Certificate of Compliance in PA: Filing Steps and Confidentiality

Pennsylvania’s Certificate of Compliance is a signed statement that must accompany every document filed in a Pennsylvania court, confirming the filing follows the Case Records Public Access Policy rules for handling confidential information and documents. Attorneys and self-represented parties sign it to attest that sensitive data such as Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and protected records have been kept off the public-facing document and placed on the correct confidential forms instead. The requirement runs across the entire Unified Judicial System, from magisterial district courts up through the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.¹

What You Are Certifying

The certification language is fixed. It reads: “I certify that this filing complies with the provisions of the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania that require filing confidential information and documents differently than non-confidential information and documents.”²

That single sentence covers two distinct things. Confidential information means specific data points, like an account number, that must be stripped out of the filed document and placed on a separate form if the court needs them. Confidential documents are entire records, like tax returns or medical files, that are filed under a cover sheet rather than on the open docket. Your signature says you handled both correctly.

When the Certificate Is Required

Rule 1.99 requires the certification on every legal paper filed by an attorney or unrepresented party, in any court within the Unified Judicial System: magisterial district courts, Courts of Common Pleas, and the Superior, Commonwealth, and Supreme Courts.¹

It’s required whether or not your filing actually contains any confidential material. A one-page motion with no sensitive data still needs the certificate. The policy commentary is explicit: the certification accompanies every document filed with a court or custodian.³ The narrow exception is where public access is already restricted by another authority, such as a sealing order or a statute that independently makes the filing confidential.

Confidential Information You Have to Keep Off the Public Filing

Section 7.0 of the Public Access Policy lists six categories of information that cannot appear in a publicly filed document. When the case requires that information, it goes on a Confidential Information Form filed alongside the certificate, not into the body of your brief, motion, or petition.³

Social Security numbers, in full or in part.
Financial account numbers. The last four digits may be used when the account itself is the subject of the case and there’s no other way to identify it.
Driver license numbers.
State identification (SID) numbers.
Minors’ names and dates of birth, unless the minor is charged as a defendant in a criminal matter.
An abuse victim’s address, employer name, work schedule, and other contact information in family court actions. The victim’s name itself is not protected under this provision.

The mechanic to remember: you don’t blank the information out and hope for the best. You reference its existence in the filing, then deliver the actual data on the Confidential Information Form, which is kept off the public record.⁴

Confidential Documents That Need a Cover Sheet

Section 8.0 handles whole documents that are inherently confidential. These don’t go on the public docket at all. They’re filed under a Confidential Document Form, which acts as a cover sheet: the cover sheet is publicly accessible; the attached documents are not. The form and any additional pages must also be served on all unrepresented parties and counsel of record.⁵

The categories are:

Financial source documents: tax returns, W-2s, 1099s, wage stubs, credit card statements, bank statements, check registers, checks, and loan applications.
Minors’ educational records.
Medical and psychological records relating to past, present, or future physical or mental health.
Children and Youth Services records.
Marital property inventory and pre-trial statements filed under Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.33.
Income and expense statements filed under Pa.R.C.P. No. 1910.27(c).
Agreements between parties under 23 Pa.C.S. § 3105.

Family law filings hit these categories constantly. A divorce or support modification typically comes with financial exhibits that all fall inside Section 8.0, and forgetting the cover sheet on a tax return or pay stub is one of the more common compliance failures.³

Completing the Certificate

There are two ways to satisfy the requirement. You can use the standalone Certificate of Compliance form from the Pennsylvania courts website, or you can insert the certification language directly into the document you’re filing.³ Many attorneys embed it at the end of their briefs and motions to avoid maintaining a separate form.

If you use the standalone form, complete:

The case caption, with party names exactly as they appear on the docket.
The docket number.
The court and county where the case is pending.
Your signature, printed name, address, phone number, and email.

The form is available on the Unified Judicial System’s public records forms page, along with the Confidential Information Form and Confidential Document Form.⁶ If you’re submitting several documents at once, either list each one on a single certificate or attach a separate certificate to each document.

Filing the Certificate

For appellate matters and many Courts of Common Pleas, filing runs through PACFile, Pennsylvania’s electronic filing system. PACFile currently handles filings for the Supreme, Superior, and Commonwealth Courts, and for participating Common Pleas courts.⁷ The Certificate of Compliance uploads as part of the filing package and moves with the rest of the submission after payment.

Where a court hasn’t adopted electronic filing, the certificate goes to the Prothonotary or Clerk of Courts, in person or by mail, along with the rest of the filing.⁸

One detail worth flagging for electronic filers: under Rule 205.4, filing electronically itself certifies that a properly signed hard copy exists. You have to keep that signed hard copy for at least two years after the case concludes or the issue raised by the filing is resolved, whichever is later. An opposing party can demand to inspect it within fourteen days of serving notice, and the court can sanction a party who can’t produce it.⁹

Consequences of Noncompliance

The court’s remedies depend on which rule you violated and which court is handling the case.

If confidential information ends up in a filing that should have used a Confidential Information Form, a court of record (a Court of Common Pleas or an appellate court) can order the document sealed, redacted, amended, or any combination of those, and can impose sanctions including the costs of preparing a compliant replacement. A magisterial district court facing the same situation can order redaction or amendment but does not have the same explicit sanctions authority.³

If a confidential document is filed without the required Confidential Document Form cover sheet, a court of record can order the document sealed and impose appropriate sanctions. A magisterial district court can order sealing but again lacks the broader sanctions power.³

The court can act on its own or on a motion from the opposing party. Until the problem is caught, the filing sits on the public docket with the exposed information visible to anyone with access to the record.

1
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa. Code Rule 1.99 – Confidential Information and Confidential Documents. Certification
2
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Certificate of Compliance
3
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania
4
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Confidential Information Form
5
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Confidential Document Form
6
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Public Records Forms
7
The Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. PACFile
8
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
9
Pennsylvania Code. 231 Pa. Code Rule 205.4 – Electronic Filing and Service of Legal Papers