# Pull your PACER docket sheets into your own systems > Read a case's docket entries, its parties and counsel, or PACER Case Locator results by party with one API call each. Or have a workflow run the Docket Report for every case you watch before the day starts and post the new entries to your docketing system. Page: https://fous.com/automate/pacer Updated: 2026-11-12 Works with your own PACER account. Fous is an independent product. ## What you can build on PACER ### Get docket entries for a case Runs the Docket Report for one case in one court's CM/ECF, limited to a Filed date range, and reads each entry on the docket sheet. - Takes: Court ID, case number, filed from, filed to (optional) - Returns: Case title, case number, court, date filed, document number, docket text, whether a document is linked ### Search cases by party name Runs a party search in the PACER Case Locator, the nationwide index of federal cases, and reads the result rows. - Takes: Party name, filed from (optional) - Returns: Court ID, case number, case title, party name, case type, nature of suit, date filed ### List a case's parties and counsel Opens Query, Party for one case in a court's CM/ECF and reads the active and terminated parties with their attorneys. - Takes: Court ID, case number - Returns: Party name, party type, terminated date, attorney name and contact details as listed ### Download a filed document Opens a document number from a case's docket sheet and returns the PDF with the pages billed and the fee. - Takes: Court ID, case number, document number, attachment number (optional) - Returns: Document number, attachment number, pages billed, fee, PDF ## Automate PACER with a workflow A [workflow](/product/workflows) runs your methods as one process, with nobody at the screen. A schedule or a call from your own system starts it, the steps run in order, and the result arrives in your inbox or in the systems you already use. ### New docket entries on the cases you watch Starts: Every weekday at 5:30, Central time 1. For each case on your list, get the docket entries filed since the previous weekday. 2. Keep the entries that were not there on the last run. 3. Post each one, with court, case number, document number and docket text, to your docketing system's webhook. ### New cases naming your clients, from the PACER Case Locator Starts: Every day at 5:00, Central time 1. For each client name, search cases by party name filed since yesterday. 2. Keep the cases that were not in the last run. 3. Email you the list, one section per client. ### Weekly docket summary for each matter Starts: Every Friday at 16:00, Central time 1. For each case on your list, get the docket entries filed in the last 7 days. 2. Stop when there are none. 3. Summarize each case's new entries in a few lines and email you the summary. You can run a workflow by hand on every plan, Free included. Schedules and webhook triggers come with the paid plans, from $29 a month. ## Once built, one call from your code Once you have built a [method](/product/methods), it is one POST to /v1/runs from your backend, or a tool an AI agent calls over MCP. This is what “Get docket entries for a case” would look like. Example request: ``` curl https://api.fous.com/v1/runs \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $FOUS_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "method": "pacer.login.uscourts.gov/get_docket_entries", "input": { "court_id": "candc", "case_number": "3:26-cv-04182", "filed_from": "2026-11-01" } }' ``` Example response: ``` { "status": "completed", "data": { "court": "California Northern District Court", "case_number": "3:26-cv-04182", "case_title": "Acme Corp. v. Globex Inc.", "entries": [ { "date_filed": "2026-11-09", "document_number": 27, "docket_text": "MOTION to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim filed by Globex Inc. Motion Hearing set for 12/17/2026 10:00 AM.", "document_linked": true } ], "count": 1 } } ``` An example with invented data, not a ready-made endpoint. The method exists in your organization once you build it, and its name, inputs and fields follow your request. ## PACER’s own options The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts publishes two APIs: the PACER Authentication API, which returns a token for a PACER username and password, and the PACER Case Locator API, which searches the nationwide index of federal cases and parties. Its developer page lists no API for docket reports or filed documents, which you open in each court's CM/ECF. Production searches are billed per page. | Option | What it covers | What it takes | | --- | --- | --- | | PACER Authentication API | Returns an authentication token for a PACER username and password, without a user interface. | A PACER account. The token is sent with each PCL API request and is valid for a set period. | | PACER Case Locator API | Case and party searches, returned at