GET /v2/case

The primary query endpoint. Returns current case context and all new filings since your last check.

Overview

GET /v2/case is the primary DocketLayer endpoint. Submit a case ID and court code, pay $0.99 in USDC via x402, and receive structured case data. Supply last_checked to get a delta block containing every new filing since your last query.

Base URL: https://api.docketlayer.ai

Price: $0.99 USDC per successful query

Sandbox: Add ?test=1 or X-DocketLayer-Test: 1 — returns fixture data, no charge

Request

Parameters

Field	Type	Required	Description
case_id	string	Yes	Case identifier — e.g. 1:24-cv-01234
court_code	string	Yes	Court identifier — e.g. nysd, deb, cand
last_checked	string	No	ISO-8601 timestamp with timezone offset. When supplied, response includes a delta block.
context	string	No	basic (default) or full. full adds full party list with attorneys, cross-references, and complete docket history.
language	string	No	en or fr. For bilingual jurisdictions, requests the preferred response language.
filing_types	string	No	Comma-separated list of filing types to filter the delta — e.g. order,judgment. Does not filter the case context.
callback_url	string	No	Webhook URL for async result delivery. Response is immediate; payload is pushed when ready.

Example request

curl "https://api.docketlayer.ai/v2/case?case_id=1:24-cv-01234&court_code=nysd&last_checked=2026-01-01T00:00:00Z"

Python

result = client.get(
    "https://api.docketlayer.ai/v2/case",
    params={
        "case_id": "1:24-cv-01234",
        "court_code": "nysd",
        "last_checked": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
        "context": "basic"
    }
).json()

Response

Meta block

All responses include a meta block:

Field	Type	Description
request_id	string	Unique identifier for this request
queried_at	string	ISO-8601 timestamp — use as last_checked in your next call
query_cost_usd	number	Always 0.99 for live queries; 0 in sandbox
coverage_status	string	full or partial for this court
cache_age_seconds	number	Seconds since DocketLayer last refreshed this case from the source court
context_delivered	string	basic or full
language_delivered	string	en, fr, or bilingual
truncated	boolean	Whether the response was truncated
sandbox	boolean	Whether sandbox mode was active
tag	string | null	Value of X-DocketLayer-Tag header if supplied

Context: basic (default)

{
  "meta": {
    "request_id": "req_01jt7y4kx0",
    "queried_at": "2026-04-29T12:00:00Z",
    "query_cost_usd": 0.99,
    "coverage_status": "full",
    "cache_age_seconds": 87,
    "context_delivered": "basic",
    "language_delivered": "en",
    "truncated": false,
    "sandbox": false,
    "tag": null
  },
  "case_id": "1:24-cv-01234",
  "court_code": "nysd",
  "case": {
    "case_number": "1:24-cv-01234",
    "case_name": "Smith v. Jones",
    "case_name_secondary": null,
    "case_name_secondary_language": null,
    "case_type": "civil",
    "court_code": "nysd",
    "court_name": "Southern District of New York",
    "jurisdiction_country": "US",
    "language": "en",
    "date_filed": "2024-05-10T00:00:00-04:00",
    "date_terminated": null,
    "status": "open",
    "assigned_judge": "Hon. Sarah Johnson",
    "nature_of_proceeding": "Contract: Other",
    "cause": "28 USC 1332",
    "jury_demand": "both",
    "primary_parties": [
      { "name": "John Smith", "type": "plaintiff" },
      { "name": "Acme Corp.", "type": "defendant" }
    ],
    "appellate": null
  },
  "delta": {
    "changed": true,
    "since": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
    "change_count": 1,
    "new_filings": [
      {
        "entry_number": 42,
        "filed_at": "2026-04-11T14:23:00Z",
        "filing_type": "order",
        "filed_by": "Hon. Sarah Johnson",
        "description": "Order granting motion to dismiss",
        "document_identifier": "0042",
        "document_identifier_type": "pacer_doc_id",
        "external_url": "https://ecf.nysd.uscourts.gov/doc1/..."
      }
    ]
  }
}

The delta block is only present when last_checked is supplied.

Context: full

When context=full, the case object expands to include full parties with attorneys, cross-references to related cases, and the complete docket history.

{
  "case": {
    "...all basic fields...",
    "parties": [
      {
        "name": "John Smith",
        "type": "plaintiff",
        "role_in_case": "lead plaintiff",
        "date_joined": "2024-05-10T00:00:00Z",
        "date_terminated": null,
        "attorneys": [
          {
            "name": "Jane Doe",
            "firm": "Doe & Associates LLP",
            "role": "lead counsel",
            "date_action": "2024-05-10T00:00:00Z"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "cross_references": [
      {
        "relationship": "consolidated",
        "case_id": "1:24-cv-01235",
        "court_code": "nysd",
        "relationship_note": null
      }
    ],
    "docket_history": [
      {
        "entry_number": 1,
        "filed_at": "2024-05-10T09:00:00Z",
        "filing_type": "complaint",
        "filed_by": "John Smith",
        "description": "Complaint filed",
        "document_identifier": "0001",
        "document_identifier_type": "pacer_doc_id",
        "external_url": "https://ecf.nysd.uscourts.gov/doc1/..."
      }
    ]
  }
}

Case fields

Field	Type	Description
case_number	string	The case identifier
case_name	string	Primary case name
case_name_secondary	string | null	Secondary name (bilingual jurisdictions)
case_name_secondary_language	string | null	Language of secondary name
case_type	string	civil, criminal, bankruptcy, appellate, etc.
court_code	string	Court identifier
court_name	string	Full court name
jurisdiction_country	string	US or CA
language	string | null	en, fr, or bilingual
date_filed	string | null	ISO-8601 case filing date
date_terminated	string | null	ISO-8601 termination date if closed
status	string	open or closed
assigned_judge	string | null	Assigned judge name
nature_of_proceeding	string | null	Nature of suit or proceeding
cause	string | null	Statutory cause of action (US federal courts)
jury_demand	string | null	plaintiff, defendant, both, or none
primary_parties	array	Primary plaintiff and defendant (basic context)
appellate	object | null	Appellate-specific fields if applicable

Delta fields

Field	Type	Description
changed	boolean	Whether any new filings were found since last_checked
since	string	The last_checked value you supplied
change_count	number	Number of new filings
new_filings	array	Docket entry objects — empty if changed is false

Docket entry fields

Field	Type	Description
entry_number	number | null	Entry number from the source court system
filed_at	string	ISO-8601 filing timestamp
filing_type	string | null	Normalized filing type — order, motion, judgment, notice, etc.
filed_by	string | null	Filing party or judge name
description	string	Docket entry text
document_identifier	string | null	Document identifier in the source system
document_identifier_type	string	Identifier scheme for the source system — e.g. pacer_doc_id for PACER courts. See the field reference for the full enum.
external_url	string | null	Direct link to the document at the source court portal

Notes

last_checked management — Store meta.queried_at from each response and use it as last_checked in your next call. This ensures you never miss a filing between queries.

Document access — Document URLs link to the source court portal. For PACER federal courts, retrieving the document requires valid PACER credentials. For state and Canadian courts, access requirements vary by portal. DocketLayer provides the link — document access is the caller’s responsibility.

Appellate context — For appellate cases, the appellate field contains panel composition, appeal type, originating court, and oral argument date where available.