A Grand Jury does not determine guilt or innocence, but whether there is probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed. The evidence is normally presented only by an attorney for the government. The grand jury must determine from this evidence whether a person should have formal charges filed by the government. If the grand jury finds probable cause, then it will return a written statement of the charges, called an indictment. Grand jurors sit on a panel of 23 jurors and generally serve one day per month for 18 months. Grand jury terms can be extended if necessary.

Yes. Should you be called in for service, you will be provided with an envelope so that you may send all your receipts back to the court for reimbursement.

The court summons jurors for a term of eligibility which is a 2 month term during which you may be randomly selected and assigned to come in for possible jury selection.

Once you have been notified of your 2 month term of eligibility, if you should be randomly selected, you will be assigned to a trial on a specific date before a specific judge. You will be notified in writing. Your letter will instruct you to call the courts Jury Information Line at 1-800-377-3772 prior to your reporting date. Making this call is extremely important and may save you a trip should your case be canceled.

Not without notifying the jury administrator or the presiding judge.

No. It is extremely important that you be prompt both in the morning and when returning from lunch. It is particularly important when serving on a trial because the entire proceeding can be delayed due to the tardiness of one juror.

Any juror who fails to report for jury duty and who is not excused by the Court may be served a Show Cause Order by the U.S. Marshal's Office. Subsequently, those jurors will be held in contempt of the Jury Selection Act. Contempt penalties may include a fine of $1,000.00, imprisonment of not more than three days, community service, or any combination thereof.

You must bring a photo I.D. to gain entrance to the federal building.  You should also bring your summons.  You are permitted to bring your cell phone, however you must turn off and put away while in the courtroom. 

Persons over 70 are not automatically exempt from service.  However, if you are over 70 years old, you may request to be excused from serving as a juror.  You can request the excuse through eJuror or enclose a written request with your questionnaire or summons. 

The Court compiles a list of all Delaware residents registered voters, licensed drivers and state I.D. holders over 18.  Persons from this list are randomly sent juror qualification questionnaires. Qualified jurors may be sent a summons for a two month term of eligibility.

The system is designed to allow 3 logins, after failure to gain access on the third attempt; the system will lock you out. You must completely log out of eJuror, wait a few minutes, and try again. The system only allows 20 minutes to complete the questionnaire, if it exceeds that time, you will have to start again.

Any prospective juror who receives a questionnaire or summons can complete it online, unless the recipient’s last name is less than 3 letters or the recipient is under the age of 18. If you are unable to complete on line due to these system limitations, please complete the paper form and submit it to the Court within 10 days of receipt of the questionnaire or summons.

Once the form is completed, PRIOR to submission, you will have the opportunity to edit your answers. Prior to submission you can print out your answers for your records. 

You will not be notified by the Court that your questionnaire has been received, other than the confirmation that is received when you submit the form. If you are qualified, you may receive a summons in the future with a date for jury service. 

If you experience problems with eJuror, please contact the eJuror Helpline at (800) 377-3772.

All documents filed with the System must be in PDF format. These documents are identifiable by ".pdf" at the end of the document name

It means that the CM/ECF System is unable to complete your request. Please contact the CM/ECF HelpDesk at 302-573-6170.

First, make sure you are listed as an attorney of record in the case. If you are listed on the docket sheet, make sure under your information it says “Attorney to be Noticed”.   Contact the CM/ECF Helpdesk (302-573-6170) if you need further assistance.

We do not accept faxed documents for filing, nor do we send court filings by fax.

All such filings are processed at the Clerk’s Office Intake counter, Room 4209.  The Clerk's Office does not have an after-hours drop box.  When filing by mail, send documents to:

OFFICE OF THE CLERK
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
844 N KING ST UNIT 18
WILMINGTON DE 19801-3570

Exceptions to filing with the Clerk include:

• Papers accepted and "Filed in Open Court" during a proceeding.
• As directed by a Judge’s chambers.

Beginning May 4, 2020, the District Court of Delaware will be upgraded to the NextGen electronic case filing system. To seek any type of admission and to electronically file, attorneys must have an individual upgraded PACER account; shared PACER accounts cannot be used for admission or e-filing. If an attorney does not have an individual account, he/she should request one from PACER.

To be admitted into the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, you must be a member of the Delaware State Bar, and your sponsor must already be admitted to practice before the District Court. Attorney admission to the District of Delaware requires a $196.00 application fee.

If there is a problem with your application, you will be notified by one of our Attorney Admissions Clerks. Otherwise, your application will be approved, and your Oath Ceremony scheduled for the next available date. You will receive notification by email as to the date, time and presiding Judge for your ceremony. At the time of admission, you must appear before the Court and be introduced by your sponsor. (There is no provision for an attorney to be waived into the bar of the court without making a personal appearance.)

Registration for Admission

1. Navigate to www.pacer.gov
2. Click Manage My Account at the very top of the page
3. Login with your upgraded individual PACER account username and password
4. Click on Maintenance tab
5. Select Attorney Admission/E-file Registration
6. Select U.S. District Courts as the Court Type and Delaware District Court as the Court. Click Next.
7. Select Attorney Admissions and E-file
8. Complete all five sections of the required registration information:
          a. Attorney Bar Information
          b. Sponsoring Attorney
          c. Attorney Information
          d. Document Upload (Application and Certificate of Good State from Delaware Supreme Court)
          e. Additional Attorney Information Required by Court
9. Complete the personal information on the E-file Registration section (most sections will be auto populated by PACER.
10. Enter your email address, email frequency and email format. (Note that HTML is the preferred email format). Click Next.
11. Set default payment information, if desired (not required). Click Next when finished or to bypass this screen.
          a. To use the same account for multiple fee types, once the account information is entered, click on the letter(s) on the left to designate the entered payment method to that account. The letter icon will turn from grey to blue once it has been designated an account.
12. Check the Acknowledgement of Policies and Procedures for Attorney Admissions box and the two Attorney E-filing Terms of Use acknowledge boxes.
13. Click Submit. The court will review your admission request and provide you with further instructions via email, including an invitation email to attend an Oath Ceremony.

