Pro Se: Representing Yourself in Court — In Plain Words

What “pro se” means

FEDERAL — United States Courts glossary (uscourts.gov): “A Latin term meaning ‘on one’s own behalf.’ In courts, it refers to persons who present their own cases without lawyers.”

FEDERAL — U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, “Filing Without an Attorney” page: “If you do not have an attorney to represent you, you are proceeding ‘pro se’. If you represent yourself in Court, you are called a ‘pro se litigant’ or a ‘self-represented litigant’.” That page also says “pro se” is a Latin term meaning “on one’s own behalf,” and that a “litigant” or a “party” is someone who is either suing someone or is being sued in court.

FEDERAL — U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, “Representing Yourself Assistance” page: That page gives the Latin wording a little differently. It says “pro se” is “a Latin word meaning ‘for oneself’,” and describes pro se litigants as individuals who are representing themselves in a court case without the assistance of an attorney. This page prints both federal wordings, attributed to their pages, and does not merge them into one wording.

FEDERAL — U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, “What is a Pro Se Litigant?” page: That page explains two related words this way: “If you file a lawsuit and represent yourself, you are the ‘plaintiff.’ If someone sues you, you are the ‘defendant.’ In either case you can appear pro se.”

The federal right to appear pro se, and its limits — FEDERAL

FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page and Northern District of Mississippi “Filing Without an Attorney” page, stated in matching terms: The right to appear pro se in a civil case in federal court is contained in a statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1654. The Northern District of Mississippi page states it this way: “The right to appear pro se in a civil case in federal court is provided by, 28 U.S.C. § 1654.”

Those federal pages also list limits to self-representation. As the Middle District of Pennsylvania page lists them:

• Corporations and partnerships must be represented by an attorney.
• A pro se litigant may not represent a class in a class action.
• A non-attorney parent may not appear pro se on behalf of a child, except to appeal the denial of the child’s social security benefits.

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page lists the same three exceptions, in its own words: corporations and partnerships must be represented by an attorney; a pro se litigant cannot represent a class in a class action; and a non-attorney parent cannot appear pro se on behalf of a child, except to appeal the denial of the child’s social security benefits.

FEDERAL — District of Kansas page states a related limit in general words: “as a pro se litigant, you can only represent yourself and only present your claims and defenses. Under the law, you cannot speak for another person, a company, or other entity such as a club or association that includes other individuals.”

FEDERAL — Northern District of Mississippi page adds one more limit, stated on that page only: “Power of attorney does not permit you to represent another person in federal court.” This page does not present that sentence as a statement from the other federal pages, because they do not state it.

Civil cases and criminal cases are different — FEDERAL

FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page: “A civil case, which is the only type of case you can file in federal court, is different from a criminal case, which can only be brought by government officials.” The Northern District of Mississippi page states the same distinction, calling the second kind a criminal action, which can only be initiated by government officials.

FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page, on a lawyer being appointed: “In a civil case, you do not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel. Therefore, if you file a civil case pro se, you should be prepared to pursue it to completion on your own because the Court appoints counsel only under certain limited circumstances that may not be met by your case.”

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page, on the same point: In some criminal cases, defendants have the right to have a lawyer appointed to represent them at no cost. That page then says: “You do not have that right in a civil case.” It also says, if you decide to proceed pro se, “you will need to be prepared to carry out your case to completion.” No dollar amount is given in that sentence, and this page gives none.

You must follow the same rules as lawyers — FEDERAL

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page: “When you appear as a pro se litigant, you are still held to the same standard as lawyers. You should become familiar with the rules, procedures, and substantive law that affect your case.” Substantive law, as that page explains it, is what you need to prove in order to establish your claims, and the laws that govern your reasons for suing the other side.

FEDERAL — District of Kansas page: “When you appear pro se, you must follow the same rules and procedures as licensed attorneys who practice in this court. Generally, judges hold pro se litigants to the same standards of professional responsibility as lawyers.”

FEDERAL — Northern District of Mississippi page: “If you file a case Pro Se, you will have to follow the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and this Court’s Local Rules the same as any attorney who represents someone.” The reference to that court’s Local Rules is that district’s own point. This page does not present any one district’s local rules as the rules for other courts.

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page, on the two sets of rules it names: The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure govern civil lawsuits filed in United States federal courts, apply to every federal court in the country, and are the rules to refer to for deadlines, formatting, and procedural information. That page also names the Federal Rules of Evidence, and says they define what evidence a federal court sees as “admissible,” or evidence that is allowed to be introduced in court.

Deadlines — FEDERAL, general points only

This page states no deadline that applies to any reader’s own case. It reports only the general points the District of Nevada page makes about deadlines.

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page, “Tips for Pro Se Litigants”: “Know and meet your deadlines. Deadlines are very important in a court case. If you miss a deadline, you could lose your case. If you need more time to do something, ask the court in writing for more time as soon as possible and before the deadline passes.”

That same page also says to read everything you get from the court and the opposing party, to be organized, and to make sure the court has your correct mailing and e-mail addresses and phone number. Those are that page’s tips, printed here as that page’s tips, not as instructions for any one case.

