Introduction to Search Endpoints

CasePortal has a search endpoint for each of its unique case libraries:

  • Civil Litigation: /api/1/search/civil-litigation
  • Bankruptcies: /api/1/search/bankruptcies
  • Adversary Proceedings: /api/1/search/adversary-proceeding
  • Opinions & Rulings: /api/1/search/opinions

Each also features an export endpoint that takes the same arguments, and returns the same data structures (in some cases altered to be able to insert into a spreadsheet) which can be accessed by appending /export to the end of the URIs listed above. For example the Civil Litigation search export endpoint can be found at: /api/1/search/civil-litigation/export

For more information on how to use the search API, consult the Civil Litigation Search API article.

Data Structures returned by each Endpoint

Common Attributes Across Search Endpoints

The API for searching cases from courts across the US and some international courts includes several common attributes across the four search endpoints (Civil Litigation, Bankruptcy, Adversary Proceeding, and Opinions/Rulings). These common attributes provide metadata, search engine information, data groupings, and range options for specific searches. Below is a detailed explanation of these common attributes.

Common attributes:

  1. Meta Information
  2. Engine
  3. Options
  4. Range Options

Meta Information

The meta object provides important information about the search response, including pagination details, search performance metrics, and counts of cases. Here are the key fields within the meta object:

  • currentPage: The current page number of the search results.
  • pageSize: The number of results per page.
  • totalCount: The total number of results found in the search. This represents the number of cases visible based on your subscriptions.
  • nationwideTotalCount: The total number of results that could have been found without any subscription restrictions. This includes all possible cases, not limited by the user's subscription. For Jumbo subscribers the totalCount and nationwideTotalCount always match, since they have access to all courts.
  • took: The time taken to conduct the search, measured in milliseconds.
  • fuzzinessDistance: The fuzziness distance used in the search, which indicates the tolerance for misspellings or variations in the search terms. This is currently highly restricted, and fuzziness is generally not considered in executing searches.

Example

"meta": {
  "currentPage": 0,
  "pageSize": 10,
  "totalCount": 50,
  "nationwideTotalCount": 100,
  "took": 150,
  "fuzzinessDistance": 2
}

Engine

The engine attribute specifies which search engine was used to execute the search. Currently, the API uses Elasticsearch, so the value for this field is always "ES".

"engine": "ES"

Options

The options object represents groupings of data in the search results. The actual groupings vary between search endpoints, but the structure remains the same. It provides the field name, top values in those fields, and their respective counts. Below is an example of the options attribute.

Example:

"options": [
  {
    "field": "Courts",
    "buckets": [
      {
        "bucket": "USDC Northern District of Alabama",
        "count": 16
      },
      {
        "bucket": "USDC Southern District of Alabama",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "bucket": "USDC Middle District of Alabama",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "allBucketsCount": 3
  },
  {
    "field": "NatureOfSuit",
    "buckets": [
      {
        "bucket": "440",
        "count": 7
      },
      {
        "bucket": "0",
        "count": 4
      },
      {
        "bucket": "320",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "bucket": "890",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "bucket": "190",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "bucket": "410",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "bucket": "550",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "bucket": "950",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "allBucketsCount": 8
  }
]

Range Options

The rangeOptions attribute is specific to the Bankruptcy search endpoint and reflects the range limits used in the search request. This includes values for liabilities and assets in bankruptcy cases. The response shows the range parameters for these values.

Example:

"rangeOptions": [
  {
    "field": "LiabilitiesFrom",
    "from": 0.0,
    "to": 100000000.0
  },
  {
    "field": "LiabilitiesTo",
    "from": 50000.0,
    "to": 1200000000.0
  },
  {
    "field": "AssetsFrom",
    "from": 0.0,
    "to": 500000000.0
  },
  {
    "field": "AssetsTo",
    "from": 0.0,
    "to": 1000000000.0
  }
]

 

Civil Litigation Search API

The responseData attribute in the Civil Litigation search endpoint contains detailed information about each case found in the search results. Each entry in the responseData array represents a specific case and includes a variety of attributes.

Response Data Attributes

Below is a detailed explanation of each attribute present in the array of cases returned in the responseData.

