Do you provide legal advice?

No. CaseFile is a document preparation service. We assemble your bundle, build a sourced chronology, and surface material that may be relevant to the issues you identify — but you (or your adviser) decide what is relevant and how to use it. We do not advise on the law or the merits of your case, and you should always seek independent legal advice.

What if I'd rather prepare the bundle myself?

You can — and if your documents are already tidy PDFs, we genuinely recommend BunTool (buntool.co.uk). It's free, made by a solicitor, and merges and indexes them into a court-ready bundle. CaseFile is for when you'd rather it was done for you, and for the parts a merge tool can't do: taking any format (Word, photos, scans, messages), OCR, building a sourced chronology, and surfacing what in your evidence is relevant to your issues.

How quickly will I receive my bundle?

It depends on the tier you choose. Essential orders are delivered within 5 working days, Standard within 48 hours, and Priority within 24 hours. Turnaround begins once we receive your complete documents and intake form.

What file formats do you accept?

We accept PDF, Word (.docx), images (JPG, PNG), and scanned documents. If you have documents in other formats, upload them and we will do our best to work with them.

Which courts is this suitable for?

Our bundles follow standard bundle practice for civil and family courts in England & Wales, and the Isle of Man. If your court has specific formatting requirements, let us know in the intake form.

How is my data secured?

All documents are encrypted at rest (AES-256) and in transit (TLS 1.3). Files are stored in AWS S3 in the UK region. We delete your documents 90 days after bundle delivery unless you request earlier deletion.

What is your refund policy?

If we are unable to produce your bundle for any reason, you will receive a full refund. Once a bundle has been delivered, refunds are at our discretion — please contact us within 7 days of delivery if you are unhappy with the service. Consumers also have a 14-day cancellation right (see our Terms).

After we deliver your bundle, you may want changes — a different document order, a missing exhibit added, or a section reorganised. Standard includes one round of revisions, Priority includes unlimited revisions. Essential is a single delivery with no revisions included.

Free resource

Court bundle checklist

A step-by-step checklist for preparing a family court bundle to Practice Direction 27A. Work through it section by section, or get the printable version emailed to you.

Get the printable checklist by email

We'll send you a printable copy of this checklist so you can tick items off as you prepare your bundle.

1. Before you start

Confirm the hearing date and which court rules apply (Practice Direction 27A governs family proceedings).
Check any directions order — the judge may have specified what the bundle must contain.
Gather every document you might need: applications, orders, statements, correspondence, and supporting evidence.
Agree the contents with the other party where possible — the applicant is normally responsible for preparing the bundle.

2. Structure the bundle in sections

Section A — Preliminary documents (see below).
Section B — Applications and orders, in date order.
Section C — Statements and affidavits, in date order.
Section D — Case management documents (e.g. care plans, schedules).
Section E — Experts' and other reports.
Section F — Other documents, in date order, divided as needed.
Place documents in chronological order within each section.

3. Preliminary documents (Section A)

Case summary — a short, neutral summary of the background.
Statement of the issues to be determined at the hearing.
Position statement (where required), with a short reading list.
Chronology of key dates and events.
List of essential reading for the hearing, with a time estimate.
Keep preliminary documents concise — each should normally be a page or two.

4. Format and pagination

Use a single bundle in an A4 lever-arch file or appropriately bound — not loose papers.
Paginate the whole bundle continuously from page 1.
Number pages at the bottom; make sure the numbers are legible after copying.
Use dividers and clearly labelled, numbered section tabs.
Keep the bundle to no more than 350 pages unless the court has given permission for more.
Print single-sided unless the court directs otherwise, and make sure every page is readable.

5. The index

Put a full index at the front listing every document.
Show each document's description, date, and page number.
Order the index to match the order of the documents in the bundle.
Double-check that every page number in the index is correct.

6. Lodging the bundle

Lodge the bundle with the court no later than 11am on the second working day before the hearing.
Provide a copy to every other party in good time.
Bring a copy for the witness table and a spare where practical.
Where the court accepts electronic bundles, follow its format requirements (single PDF, bookmarked, OCR'd, paginated to match).

7. Common mistakes to avoid

Missing or out-of-order pages, or page numbers that don't match the index.
Including irrelevant or duplicate documents that bulk out the bundle.
Leaving preparation to the last minute and missing the lodging deadline.
An index that doesn't list every document, or that omits dates.
Forgetting the preliminary documents the court expects to read first.

Prefer to let software do the merge? BunTool is a free tool, made by a solicitor, that merges and indexes PDFs you’ve already prepared. If you’d rather not do it yourself — or your documents aren’t tidy PDFs — we can prepare the whole bundle for you.

This checklist is general guidance, not legal advice. Always follow any directions made by your court and the version of Practice Direction 27A in force at the time of your hearing.

Would rather not assemble it yourself?

Upload your documents and we’ll prepare a paginated, indexed, court-ready bundle for you. Start for free — you only pay when you’re ready to receive it.

Start free See a sample bundle →