(a) STATIONERY; TITLE; RELIEF PRAYED. Pleadings and like papers must be on opaque white paper, approximately 11 inches long and 8 1/2 inches wide, without back or cover, fastened at the top and stating under the caption the nature of the pleading and the relief, if any, prayed.
Rule 10-I.Pleadings: Stationery and Locational Information
Group III: Pleadings and Motions · Last amended 2022 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 10-I sets the paper format for DC Superior Court filings and requires every pleading to carry the filer's name, address, and contact information (or the attorney's, if represented), with protections for parties who need to keep their address confidential.
Full Text of Rule 10-I
(b) LOCATIONAL INFORMATION: PLEADINGS AND OTHER PAPERS.
(1) In General. The first pleading filed by or on behalf of a party must set forth in the caption the party's name, full residence address, and unless the party is represented by counsel, the party's telephone number and email address if any. All subsequent pleadings and other papers filed by or on behalf of a party must set forth the party’s name, full residence address, and telephone number and email address if any, unless that party is represented by counsel. If a party is represented by counsel, all pleadings or other papers must set forth the name, office address, telephone number, email address, and Bar number of the attorney. The names, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers so shown will be conclusively deemed to be correct and current. It is the obligation of the attorney or unrepresented party whose address, email address, or telephone number has been changed to give immediate notice to the appropriate branch or office within the Civil Division and all other attorneys and unrepresented parties named in the case of this change. Attorneys must include their Bar number in all such notices. Should a party incur expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, due to the failure of any other party, or that party’s attorney, to give prompt notice of a change of address, email address, or telephone number, the court, upon motion or upon its own initiative, may order the party failing to give notice to reimburse the other party for expenses incurred.
(2) Substitute Address. A party is not required to state the party’s residence address if:
(A) the party is a participant in the District of Columbia’s Address Confidentiality Program (D.C. Code §§ 4-555.01 to -.12 (2019 Repl. & 2020 Supp.)) or has a reasonable basis to fear harassment or harm to the party or the party's family if the party's residence address is disclosed; and
(B) the party substitutes the address of the party's attorney or other agent authorized to accept service copies for the party.
(3) Confidential Address. If no substitute address is available, a party may file a motion asking the court to treat the party’s address as confidential and to designate the clerk as an agent authorized to accept service copies for the party. If the court grants the motion, the clerk must accept service copies for the party and must immediately send the service copies, by first-class mail, to the party’s confidential address.
(c) NONCONFORMANCE WITH ABOVE. A pleading or other paper not conforming to the requirements of this rule will not be accepted for filing.
Comments
2022 Amendments:
New subsection (b)(3) addresses technical and functional changes necessary to implement the court’s new case management system.
August 2021 Amendments:
Section (b) was moved to subsection (b)(1). Subsection (b)(2) was added to permit a party to use a substitute address consistent with the District of Columbia’s Address Confidentiality Program (D.C. Code §§ 4-555.01 to -.12 (2019 Repl. & 2020 Supp.)).
April 2021 Amendments:
Section (b) was amended, consistent with Rule 11(a), to require self-represented parties to provide their email addresses.
2017 Amendments:
Stylistic changes were made to this rule to conform with the 2007 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 10-I covers the physical and practical details a filing must satisfy before the clerk will accept it. Pleadings must go on plain white paper roughly the size of standard letter paper, without a binder or cover, fastened at the top, and the caption must say what kind of pleading it is and what relief, if any, it asks for. These are basic mechanics, but Rule 10-I(c) means they are not optional: a pleading that ignores this format will not be accepted for filing at all.
The more consequential part of the rule is locational information. The first pleading a party files must give that party's name and full residence address, and — if the party has no lawyer — a phone number and email address as well. Every later filing must repeat that information unless the party is represented by counsel, in which case the attorney's name, office address, phone, email, and D.C. Bar number take its place. The court treats whatever address and contact information is on file as conclusively correct, so a party or attorney who moves or changes an email address must promptly notify the Civil Division and every other party in the case; the rule even lets the court order reimbursement of expenses another party incurs because that notice was not given.
Rule 10-I(b)(2) and (3) build in protection for parties who have reason to fear disclosure of their address — most notably participants in the District's Address Confidentiality Program, or anyone with a reasonable basis to fear harassment or harm. Such a party can substitute an attorney's or authorized agent's address for their own, and if no substitute address is available, can ask the court to treat the address as confidential and have the clerk act as the party's agent for accepting service, forwarding copies by first-class mail to the confidential address.
Frequently Asked Questions
What paper format does DC Superior Court require for pleadings?
Rule 10-I(a) requires opaque white paper about 11 inches long and 8½ inches wide, without a back or cover, fastened at the top, with the caption stating the nature of the pleading and the relief requested, if any.
Do self-represented parties have to list a phone number and email address?
Yes. Rule 10-I(b)(1) requires a self-represented party's first pleading, and every pleading after it, to include the party's name, full residence address, telephone number, and email address if the party has one.
What if I'm afraid to put my home address in the court file?
Rule 10-I(b)(2) lets a party in the District's Address Confidentiality Program, or anyone with a reasonable basis to fear harassment or harm, substitute an attorney's or authorized agent's address instead. If no substitute address is available, Rule 10-I(b)(3) allows a motion asking the court to keep the address confidential and have the clerk accept service copies on the party's behalf.
What happens if I move or change my email address during the case?
Rule 10-I(b)(1) makes it your obligation to immediately notify the Civil Division and every other party or attorney in the case. If someone else incurs expenses, including attorney's fees, because you failed to give that notice, the court may order you to reimburse them.
Will the clerk reject my filing if it doesn't meet these requirements?
Yes. Rule 10-I(c) states that a pleading or other paper that does not conform to the rule's requirements will not be accepted for filing.
Source & verification. Rule text and official Comments are
reproduced verbatim from the District of Columbia Superior Court Rules of Civil
Procedure, adopted by the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: dc address confidentiality program pleadingdc self represented contact info requirementdc pleading paper format ruleconfidential address lawsuit dcdc filing rejected wrong format