document or the X icon to remove the document from the filing.
  4. Click Next to move on to the Review and pay section.
Review and pay

In this section, you can check the summary of what information was completed from the previous sections to ensure that everything is accurate, automate an expense entry for the filing, and review the estimated charges and fees You can view final charges in your settings, as described in View payments for filings. Depending on the state and/orcountry-specificc requirements, the charges can include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Electronic filing service provider (EFSP): An EFSP is a court-approved software vendor that collects filing submissions and fee payments in a centralized platform and distributes them to the appropriate EFM.
  • Electronic filing manager (EFM): An EFM is a software infrastructure that collects filing submissions and fee payments directly through a court-maintained web portal. 
  • Court services fees: Court services fees are fees set and charged by each court. 
  • Payment processing fees: Payment processing fees are fees charged by your payments processor to process your payment. 
  • State taxes: State taxes are taxes your state charges for filing submissions.
  • Clio File fees: Clio File fees are fees charged by Clio to use e-filing. 

Tip: Once a filing is submitted, you can add an expense entry from the filing table or the individual filing page once approved. You can also generate bills to collect payment from your client, all in Clio Manage.  

  1. Under Case information, Filer information, Case parties, Service contacts, and Documents, check that the information you entered is accurate. Click Edit next to each section to make any changes.
  2. Under Estimated charges and fees, review the estimated cost of this filing.
  3. Optional: Under Estimated charges and fees, check the box to Automatically create an expense entry for this filing only when the firm is charged. You can view the estimated expense entry total on the filing table.
    • You will be notified by email if the entry creation is unsuccessful.
    • Once approved, you can manually edit the expense entry from the filing table and individual filing page.
  4. Under Payment method, review the payment method. The payment method should already be set up based on your existing Clio Manage account settings. 
  5. Optional: Under Message to filing clerk, enter a message about the filing for the court clerk. 
  6. Click Previous to go back to the previous page, Save draft to come back to the filing later, or Submit to submit the filing to the court.
    • You will be notified by email and in-app notifications when a filing is submitted, accepted, or rejected. 

 

Create filing expenses

When filings are submitted, you can create an expense entry from the e-filing subtab in two ways. Before the filing is accepted, automate the creation of an expense entry after your firm is charged for the filing or manually create a new expense once the filing is accepted.

Manual expense Automatic expense
  1. Go to the matter and select the E-filing subtab.
  2. Find the filings that require expenses. You can use the keyword search box to help you find the filing.
  3. You can create a new expense entry from the e-filing table:
    • Under the Recorded expense column, click Add expense.
    • Under the Actions column, view the filing page and click Add expense under the Fees breakdown.

 

Track filing statuses

Once a filing is submitted, you can keep track of the status of the filing in Clio Manage. You can view a quick summary of the most recent filing status in the matter's Dashboard, or get a more in-depth view of all filing statuses for the matter in the matter's E-filing subtab. Filings can have one of the following statuses:

  • Draft: The filing has been created but has not been sent to the court's EFM.
  • Submitted: The filing has been successfully sent to the court's EFM.
  • Failed: The filing has not reached the court's EFM due to formatting errors.
  • Accepted: The filing has been approved by the court to proceed as an active matter.
  • Rejected: The filing has been denied by the court and deemed invalid for legal action. You can view the reason why the filing was rejected by viewing the filing submission in the matter's E-filing subtab, and then start a new filing with the appropriate corrections. Learn more below.
Matter's Dashboard Matter's E-filing subtab
  1. Go to the matter's Dashboard.
  2. In the E-filing box, view the status of each submitted filing and the submission date and time.
  3. Optional: Click View all to view all filings in the matter's E-filing subtab.

 

View submitted filings, rejection reason, and court-stamped documents

Once you submit a filing, you can view the filing, including the payment summary and fee breakdown, from the matter's E-filing subtab. You can also view a description of why a filing was rejected from the same subtab. When the court accepts the filing, they will send court-stamped documents directly back to Clio Manage. You can view these documents in the matter's Documents subtab.

Note: If a court rejects a filing, you will need to start a new filing with the appropriate corrections. 

View submitted filings View court-stamped documents
  1. Go to the matter and then select the E-filing subtab.
  2. Find the submitted filing that you want to view. You can use the keyword search box to help you find the filing.
  3. Under the Actions column of the table, click View.
  4. If the filing was rejected by the court, you can view the rejection reason in the Filing details section.

 

Edit and delete draft filings

If you saved a filing as a draft, you can continue to edit the draft filing or delete it. Be sure to thoroughly check the filing for accuracy before submitting it. Once you submit a filing, you cannot cancel it on your own and will instead need to contact Clio's support team for any cancellations. 

Edit draft filing Delete draft filing
  1. Go to the matter's Dashboard.
  2. Find the draft filing that you want to edit.
  3. Under the Actions column of the table, click Edit.
  4. Make any necessary changes and then submit the filing.

 

View payments for filings

When filings are submitted and your firm is charged for each submission, you can view all payment invoices with a detailed breakdown of fees in your e-filings settings. 

Note: Only administrators can view payments made for e-filings.

    1. Go to Settings > E-filing.
    2. Select the E-filing payments subtab.
    3. Optional: Use the date range filters and/or keyword search box to find a specific filing.
    4. Click View to view the details of a specific filing.

 

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