Finding / Printing Forms

  • All available forms are accessible at the following index page. Current versions include a Docket Summary, a Master Calendar Hearing (MCH), and a Bond Hearing form. These will be expanded to include additional forms for other types of hearings, as well as shortened versions of the MCH and Bond hearing forms.
  • All forms are designed to be printed in duplex format (front and back) to save paper
    • It is also possible to print / scan one side per page if your printer/scanner does not support duplex operation
  • Forms must be printed on plain white paper with black ink
  • Paper should be thick enough to prevent significant bleedthrough with pen / ink used
    • Cardstock works great, but is certainly more expensive
    • Using pencil instead of pen is recommended if paper is particularly thin
  • Resolution should be as high as possible. The minimum viable resolution is 300 dpi (or dots per inch).
    • See the specifications for your printer to ensure that it supports this resolution
    • See this page for details about resolution

Completing the Forms

  • Docket Summary
    • We use the term “Docket” to refer to a session of immigration court hearings. A single docket might include many Master Calendar Hearings and/or Bond Hearings. A single docket might otherwise include a single Individual (Merits) Hearing.
    • The Docket Summary form allows an observer to summarize immigration judge decisions and conduct across an entire docket.
    • Master Calendar Hearing forms, Bond Hearing forms, and Merits hearing forms should all be paired with the related docket summary. Use the “Docket ID” field on the forms to denote which observations are related to a given docket.
  • Docket ID is an identifier for the volunteer's reference. It only needs to be unique enough for the volunteer to match a hearing to a particular docket. There are no strict parameters for Docket ID formats, but we do have a few suggestions:
    • You should format your Docket IDs such that they can be included in the name of the scanned files related to that docket - that is, when you scan a filled out form and save it as a pdf file, you should be able to include the Docket ID in the name of the file.
    • A common format for Docket IDs includes the name of the court, the date of the docket, and the observer’s initials. For example: ATL121719AP
  • Master Calendar and Bond Hearing forms
    • There will be multiple Master Calendar and/or Bond Hearings on any given docket.
    • Similarly, you will complete multiple Master Calendar Hearing and Bond Hearing forms for each Docket Summary form you complete.
    • You should be sure that the Docket ID on your Master Calendar Hearing and Bond Hearing forms matches the Docket ID you’ve created on your Docket Summary form.
  • Forms should be completed with black pen or pencil
  • Ink should not bleed through such that content on back is readily visible from the front
  • Checkboxes can be checked or marked with an X. They can technically be filled in (but this would be tedious and unnecessary :)
  • Free-form text boxes will be transcribed by the volunteer or team lead. As long as the meaning is clear to the person transcribing, shorthand is acceptable
  • When the volunteer completing the form is not the same person as the team lead, the volunteer ID should always be provided so correct routing can happen on the website.
  • Volunteer ID can be found in the menu popout when logged into the site (next to name and email)
  • We are working on additional resources to help orient users to the forms, including a screencast and a FAQ page.

Scanning the Forms

  • It is a best practice to include in the filename of a scan the form type, docket ID, and volunteer ID
    • eg: Bond_ATL121719AP_12.pdf
    • This practice makes it easier to identify where to upload a given file by associating that file with the proper user and docket
  • Scanning should be done only in black & white (or grayscale) mode
  • If printed in duplex mode, forms must be scanned in duplex mode
  • Scans should be 300dpi (see link in print resolution section for explanation of importance)
  • Pages should be scanned in the order in which they were printed
  • Forms can be scanned as a single pdf (batched) for upload, but…
    • There can be no more than 10 forms per pdf file (batch)
    • Batches should be grouped by type, docket, and volunteer
    • Batches must be grouped by type: all Docket Summaries together, all MCHs together, etc
    • Batches must be grouped by docket ID: first docket in one batch, second in another, etc.
    • Batches must be grouped by volunteer