IMPORTANT NOTE: You will be required to pay your admission fee online using the link provided in the email. Do not use the Make One-Time PACER Fee Payment option on the Manage My Account link. This option can only be used to pay your PACER bill.

Intake deputies screen all documents presented by such filers for compliance with the Federal Rules of Civil Practice and Procedure and the District of Delaware Local Rules. This includes but is not limited to verifying that the caption, case number and Judge assigned match; required signatures are present; service on local counsel is noted, etc.  Deficiencies are brought to the attention of the filing party and occasionally may be corrected on the spot.  Specific filing requirements include but are not limited to:

• ALIAS SUMMONS: Indicate "ALIAS" above the word "SUMMONS".
• AMENDED COMPLAINT: Original (not bound or stapled) and one copy; must show service.  Refer to Local Rule 15.1, and F.R.C.P. 15.
• APPEAL (Notice of): Original and one copy, $505.00 filing fee, payable to Clerk, U.S. District Court or, pauper application may accompany appeal when applicable.  Transcript Purchase Order will be provided to filer.
• BRIEF and APPENDIX: Original (not bound or stapled), and one copy; must show service; copy bound on left margin; form and content, page numbering, and length, refer to Local Rule 7.1.3.
• DISCOVERY PAPERS (Admissions, depositions, interrogatories, requests for production):
• Discovery papers are filed only when ordered or needed by the Court, and when pro se parties are involved in a case.  When filed, original only, must show service. Refer to Local Rule 5.4 and 26.1.
• JURY (Instructions, Interrogatories, Voir Dire): Original (not bound or stapled) and one copy, must show service.  Refer to Local Rule 47.1, 51.1.
• MOTION: Original (not bound or stapled), and one copy; must show service.  Refer to Local Rule 5.3.
  • Motions to extend discovery or trial deadline must provide reasons for request and evidence that the client is aware.  Refer to Local Rule 16.4.
  • Motions to amend must include the proposed pleading as amended and one copy, with appropriate underlining and brackets.  Refer to Local Rule 15.1.
• SEALED DOCUMENTS: Refer to FAQ - How do I present documents for filing under seal?

To place a copy order for paper documents in a closed case accessed for storage at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Philadelphia Records Center, 14700 Townsend Road, Philadelphia 19154, or a permanent case record on file with NARA Archives at Philadelphia, 14700 Townsend Road, Philadelphia 19154 (formerly center-city Philadelphia), please review the following:
    
1. PLACING A COPY ORDER DIRECTLY WITH THE RECORDS CENTER:  
When the case number you are searching for includes an “Accession Number”, you may place your copy order directly with the Philadelphia Records Center, (215) 305-2000.  First, check the applicable list of CIVIL or CRIMINAL cases (please read the notes) in order to obtain the ACCESSION information, which is required when submitting your request to the storage facility.  If you don't find accession information for the case in question, try looking up the case in PACER, under QUERY, CASE FILE LOCATION.  Contact the Clerk’s Office Help Desk if you need further assistance determining the location or status of a case file.  Once you have the accession, box and location numbers, complete the applicable NARA civil or criminal copy order form and follow their instructions.  The NARA forms provide information and instructions on how to obtain copies of accessed paper records from the Federal Records Center.

NARA Records Center copy forms:
CIVIL cases
CRIMINAL cases

2. PLACING A COPY ORDER DIRECTLY WITH THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Check  the applicable CIVIL or CRIMINAL case listings.  When the case number you are searching for does not contain an accession number, and the word “ARCHIVE” appears, you may contact the NARA Archives at Philadelphia, at (215) 305-2044, and place your copy order directly with them.  Copy orders for case documents located at the Archive at Philadelphia, may only be obtained by placing your order directly with them.  If necessary, contact our Clerk’s Office Help Desk (302) 573-6170, for further assistance determining the location or status of a specific case file.  Additional contact information for NARA and NARA, Philadelphia:

www.archives.gov
http://www.archives.gov/philadelphia/
E-Mail: philadelphia.archives@nara.gov

 
3. PLACING A COPY ORDER  VIA THE DISTRICT COURT HELP DESK
For cases currently accessed to the Federal Records Center (FRC), you may also place your order with the Clerk's Office Help Desk, at (302) 573-6170.  The current retrieval fee is $64.00 for the first box per case, and $39.00 for each additional box containing the same case.  Electronic retrieval of records is also available from the FRC.  The costs for electronic record retrieval of records is a flat rate of $19.90 plus a FRC per-page of $.65. The fees must be paid in advance, check payable to CLERK, U.S. DISTRICT COURT.  It takes approximately 7-14 days for a case to arrive by mail.  We will contact you upon receipt of the case, then allow you to view the case documents and place a copy order if desired, at the rate of $.50 per page.  When requested, a certified copy (court seal and signature of a deputy clerk) may be obtained for an additional fee of $11.00.