once in groups of 54 or as batch jobs downloaded later. | A PACER account. Production searches are billed at $0.10 per page. A separate QA account searches test data free. | | PACER by hand | The Docket Report, Query and filed documents in each court's CM/ECF, and the PACER Case Locator. | A PACER account. $0.10 per page, at most $3 per document, waived when you spend $30 or less in a quarter. | Read on November 12, 2026: [PACER developer resources](https://pacer.uscourts.gov/file-case/developer-resources), [PACER Case Locator API user guide](https://pacer.uscourts.gov/help/pacer/pacer-case-locator-pcl-api-user-guide), [PACER pricing: how fees work](https://pacer.uscourts.gov/pacer-pricing-how-fees-work). ## Signing in to PACER PACER signs you in at pacer.login.uscourts.gov with a username and password, then multifactor authentication: a one-time passcode from an authenticator app, or a backup code. With Fous you sign in once through PACER's own sign-in with your own account: the login is sealed with AES-256, and code and AI agents never see it. ## Worth knowing - **Every page is billed, even empty searches**: Pages cost $0.10, and search results are billed even when nothing matches, with no maximum. A document or docket report is capped at 30 pages ($3). Fees are waived at $30 or less a quarter. - **Run large pulls between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.**: PACER asks commercial users to run large data pulls between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Central Time, and may suspend or reduce access for an account that causes disruption. - **No link on an entry means no PDF in PACER**: If a docket entry has no link on its number and no icon, the document is not in PACER and you order it from the court clerk's office. - **Shared accounts need MFA planned**: A shared PACER account can enroll up to ten authentication apps. After three skipped MFA prompts, User Update Required limits the account until MFA is set up. ## More in Legal, courts and intellectual property - [Portal Informacyjny Sądów Powszechnych](https://fous.com/automate/portal-informacyjny-sadow-powszechnych.md) - [MyHMCTS](https://fous.com/automate/myhmcts.md) - [eCourts e-Filing](https://fous.com/automate/ecourts-e-filing.md) - [Money Claim Online](https://fous.com/automate/money-claim-online.md) - [Authorized Paid Representative Portal](https://fous.com/automate/authorized-paid-representative-portal.md) - [Arbitration Forums](https://fous.com/automate/arbitration-forums.md) - [CCMS](https://fous.com/automate/ccms.md) - [CounselLink](https://fous.com/automate/counsellink.md) - [Legal Tracker](https://fous.com/automate/legal-tracker.md) - [TyMetrix 360](https://fous.com/automate/tymetrix-360.md) - [Collaborati](https://fous.com/automate/collaborati.md) - [MyEPO Portfolio](https://fous.com/automate/myepo-portfolio.md) Other industries: [ACE Secure Data Portal](/automate/ace-secure-data-portal), [Fidelity Wealthscape](/automate/fidelity-wealthscape), [易港通](/automate/eporthub), [Highway](/automate/highway), [SupplyOn](/automate/supplyon), [IATA SIS](/automate/iata-sis). ## Frequently asked questions ### Does PACER have an API? Yes, for searching. The PACER Case Locator API searches the nationwide index of federal cases and parties, and the Authentication API returns the token it needs. PACER's developer page lists no API for docket reports or filed documents, which you open in each court's CM/ECF, and production searches are billed at $0.10 per page. ### How much does PACER charge? $0.10 per page for documents, docket reports and search results. A document or docket report is capped at 30 pages ($3); search results and transcripts are not. On the PACER Case Locator, 54 lines count as one page. If you spend $30 or less in a quarter, the fees are waived. ### Can I test the PCL API without being billed? Yes. PACER runs a QA environment at qa-pcl.uscourts.gov with a subset of test data, where searches are not billable. It needs a separate QA PACER account, registered at qa-pacer.uscourts.gov, that works only there. ### How do I pull only new docket entries instead of the whole docket sheet? Enter a Filed or Entered date range before you run the Docket Report, and uncheck Parties and counsel and Terminated parties when the court offers them. The report then lists only entries in that range, without the party information you already have. ### Is Fous affiliated with the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts? No. Fous is an independent product. You use it with your own PACER account, and a method reads and does only what that account can. Fous is an independent product: it is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the operator of PACER (Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts). The name is used only to say which system this page is about. Something here wrong or out of date? Write to legal@fous.com.