Case Number Format Guide¶
Overview¶
Federal court case numbers follow a specific format. This guide explains how to properly format case numbers for the Eastern District of Washington.
Format: [office]-[year]-[type]-[number]-[judge]
Example: 1-25-cv-12345-RSM
Case Number Components¶
Complete Format Breakdown¶
1 - 25 - cv - 12345 - RSM
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └─ Judge Initials (3 letters)
│ │ │ └────────── Case Number (1-5 digits)
│ │ └────────────────── Case Type (2-3 letters)
│ └───────────────────────── Year (2 digits)
└─────────────────────────────── Office Code (1 digit)
1. Office Code¶
First Digit: Court location
| Code | Location |
|---|---|
| 1 | Spokane Office |
| 2 | Yakima Office |
| 4 | Richland Office |
Examples:
- 1-25-cv-12345-SAB ← Spokane Office
- 2-25-cv-67890-TOR ← Yakima Office
- 4-25-cv-67890-MKD ← Richland Office
2. Year¶
Format: Last 2 digits of year
| Year | Code |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 24 |
| 2025 | 25 |
| 2026 | 26 |
Examples:
- 1-24-cv-12345-SAB ← Filed in 2024
- 1-25-cv-12345-SAB ← Filed in 2025
- 1-26-cv-12345-SAB ← Filed in 2026
3. Case Type¶
Format: 2-3 letter code
| Code | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| cv | Civil | Civil cases |
| cr | Criminal | Criminal cases |
| mc | Miscellaneous | Miscellaneous proceedings |
| po | Petty Offense | Petty offense cases |
| mj | Magistrate Judge | Magistrate judge matters |
Examples:
- 1-25-cv-12345-SAB ← Civil case
- 1-25-cr-00567-TOR ← Criminal case
- 1-25-mc-00123-MKD ← Miscellaneous
4. Case Number¶
Format: 1 to 5 digits (no leading zeros required, but system accepts them)
Valid Examples:
- 1-25-cv-1-SAB ← Case #1
- 1-25-cv-123-SAB ← Case #123
- 1-25-cv-12345-SAB ← Case #12345
- 1-25-cv-00123-SAB ← Case #123 with leading zeros (accepted)
Invalid:
- 1-25-cv-0-SAB ← Cannot be 0
- 1-25-cv-123456-SAB ← Too many digits (>5)
5. Judge Initials¶
Format: 3 uppercase letters
Eastern District of Washington Judges¶
District Judges:
| Initials | Judge Name |
|---|---|
| SAB | Chief Judge Stanley A. Bastian |
| TOR | Judge Thomas O. Rice |
| MKD | Judge Mary K. Dimke |
| RLP | Judge Rebecca L. Pennell |
Senior Judges:
| Initials | Judge Name |
|---|---|
| RHW | Senior Judge Robert H. Whaley |
| EFS | Senior Judge Edward F. Shea |
| LRS | Senior Judge Lonny R. Suko |
Magistrate Judges:
| Initials | Judge Name |
|---|---|
| JAG | Magistrate Judge James A Goeke |
| ACE | Magistrate Judge Alexander C. Ekstrom |
Defendant Numbers (Criminal Cases)¶
When Required¶
Required for:
- Criminal cases (cr)
- Petty offense cases (po)
- Magistrate judge criminal matters (mj)
NOT required for:
- Civil cases (cv)
- Miscellaneous cases (mc)
Format with Defendant Number¶
1-25-cr-12345-RSM:1
│
└─ Defendant number
Examples:
- 1-25-cr-12345-SAB:1 ← Defendant #1
- 1-25-cr-12345-SAB:2 ← Defendant #2
- 2-25-cr-00567-TOR:3 ← Defendant #3
For multi-defendant cases: Each defendant has their own number appended with colon
Complete Examples¶
Civil Cases¶
1-25-cv-12345-SAB
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └─ Judge: Chief Judge Stanley A. Bastian
│ │ │ └────── Case #12345
│ │ └───────── Type: Civil
│ └──────────── Year: 2025
└─────────────── Office: Spokane
More examples:
- 1-24-cv-98765-TOR ← Spokane, 2024, Civil, Judge Rice
- 2-25-cv-00456-MKD ← Yakima, 2025, Civil, Judge Dimke
- 4-23-cv-1-RLP ← Richland, 2023, Civil case #1, Judge Pennell
Criminal Cases¶
1-25-cr-00567-TOR
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └─ Judge: Judge Thomas O. Rice
│ │ │ └────── Case #567
│ │ └───────── Type: Criminal
│ │─────────── Year: 2025
└─────────────── Office: Spokane
With defendant number:
1-25-cr-00567-TOR:1
│
└─ Defendant #1
Miscellaneous Cases¶
1-25-mc-00123-SAB
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └─ Judge: Chief Judge Stanley A. Bastian
│ │ │ └────── Case #123
│ │ └───────── Type: Miscellaneous
│ └──────────── Year: 2025
└─────────────── Office: Spokane
Validation Rules¶
The system validates case numbers according to these rules:
Format Pattern¶
^[124]-[0-9]{2}-(cv|cr|mc|po|mj)-[1-9][0-9]{0,4}-[A-Z]{2,4}(:[1-9][0-9]*)?$
Breaking it down:
1. Office: Must be 1, 2, or 4