  • _score: The relevance score of the case in relation to the search query. As fuzziness is restricted and not used in search, this value is currently always "null"
  • id: A unique identifier for the case.
  • litigationName: The name of the litigation, which usually includes the names of the parties involved.
  • filedAt: The date and time when the case was filed. This is the local date of when the case was filed at the court.
  • publishedAtUTC: The date and time when the case was made available in CasePortal in UTC.
  • createdAtUTC: The date and time when the case was created in UTC.
  • updatedAtUTC: The date and time when the case was last updated in UTC.
  • legacyCreatedAtUTC: The original creation date and time in UTC in the legacy system. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • legacyDocketUpdatedAtUTC: The original docket update date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • dependantItemUpdatedAtUTC: The date and time when dependent items were last updated in UTC. Dependent items include docket sheet entries and files.
  • legacyUpdatedAtUTC: The original update date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • legacyComplaintId: The ID of the original complaint. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • indexedAtUtc: The date and time when the case was indexed in the search engine in UTC.
  • caseBlockId: The ID of the case block. Case blocks are internal organizing containers for cases.
  • caseNumber: The case number assigned by the court.
  • courtName: The name of the court where the case was filed.
  • plaintiffs: An array of plaintiff names.
  • defendants: An array of defendant names.
  • judge: An array of judge names.
  • summary: A brief summary of the case.
  • plaintiffLawyers: An array of plaintiff lawyer names.
  • defendantLawyers: An array of defendant lawyer names.
  • plaintiffLawyerFirms: An array of plaintiff law firm names.
  • defendantLawyerFirms: An array of defendant law firm names.
  • services: An array of CNS services that contained this case.
  • filtered: Indicates if the case has been filtered. Filtered cases are not visible in search, therefore this value is always "false".
  • createdById: The ID of the user who created the case.
  • createdByName: The name of the user who created the case.
  • natureOfSuit: The Nature of Suite of the case.
  • natureOfSuitId: The ID of the Nature of Suite.
  • isTrackable: Indicates if the case is trackable. Tracking allows users to receive updates about the case's docket sheet entries.
  • hasComplaintFile: Indicates if there is a complaint file associated with the case.
  • hasFullText: indicates if the case complaint file has been converted to text only.
  • fullTextMatches: the number of matches for search terms within the full text of the complaint.
  • courtCity: The city where the court is located.
  • courtState: The state where the court is located.
  • courthouseId: The ID of the courthouse.
  • civilLawsuitType: The type of civil lawsuit.
  • untrackCaseReason: The reason why the case is has had tracking removed. Typically this is done when a case is sealed.
  • reports: An array of reports in which this case was included.
  • transferedFromId: The ID of the court from which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.
  • transferedToId: The ID of the court to which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.

 

Bankruptcy Search API

The Bankruptcy Search API endpoint allows users to search for bankruptcy cases. Below is a detailed explanation of the responseData attribute, which is unique to this endpoint.

Response Data Attributes

Below is a detailed explanation of each attribute present in the array of cases returned in the responseData.

  • id: A unique identifier for the bankruptcy case.
  • caseBlockId: The ID of the case block. Case blocks are internal organizing containers for cases.
  • createdBy: The ID of the user who created the case.
  • updatedBy: The ID of the user who last updated the case.
  • indexedAtUtc: The date and time when the case was indexed in the search engine in UTC.
  • filedAt: The date and time when the case was filed. This is the local date of when the case was filed at the court.
  • petitionFilingDate: The date when the bankruptcy petition was filed.
  • creditorFilingDate: The date when the creditors filed their claims.
  • createdAt: The date and time when the case was created in UTC.
  • legacyCreatedAtUTC: The original creation date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • updatedAt: The date and time when the case was last updated in UTC.
  • caseNumber: The case number assigned by the court.
  • judge: The name of the judge overseeing the case.
  • debtor: The name of the debtor in the bankruptcy case.
  • petitionLawyer: The name of the lawyer filing the bankruptcy petition.
  • petitionLawyerFirm: The law firm of the petition lawyer.
  • note: Any additional notes about the case.
  • courtName: The name of the court where the case was filed.
  • courtId: The ID of the court.
  • city: The city where the court is located.
  • state: The state where the court is located.
  • hasFile: Indicates if there is a file associated with the case.
  • fileId: The ID of the file associated with the case.
  • assets: An object representing the range of assets in the case.
    • from: The minimum value of the assets.
    • to: The maximum value of the assets.
    • note: Any additional notes about the assets.
  • liabilities: An object representing the range of liabilities in the case.
    • from: The minimum value of the liabilities.
    • to: The maximum value of the liabilities.
    • note: Any additional notes about the liabilities.
  • creditors: An array of creditor details.
    • name: The name of the creditor.
    • amount: The amount owed to the creditor.
    • type: The type of creditor (e.g., "Unsecured").
    • note: Any additional notes about the creditor.
  • bankruptcyType: The type of bankruptcy (e.g., Chapter 7, Chapter 11).
  • untrackCaseReason: The reason why the case is has had tracking removed. Typically this is done when a case is sealed or transferred.
  • title: The title of the case.
  • doNotNotify: Indicates if notifications (dingers) are disabled for this case.
  • isCreditorsHandWritten: Indicates if the creditors' information is handwritten. If true it means there may have been some errors interpreting the information as it was originally written by hand.
  • parentId: The ID of the parent case, if applicable.
  • reports: An array of reports in which this case was included.
  • transferedFromId: The ID of the court from which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.
  • transferedToId: The ID of the court to which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.

