Technical Support

Technical Support For Fillable Smart Forms

Some court forms are “Fillable Smart Forms.” Fillable Smart Forms let you type your answers directly into the form. The form saves your answers so that your answers show up in other questions on the form that asks for the same information. 

You can view and print Fillable Smart Forms from a smartphone but you cannot fill them out on your smartphone. If you don’t have a computer, you can use a public computer for free at a courthouse or legal kiosk near you.  

Do I need a special computer program to use Fillable Smart Forms? 

Fillable Smart Forms only work with Adobe Reader or Adobe Acrobat. If you use any other program, the forms will not open correctly. 

Adobe Reader is free. To get the most recent version of Adobe Reader go to https://get.adobe.com/reader/. 

There are two ways to use the forms. You can: 

  1. Save them to your computer OR  

  1. Change your browser settings so they open with Adobe Reader. 
     

How do I save the Fillable Smart Forms to my computer? 

  1. Right click on the Fillable Smart Form link 

  2. Depending on what browser you have, click: 

    • Internet Explore: "Save target as..." 
    • Safari (Mac): "Download linked file as...." 
    • Chrome: "Save link as..." 
    • Firefox: "Save Page As..." 

  3. Choose a location to save the form on your computer. Use the form name or court form number (bottom left corner) so it is easier to find. 

  4. Click "Save" to save the form to your computer. 
     

If you have a PC, after you save the form: 

  • right click on the file  
  • select "Open with Adobe Reader (or Acrobat)” 
     

If you have a Mac, after you save the form: 

  • Hold the Ctrl button while you click on the PDF file  
  • Select "Open With" and then "Other" 
  • Find Adobe Reader in the application list and check the "Always Open With" checkbox 
  • Click "Open" 

You only need to follow the steps to Save the forms to your computer once. All future PDFs open in Adobe Reader by default. 
 

How do I change my browser settings to open Fillable Smart Forms? 

The steps for changing your browser settings depend on which browser you use. After you change your browser settings, any time you open a PDF in that browser, it downloads to your computer. 

Internet Explorer (8 and higher) 

  • Open Internet Explorer and click "Tools" at the top of the screen 
  • Click "Manage Add-ons" 
  • Under add-on types, click "Toolbars and Extensions" 
  • Show "All add-on" in the drop-down menu 
  • Choose "Adobe PDF Reader" 
  • Click "Disable" 
     

Microsoft Edge 

  • Click on the three dots on top right sidebar 
  • Click "Settings" 
  • Choose "Cookies and site permissions"  
  • Scroll down to "PDF documents" and click to open 
  • Move the button to the right to "Always open PDF files externally" 
     

Chrome (Version 60 and newer) 

  • At the top right in Chrome, click "Customize and control Google Chrome" or click on the three dots on top right sidebar 
  • Click "Settings" 
  • At the bottom of the page, click "Advanced" 
  • Under Privacy and security, click "Content settings" or "Site settings" 
  • Near the bottom, click "PDF documents" 
  • Turn on "Download PDF files instead of automatically opening them in Chrome" (Version 57-59) 
  • Go to Settings (Show advanced settings) > Privacy > Content settings > PDF documents 
  • Check the box that says "Open PDF files in the default PDF viewer application." 
     

Firefox 

  • Choose Tools > Options 
  • ​​​​​​​In the Options dialog, click “Applications” 
  • In the Applications tab, type “PDF” in the search field 
  • Select “Use Adobe Acrobat” (in Firefox) from the Action drop-down list 
  • Click “OK” 
  • Restart Firefox 
    ​​​​​​​

Safari (Mac) 

For Safari you need to save the forms to your computer. Follow the instructions in the “How do I save the Fillable Smart Forms to my computer?” section above. 
 

How do I file my forms? 

You can either file your forms in person or electronically. 

To file in person: 

Print your forms. Print a copy for yourself, a copy for the court, and a copy for each party in the case. Take the forms to your courthouse. You can call or email the court administrator to find out where to go in the courthouse to file your forms. Find your courthouse address and contact information. 

To file electronically: 

To eFile your form, you first need to save the form in a way that keeps it from being edited:  

  • Click the "Prepare for eFile" button on the top of the form after you type all your answers.  
  • ​​​​​​​Fill in your Signature 
  • Save this version to your computer. It’s a good idea to name it something like ‘eFiling – DOCNAME’ so you remember which one is for eFiling.  
  • Go to the File a Case page and follow the instructions for filing in the “eFile and eServe” (eFS) system. 
    ​​​​​​​
For more information on Fillable Smart Forms, visit the court’s website.