2. Year: Must be 2 digits (00-99)
3. Type: Must be cv, cr, mc, po, or mj
4. Number: 1-5 digits, cannot start with 0
5. Judge: 3 uppercase letters
6. Defendant: Optional, colon followed by positive integer
What System Checks¶
✅ Valid format structure ✅ Office code is 1, 2, or 4 ✅ Year is 2 digits ✅ Case type is recognized ✅ Case number is 1-5 digits ✅ Judge initials are 3 letters ✅ Defendant number format (if present)
❌ Does NOT validate: - Whether case actually exists in CM/ECF - Whether judge is currently active - Whether year is realistic
Tip: Always verify case number in CM/ECF before uploading
Common Mistakes¶
Mistake #1: Wrong Separator¶
❌ Wrong: 1/25/cv/12345/SAB
❌ Wrong: 1.25.cv.12345.SAB
✅ Correct: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
Use hyphens, not slashes or dots
Mistake #2: Missing Components¶
❌ Wrong: 1-25-12345-SAB (missing case type)
❌ Wrong: 1-cv-12345-SAB (missing year)
✅ Correct: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
All 5 components required
Mistake #3: Lowercase Letters¶
❌ Wrong: 1-25-cv-12345-sab
❌ Wrong: 1-25-CV-12345-SAB (type must be lowercase)
✅ Correct: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
Case type lowercase, judge initials uppercase
Mistake #4: Leading Zeros in Case Number¶
⚠️ Accepted: 1-25-cv-00123-SAB
✅ Preferred: 1-25-cv-123-SAB
System accepts both, but leading zeros optional
Mistake #5: Four-Digit Year¶
❌ Wrong: 1-2025-cv-12345-SAB
✅ Correct: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
Use 2-digit year, not 4-digit
Mistake #6: Defendant Number on Civil Case¶
❌ Wrong: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB:1
✅ Correct: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
Civil cases don't use defendant numbers
Finding Your Case Number¶
From CM/ECF¶
- Log in to CM/ECF
- Navigate to your case
- Case number displayed at top
- Copy exactly as shown
From Court Documents¶
Case number appears on: - Complaint - Summons - Court orders - Docket reports
From Clerk's Office¶
If you don't have the case number: - Call Clerk's Office: (509) 458-3410 - Provide case name and filing date - They can look it up
Testing Your Case Number¶
System Validation¶
When you enter a case number, the system validates immediately:
Indicators: - ✅ Green checkmark - Format valid - ❌ Red X - Format invalid - ⚠️ Warning - Format questionable
Validation Messages:
✓ Valid case number format
✗ Invalid format - check structure
⚠ Check year - seems unusual
Manual Verification¶
Before uploading, verify: 1. Office code matches courthouse location 2. Year matches when case was filed 3. Case type matches (civil, criminal, etc.) 4. Case number matches CM/ECF 5. Judge initials are correct 6. Defendant number included only if criminal
Special Cases¶
Sealed Cases¶
Format is the same - No special notation in case number
- Example: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB
Sealing is handled by: - Document title/description - Filing codes in CM/ECF - Not part of case number
Multi-District Litigation (MDL)¶
MDL cases may have transfer notation: - Original case number used - Transferee court adds notation - Check with Clerk's Office for proper format
Appeals¶
Appeal case numbers different:
- 9th Circuit format: YY-#####
- Not used in this system
- Use original district court case number
Quick Reference Card¶
╔═══════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ CASE NUMBER FORMAT QUICK REFERENCE ║
╠═══════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║ Format: [office]-[year]-[type]-[#]-[judge] ║
║ Example: 1-25-cv-12345-SAB ║
╠═══════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║ Office: 1 = Spokane, 2 = Yakima, 4 = Richland║
║ Year: 24 = 2024 │ 25 = 2025 ║
║ Type: cv, cr, mc, po, mj ║
║ Number: 1 to 5 digits ║
║ Judge: 3 letters (uppercase) ║
╠═══════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║ Criminal: Add :1, :2, etc. for defendant ║
║ Example: 1-25-cr-567-TOR:1 ║
╚═══════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Need Help?¶
Clerk's Office - Eastern District of Washington Phone: (509) 458-3410 Email: ecfinfo@waed.uscourts.gov Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Pacific Time