Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

PDF definition

What does PDF mean? PDF (Portable Document Format) is the fixed-layout file type widely used by legal professionals to create, share and lodge electronic documents, including contracts, pleadings, witness statements, authorities and court bundles. It is not defined in legislation or case law; it is a descriptive technical term used across legal practice. A PDF preserves pagination and formatting and can contain searchable text. PDFs generated from word-processed files are usually searchable; scanned documents require optical character recognition (OCR) to enable text search and copy. Courts and tribunals in England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland generally accept PDFs for e-filing and electronic bundles,...

Electronic hearing bundles in civil proceedings: preparation, filing and courtroom use under CPR and CE-File, with judicial and court guide requirements (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Dispute Resolution expert

Practice notes

Effective preparation of bundles

Meticulous bundle preparation underpins a calm, efficient hearing and is something practitioners should keep firmly in view as part of their overall work for any hearing. This Practice Note offers a guide to creating and deploying electronic bundles (or e-bundles) in civil proceedings in England and Wales. It sets out practical pointers on the interface between digital case management and e-bundles, the varieties of electronic bundle, judicial expectations when assembling electronic bundles, guidance in the Civil Procedure Rules (cpr) on preparing bundles, effective methods for preparing and using electronic bundles, and the benefits and drawbacks of using electronic bundles. It also surveys widely applicable tools to consider when collating evidence and other documentation electronically. For general guidance on preparing a bundle for:

trial—see Practice Note: Preparing trial bundles
an interim application—see Practice Note: Preparing for an application hearing—Application bundles
an appeal—see Practice Notes: Appeals to the County Court or the High Court—the appeal bundle, Appeals to the Court of Appeal—bundles and Supreme Court—documents for appeal hearing—on or after 2 December 2024

For practical guidance on preparing bundles in pdf format, see Practice Note: Preparing electronic PDF bundles. This Practice Note...

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Zainab Hodgson

CMS

My experience covers many forms of dispute resolution including litigation, arbitration and mediation. I have significant experience acting for clients from numerous sectors in relation to a wide variety of commercial disputes. I have particular experience in complex contractual disputes, fraud, misrepresentation claims, insurance disputes and claims with an international administrative law dimension. My practice is international in scope and I have experience dealing with complex cross-border issues, such as conflicts of law, jurisdiction, enforcing foreign judgments and devising international litigation strategies involving multiple jurisdictions....

Christiane Sungu

Christiane is an Associate in the Litigation and Arbitration team at CMS.Christiane has experience advising on a range of disputes including insurance, shareholders, contractual, fraud, and class actions disputes as well as advising clients in relation to regulatory issues.Christiane is also a Honorary Legal Adviser and provides pro bono advice to litigants in person for the Royal Courts of Justice’s Citizens Advice team....

Ingrida Jakuseva

CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP

Ingrida is a Senior Paralegal in the Litigation and Arbitration team at CMS. Ingrida has experience in preparing court documents in complex contractual disputes, misrepresentation, cross-border commercial fraud cases, also in preparing documents in many forms of dispute resolution including litigation, arbitration and mediation. ...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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