 

Adversary Proceedings Search API

The Adversary Proceeding Search API endpoint allows users to search for adversary proceedings, which are civil cases that stem from bankruptcies and are heard in bankruptcy courts. The responseData attribute for this endpoint has a structure similar to that of civil litigation cases.

Response Data Attributes

Below is a detailed explanation of each attribute present in the array of cases returned in the responseData.

  • _score: The relevance score of the case in relation to the search query. As fuzziness is restricted and not used in search, this value is currently always "null"
  • id: A unique identifier for the case.
  • litigationName: The name of the litigation, which usually includes the names of the parties involved.
  • filedAt: The date and time when the case was filed. This is the local date of when the case was filed at the court.
  • publishedAtUTC: The date and time when the case was made available in CasePortal in UTC.
  • createdAtUTC: The date and time when the case was created in UTC.
  • updatedAtUTC: The date and time when the case was last updated in UTC.
  • legacyCreatedAtUTC: The original creation date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • legacyDocketUpdatedAtUTC: The original docket update date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • dependantItemUpdatedAtUTC: The date and time when dependent items were last updated in UTC. Dependent items include docket sheet entries and files.
  • legacyUpdatedAtUTC: The original update date and time in UTC. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • legacyComplaintId: The ID of the original complaint. Note: this is deprecated and will be removed.
  • indexedAtUtc: The date and time when the case was indexed in the search engine in UTC.
  • caseBlockId: The ID of the case block.
  • caseNumber: The case number assigned by the court.
  • courtName: The name of the court where the case was filed.
  • plaintiffs: An array of plaintiff names.
  • defendants: An array of defendant names.
  • judge: An array of judge names.
  • summary: A brief summary of the case.
  • plaintiffLawyers: An array of plaintiff lawyer names.
  • defendantLawyers: An array of defendant lawyer names.
  • plaintiffLawyerFirms: An array of plaintiff law firm names.
  • defendantLawyerFirms: An array of defendant law firm names.
  • services: An array of services related to the case.
  • filtered: Indicates if the case has been filtered. Filtered cases are not visible in search, therefore this value is always "false".
  • createdById: The ID of the user who created the case.
  • createdByName: The name of the user who created the case.
  • natureOfSuit: The Nature of Suite of the case.
  • natureOfSuitId: The ID of the Nature of Suite.
  • isTrackable: Indicates if the case is trackable.
  • hasComplaintFile: Indicates if there is a complaint file associated with the case.
  • hasFullText: indicates if the case complaint file has been converted to text only.
  • courtCity: The city where the court is located.
  • courtState: The state where the court is located.
  • courthouseId: The ID of the courthouse.
  • civilLawsuitType: The type of civil lawsuit, in this case, "Adversary Proceeding".
  • untrackCaseReason: The reason why the case is has had tracking removed. Typically this is done when a case is sealed or transferred.
  • reports: An array of reports in which this case was included.
  • transferedFromId: The ID of the court from which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.
  • transferedToId: The ID of the court to which the case was transferred, if it was transferred.

 

Opinions & Rulings Search API

The Opinions/Rulings Search API endpoint allows users to search for court opinions and rulings.

Response Data Attributes

Below is a detailed explanation of each attribute present in the array of cases returned in the responseData.

  • snapshotData: Indicates if the case data is a snapshot.
  • isUpdatedCase: Indicates if the case is an updated version.
  • id: A unique identifier for the opinion or ruling.
  • updatedAt: The date and time when the case was last updated in UTC.
  • indexedAtUtc: The date and time when the case was indexed in the search engine in UTC.
  • publishedOn: The date and time when the case was made available in CasePortal in UTC.
  • fillingDate: The date and time when the case was filed. This is the local date of when the case was filed at the court.
  • natureOfSuit: The Nature of Suite of the case.
  • natureOfSuitId: The ID of the Nature of Suite.
  • typeOfLaw: The type of law involved in the case ("Civil", or "Criminal").
  • plaintiffs: An array of plaintiff names.
  • defendants: An array of defendant names.
  • judge: The name of the judge overseeing the case.
  • cause: The cause or legal reason for the case.
  • summary: A brief summary of the opinion or ruling.
  • court: The name of the court where the case was filed.
  • courtId: The ID of the court.
  • subCourt: The name of the sub-court, if applicable.
  • categories: An array of (CNS) categories that describe the case.
  • state: The state where the court is located.
  • city: The city where the court is located.
  • caseNumber: The case number assigned by the court.
  • createdById: The ID of the user who created the case.
  • createdByName: The name of the user who created the case.
  • createdAtUTC: The date and time when the case was created in UTC.
  • title: The title of the case.
  • hasFile: Indicates if there is a file associated with the case.
  • fullText: The full text of the opinion or ruling if available.
  • reportNames: An array of report names in which this case was included.