The process for attorney admissions is diagrammed in this flowchart HERE.
For those attorneys who have been recently admitted, the Northern District of New York welcomes you. We have included here a link to Civility in Litigation: a Voluntary Commitment as a reminder of your duties and liberties as an attorney. Also be sure to become familiar with the Federal Rules as well as our Local Rules and General Orders for the Northern District of New York.
NEW! E-FILE YOUR REQUEST FOR A CERTIFICATE OF GOOD STANDING
As of March 2nd 2015, attorneys who are in good standing with a CM/ECF login and password can now e-file their request for a Certificate of Good Standing. The Certificate of Good Standing will be returned to the attorney as a PDF document. Please ensure that your Spam-Filter settings are set to allow incoming e-mails from the domain of *nynd.uscourts.gov. Learn More
Permanent Admission
To become permanently admitted to the court, submit the following forms along with the fee of $231.00 (Checks are payable to: 'Clerk, U.S. District Court')
Petition for Admission to Practice. Please make sure that it is signed and dated. If you choose to create your own Petition, it must be consistent with the provisional paragraphs of our form.
Affidavit of Sponsor. Your sponsor must be a member in good standing of the bar of the Northern District of New York who has personal knowledge of your background and character. The sponsor is required to appear with you for admission. **Note: Applicants who are members in good standing of a United States District Court for the Eastern, Western, or Southern District of New York need not appear for formal admission. Please send in the admission fee together with a Verified Petition, the Oath of Admission, and an original Certificate of Good Standing from the United States District Court where you are a member (must be dated within the last six months), Attorney E-Filing Registration Form, along with a proposed order granting the admission. A sponsor's affidavit is not required. See N.D.N.Y. Local Rule 83.1(c).
Attorney E-Filing Registration Form. This form is used to create your CM/ECF account and assign you a bar roll number (Login) and password for access to the CM/ECF filing system.
Oath of Admission. All admissions require an Oath which must be signed by the applicant. If the attorney is appearing for admission, the Oath is administered in Court, signed by the applicant and witnessed by the Courtroom Deputy.
Proposed Order. The caption of the order contains the full name of the attorney being admitted with the type of admission selected in either checkbox on the form.
Certificate of Good Standing. One original Certificate of Good Standing is required and must be dated within six (6) months of the date of your application. Applicants who are members in good standing with the United States District Court for the Eastern, Western or Southern District of New York need not appear for formal admission. They may submit an original Certificate of Good Standing from the U.S. District Court where they are members.See N.D.N.Y. Local Rule 83.1(c). Applicants who are not admitted to another United States District Court in New York must appear with their sponsor for formal admission unless the Court, in the exercise of its discretion, waives such appearance. If the applicant is admitted to practice in New York State, the Certificate of Good Standing submitted with the application must be from the appropriate New York Sate Appellate Division.
Select an Admission Date. Judges entertain admissions on their regularly scheduled motion days. See the listing of motion days, times and locations on Judges Monthly Motion Schedule. Be sure to select a date that is agreeable with your sponsor and include it in a cover letter with your application.
Send your completed application to the Clerk's Office at the location where you will be admitted. Be sure to include all the following:
- Petition for Admission
- Affidavit of Sponsor
- Attorney E-Filing Registration Form
- Oath of Admission
- Certificate of Good Standing (must be dated within the past six months)
- Admission Fee
- Proposed Order
Pro Hac Vice Admission
**Note: No appearance is necessary for this type of admission.The sponsoring attorney, that is, an attorney already admitted to practice in the Northern District of New York, electronically files the following documents in the case in which the attorney seeks to appear:
- A Motion for Pro Hac Vice Admission of the applicant, please include the Case Caption and Assigned Judge
- A Proposed Order for signature by the Assigned Judge
- Affidavit of Sponsor
- Applicant's completed Petition for Admission to Practice
- Applicant's completed new Attorney E-Filing Registration Form with case number noted
- Oath of Admission
- Certificate of Good Standing from highest court of state where admitted (dated within the last six months)
- Pro Hac Vice Admission Fee of $100 (via Pay.Gov, for each case in which PHV admission is sought)
Oral Application for Pro Hac Vice
When an attorney requesting to be admitted Pro Hac Vice cannot follow the formal application process by motion as noted above, the applicant may be admitted to practice in this district upon an oral motion made in open court. The motion is made by the sponsoring attorney on the record. Immediately following the court proceeding, the applicant must report directly to the Clerk's Office to pay the $100 Pro Hac Vice admission fee and to complete a New Attorney E-Filing Registration Form and Petition for Admission Form. The attorney will be given 30 days to submit additional documentation. A written Notice of Appearance must also be filed with the court in accordance with N.D.N.Y. Local Rule 83.2.
For additional questions please visit or our Admissions Frequently Asked Questions or contact your Local Office.
Student Practice
A law student appearing as a Student Practitioner may with the court's approval, under supervision of an attorney, appear on behalf of any person, including the United States Attorney, who has consented in writing on the form prescribed by the Clerk of the Court.
To view the complete rules regarding student practice in the New York Northern District Court please review General Order 13 regarding student practice.