Rule 15.12 Filing of sealed documents

If you want to keep certain documents private in a court case, you need to file a motion asking the judge to seal them. This motion itself gets filed and served electronically like any other court paper.

But the actual documents you want sealed work differently. Instead of e-filing them normally, you have to put them in sealed envelopes and file them that way. The court will only open these envelopes when the judge gives specific instructions to do so. You also need to send a copy of these documents directly to the judge handling the case so they can review them before making a decision.

This process protects sensitive information from becoming public while the judge decides whether it should stay sealed. It keeps the documents out of the regular case file where anyone could see them until the judge rules on your request.