What are MerusCase Court Forms?
We offer versions of government court forms for easy access right here, in your case management software. The court forms have the ability to pull information directly from the case, onto the forms. This will cut down on the amount of time you need to spend filling them out.
We offer court forms spanning Workers' Compensation, Social Security, Civil, Family Law, Immigration, and more. The forms are regularly updated. However, if you find a court form that is not the most up-to-date version in MerusCase, or if you would like us to add a specific court form that we do not have, please email us at support@meruscase.com and let us know.
How do I find the Court Forms?
1. In MerusCase, click cases at the top of the navigation bar. Click browse cases, and search for a case.
2. On the left-side panel inside the case, choose forms and templates > All.
3. Here, you can click forms at the top and choose a category if you only want to see forms under that category. Or, you can begin searching for the name of the form, inside the search bar.
4. Once you’ve located the form you’d like to create, click on it. You will see a preview of the form, as well as the Prepare/Fill Form button above it. Click on the button to create and begin filling the form. You can also click the green arrow button (download button) shown in the screenshot below, to download a copy of the blank form.
Alternatively, you can click on the Control Column (seen as three little dots) to the left of a form’s name on its line item. Then click Create Court Form in the drop-down menu.
Auto-fill Options
To utilize information stored in the case and pull that information onto a form, use the Auto-fill Options box located near the top of the form. Certain case types may have additional options here, but either way, you can leave the Auto-fill selection as ‘None (Only auto-fill case and contact information)’ to automatically fill in information from contact cards and case details.
If you see a checkbox titled Override court restrictions, only check it if you are paper filing (i.e. not submitting online) and do not wish to be constrained by court-mandated character limits for fields on the form.
Below, you may also see areas for parties in the case. To automatically populate the form with each party’s information, click on the drop-down menu by each party and select the correct contact, then finish by clicking the Auto-fill button at the bottom Scroll down through the fields to enter any missing information on the form.
Please note, if important information is not correctly filled out in the contact card for the party selected, or filled out inside the case, then this information cannot pull onto the form when you click Auto-fill. The system pulls this information directly from the party contact, or the case itself.
For example, if the date of birth of a specific contact is not filled out in the contacts section for that individual, then the system cannot find that information. On the form, when you click Auto-fill, the date of birth field would stay blank and you would need to manually fill in that information on the form. Please make sure all important information is filled out inside contacts and cases, before you create a form.
Helpful Tip
If you are on a Windows machine and wish to see a PDF of the form side-by-side with the interface for filling it out, you can open the form as a PDF (whether in Adobe, a new Chrome window, or whatever you prefer) then hit Windows key + left/right arrow to quickly make the window take up exactly half the screen. You can then do the same (with the opposite arrow) to make the form interface take up the other half of the screen, allowing you to see both at once with minimal effort and without even having to use a second monitor.Saving a Form
Be sure to use the Save button often to ensure you don’t lose your work. By clicking Save, the created form will be available in Case Activities.
Saved forms have the activity tag of Form Created in Case Activities. This allows users to return to the form and continue making changes simply by clicking directly on the Activity Item.
Viewing/Printing a Form
Click View/Print at the top right to generate the PDF version of your form. This will download the PDF, and you’ll be able to open it using any PDF viewer. Users of the Chrome browser might find that using Chrome’s built-in PDF viewer is a fast and easy way to view the document as it opens the PDF in a new tab automatically.
Once you’ve generated the PDF, you may find that you still have edits you need to make. Simply go back to MerusCase to continue updating your document. If you make any changes, remember to click Save before clicking View/Print again! The View/Print button is shown below in yellow, in the top right corner.
Finalizing a Form
Clicking the Finalize button will lock your court form and convert it permanently to a PDF. Once a court form has been finalized, it cannot be edited again. The purpose of this feature is to allow you to lock editing once a form has been filed or sent out, as you would not want to make changes to it and lose track of what version you sent out. The finalized form will appear as a PDF in the activities list, which allows you to easily preview the form. The finalize button is shown below in yellow, in the top right corner of the form.
When viewing a form that has been finalized, you also have the ability to Clone the existing form to create a duplicate copy which will not be finalized (i.e. it will be editable). In a pinch, this can allow you to continue editing a form which you mistakenly finalized by cloning it, and then editing the cloned version. Look for the clone button (displayed as two sheets partially overlapping) next to the Download and Forward as an Email Attachment buttons on the top right.
Editing a Saved Form from Case Activities
You might need to close your court form and come back to it later without finalizing the form.
To edit a previously saved form, go to the Case > Activity tab. Search for the form.
Clicking on the activity item will open the editing screen for your form so that you can make any additional changes. Editable court forms will automatically have the activity tag of Form Created.
Note
Clicking on Tags (shown in the screenshot below, in yellow) will display the option to add additional tags to this form.
Downloading a Finalized Form from Case Activities
To download a finalized form from the Activity tab of a case, click on the item associated with the form you wish to open. Click the Download button (displayed as an arrow pointing down at a document) at the top of the Preview Panel to download and open your court form.
Inquiries about Court Form Status
Feel free to let us know if you need a court form to be updated or would like to know the status of said court form! You can direct your questions to support@meruscase and a representative will contact you regarding the court form.