Title 47
SECTION 1.49
1.49 Specifications as to pleadings and documents.
§ 1.49 Specifications as to pleadings and documents. Link to an amendment published at 85 FR 85528, Dec. 29, 2020.(a) All pleadings and documents filed in paper form in any Commission proceeding shall be typewritten or prepared by mechanical processing methods, and shall be filed electronically or on paper with dimensions of A4 (21 cm. x 29.7 cm.) or on 8 1/2 x 11 inch (21.6 cm. x 27.9 cm.) with the margins set so that the printed material does not exceed 6 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches (16.5 cm. x 24.1 cm.). The printed material may be in any typeface of at least 12-point (0.42333 cm. or 12/72″) in height. The body of the text must be double spaced with a minimum distance of 7/32 of an inch (0.5556 cm.) between each line of text. Footnotes and long, indented quotations may be single spaced, but must be in type that is 12-point or larger in height, with at least 1/16 of an inch (0.158 cm.) between each line of text. Counsel are cautioned against employing extended single spaced passages or excessive footnotes to evade prescribed pleading lengths. If single-spaced passages or footnotes are used in this manner the pleading will, at the discretion of the Commission, either be rejected as unacceptable for filing or dismissed with leave to be refiled in proper form. Pleadings may be printed on both sides of the paper. Pleadings that use only one side of the paper shall be stapled, or otherwise bound, in the upper left-hand corner; those using both sides of the paper shall be stapled twice, or otherwise bound, along the left-hand margin so that it opens like a book. The foregoing shall not apply to printed briefs specifically requested by the Commission, official publications, charted or maps, original documents (or admissible copies thereof) offered as exhibits, specially prepared exhibits, or if otherwise specifically provided. All copies shall be clearly legible.
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section, all pleadings and documents filed with the Commission, the length of which as computed under this chapter exceeds ten pages, shall include, as part of the pleading or document, a table of contents with page references.
(c) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section, all pleadings and documents filed with the Commission, the length of which filings as computed under this chapter exceeds ten pages, shall include, as part of the pleading or document, a summary of the filing, suitably paragraphed, which should be a succinct, but accurate and clear condensation of the substance of the filing. It should not be a mere repetition of the headings under which the filing is arranged. For pleadings and documents exceeding ten but not twenty-five pages in length, the summary should seldom exceed one and never two pages; for pleadings and documents exceeding twenty-five pages in length, the summary should seldom exceed two and never five pages.
(d) The requirements of paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section shall not apply to:
(1) Interrogatories or answers to interrogatories, and depositions;
(2) FCC forms or applications;
(3) Transcripts;
(4) Contracts and reports;
(5) Letters; or
(6) Hearing exhibits, and exhibits or appendicies accompanying any document or pleading submitted to the Commission.
(e) Petitions, pleadings, and other documents associated with licensing matters in the Wireless Radio Services may be filed electronically in ULS. See § 22.6 for specifications.
(f)(1) In the following types of proceedings, all pleadings, including permissible ex parte submissions, notices of ex parte presentations, comments, reply comments, and petitions for reconsideration and replies thereto, must be filed in electronic format:
(i) Formal complaint proceedings under section 208 of the Act and rules in §§ 1.720 through 1.740, and pole attachment complaint proceedings under section 224 of the Act and rules in §§ 1.1401 through 1.1415;
(ii) Proceedings, other than rulemaking proceedings, relating to customer proprietary network information (CPNI);
(iii) Proceedings relating to cable special relief petitions;
(iv) Proceedings involving Over-the-Air Reception Devices;
(v) Common carrier certifications under § 54.314 of this chapter;
(vi) Domestic Section 214 transfer-of-control applications pursuant to §§ 63.52 and 63.53 of this chapter;
(vii) Domestic section 214 discontinuance applications pursuant to § 63.63 and/or § 63.71 of this chapter;
(viii) Notices of network change and associated certifications pursuant to § 51.325 et seq. of this chapter; and
(ix) Hearing proceedings under §§ 1.201 through 1.377.
(2) Unless required under paragraph (f)(1) of this section, in the following types of proceedings, all pleadings, including permissible ex parte submissions, notices of ex parte presentations, comments, reply comments, and petitions for reconsideration and replies thereto, may be filed in electronic format:
(i) General rulemaking proceedings other than broadcast allotment proceedings;
(ii) Notice of inquiry proceedings;
(iii) Petition for rulemaking proceedings (except broadcast allotment proceedings);
(iv) Petition for forbearance proceedings; and
(v) Filings responsive to domestic section 214 transfers under § 63.03 of this chapter, section 214 discontinuances under § 63.71 of this chapter, and notices of network change under § 51.325 et seq. of this chapter.
(3) To further greater reliance on electronic filing wherever possible, the Bureaus and Offices, in coordination with the Managing Director, may provide to the public capabilities for electronic filing of additional types of pleadings notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter that may otherwise be construed as requiring such filings to be submitted on paper.
(4) For purposes of compliance with any prescribed pleading lengths, the length of any document filed in electronic form shall be equal to the length of the document if printed out and formatted according to the specifications of paragraph (a) of this section, or shall be no more than 250 words per page.
Note to § 1.49:The table of contents and the summary pages shall not be included in complying with any page limitation requirements as set forth by Commission rule.
[40 FR 19198, May 2, 1975, as amended at 47 FR 26393, June 18, 1982; 51 FR 16322, May 2, 1986; 54 FR 31032, July 26, 1989; 58 FR 44893, Aug. 25, 1993; 59 FR 37721, July 25, 1994; 63 FR 24125, May 1, 1998; 63 FR 68920, Dec. 14, 1998; 74 FR 39227, Aug. 6, 2009; 76 FR 24390, May 2, 2011; 80 FR 1587, Jan. 13, 2015; 80 FR 19847, Apr. 13, 2015; 83 FR 2556, Jan. 18, 2018; 83 FR 7922, Feb. 22, 2018; 83 FR 44831, Sept. 4, 2018; 85 FR 63172, Oct. 6, 2020]