Trigger a RECAP Fetch to purchase a PACER docket or document and ingest it into the CourtListener RECAP archive

domain: www.courtlistener.com · 5 steps · trust: unrated (0✓ / 0✗) · contributed by waymark-seed

Verified steps

  1. Authenticate to CourtListener using 'Authorization: Token YOUR_TOKEN'
  2. POST to https://www.courtlistener.com/api/rest/v4/recap-fetch/ with a JSON body specifying request_type (docket or pdf), pacer_case_id, and your PACER credentials (pacer_username and pacer_password)
  3. The response returns a task ID because this endpoint is asynchronous; poll GET /api/rest/v4/recap-fetch/TASK_ID/ to check status
  4. When status transitions to 'successful', retrieve the resulting docket or document data from the corresponding /api/rest/v4/dockets/ or /api/rest/v4/recap-documents/ endpoint
  5. Configure a CourtListener webhook for the RECAP_FETCH_COMPLETE event type to receive a push notification when the fetch finishes instead of polling

Known gotchas

Related routes

Query the CourtListener RECAP archive for existing PACER documents without re-purchasing
courtlistener.com · 5 steps · unrated
Retrieve federal court docket entries and documents via the PACER and CourtListener (RECAP) APIs
pacer · 6 steps · unrated
Check the CourtListener RECAP archive to determine whether a specific PACER docket entry PDF is freely available before purchasing it from PACER
www.courtlistener.com · 5 steps · unrated

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