Court staff cannot give legal advice — FEDERAL

FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page: “Be advised that Clerk’s Office employees are forbidden by law from giving you legal advice. They are, however, permitted to answer questions regarding procedure and how to access legal forms and reference materials.”

That page lists what the Clerk’s Office can provide, including information regarding court policies and procedures, information from your case docket, and court forms and court schedules. It lists what the Clerk’s Office cannot provide, including legal advice, guidance on whether or not you should file a case or other pleadings, instruction on what to write in court documents and what to say in court proceedings, interpretation of court orders, computation of deadlines in your case, direct communication with the assigned judge on your behalf, and direction on what to do next in your case.

FEDERAL — Northern District of Mississippi page states the same bar in its own list. It says legal advice could be described as, but is not limited to: offering interpretation of rules; recommending a course of action; predicting a judicial officer’s decision, calculating deadlines, or interpreting the meaning or effect of any court order or judgment. That page also says: “The Court and its employees, however, cannot give you legal help or advice.”

FEDERAL — District of Nevada page states its limit at the top: its page and its Pro Se Assistance Packet “will provide you information regarding federal procedure, but it is not a substitute for legal advice from an experienced attorney.”

Fees, without amounts — FEDERAL

The federal pages read in full for this page name a way to ask to proceed without prepayment of fees, and they do so without this page printing any fee amount. The Northern District of Mississippi “Filing Without an Attorney” page lists, among its non-prisoner forms, a “Motion to Proceed without Prepayment of Fees (In forma pauperis form).” The District of Nevada page lists applications to proceed in forma pauperis, for inmate and non-inmate filers. The Middle District of Pennsylvania page lists an “In Forma Pauperis (AO-240)” form among its pro se forms.

This page states only that those federal pages list such a form or application. It states no filing-fee amount, and it does not say who qualifies, because the pages read in full, in the parts used here, do not state a test this page can print as a general rule.

California example only — rules of evidence and no special treatment

California example only — preparing for a divorce trial

California example only — getting a lawyer for part of a case

A note about USA.gov

USA.gov does not appear to run a covering page on representing yourself in court, or on pro se. Searches for a USA.gov page on representing yourself in court or on pro se, made for this page, did not return a USA.gov page covering that topic. The closest USA.gov page read in full for this page is “Find a lawyer for affordable legal aid,” which is about programs that give free legal advice and may help you find a free or low-cost attorney. That page does not explain representing yourself, and this page does not cite it as covering pro se. Because of that gap, this page rests on the named court sources listed below.

What this page does not cover

This page does not give any template, and it does not reproduce any court form. The federal pages read for this page list form names, and this page names only the in forma pauperis form names those pages list, in the fees section above. It does not print form contents.

This page does not give step-by-step filing instructions presented as legally sufficient for any case. It describes, in the anchors’ own substance, what the anchors say pro se litigants must do, with each point attributed to its source and jurisdiction.

This page gives no dollar figures. It gives no filing-fee amount, and it gives no amount-in-controversy figure. Where a federal anchor states that a form exists to ask to proceed without prepayment of fees, this page states that, without amounts, attributed to that anchor.

This page states no deadline that applies to a reader’s case. It reports only the District of Nevada page’s general points about knowing and meeting deadlines, attributed to that page. A California divorce-trial timing stated on the California page used here is held out, because it is stated for that California divorce context and is not a general deadline.

This page does not cover criminal cases, bankruptcy cases, or any one state’s courts other than the California examples labeled as California example only. It does not say what any person should do in their own case.

Words to know

Pro se: FEDERAL — United States Courts glossary: “A Latin term meaning ‘on one’s own behalf.’ In courts, it refers to persons who present their own cases without lawyers.” FEDERAL — District of Nevada page gives the Latin wording as “for oneself.” Both wordings are printed, attributed, and not merged.

Litigant / party: FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page: a litigant or a party is someone who is either suing someone or is being sued in court.

Pro se litigant / self-represented litigant: FEDERAL — Middle District of Pennsylvania page: if you represent yourself in court, you are called a pro se litigant or a self-represented litigant.

Plaintiff: FEDERAL — District of Kansas page: if you file a lawsuit and represent yourself, you are the plaintiff.

Defendant: FEDERAL — District of Kansas page: if someone sues you, you are the defendant.

Admissible: FEDERAL — District of Nevada page: evidence that is allowed to be introduced in court, in that page’s explanation of the Federal Rules of Evidence.

Substantive law: FEDERAL — District of Nevada page: what you need to prove in order to establish your claims, and the laws that govern your reasons for suing the other side.

Evidence: California example only — California Courts Self Help, “Prepare for your divorce trial”: the information you will present in court to prove your case; evidence can be documents or things (exhibits), or people (witnesses). That definition is from that California divorce page only.

In forma pauperis: This Latin phrase appears in the names of the federal forms and applications listed in the fees section above — a motion or application to proceed without prepayment of fees, as those federal pages name them. No fuller definition is printed here, because the federal pages used for that section name the forms without defining the phrase in the parts used.

This page is general information only. It is not legal advice, and it was not written by a lawyer.