PDF Tools for Lawyers & Legal Professionals
Meet court filing requirements, protect privileged documents, and manage discovery materials. All processing happens in your browser, so client files never leave your device.
Start with Compress PDFFree • No uploads • Works in your browser
Common Challenges for Legal Professionals
Court Filing Size Limits
Federal and state courts typically cap e-filings at 5-35MB per document. Exhibits with scanned images, photos, or charts frequently exceed these limits, causing rejected filings and missed deadlines.
Attorney-Client Privilege
Uploading privileged documents to third-party cloud services creates confidentiality risks. Ethical obligations require careful handling of client communications and work product.
E-Filing Requirements
Courts require specific PDF formats: searchable text, proper page sizing, bookmarked exhibits, and compliant file naming. Non-compliant filings are rejected.
Discovery Document Management
Large discovery productions can include thousands of scanned pages that need OCR processing, splitting into manageable sections, and organization for review.
Recommended Tools for Legal Work
Each tool runs entirely in your browser. No documents are uploaded to any server.
Compress PDF
Court filing size limits
Many courts enforce strict file size limits for electronic filings. Compress briefs, exhibits, and motions to meet 5MB, 10MB, or 25MB caps without sacrificing readability.
Merge PDF
Exhibit packages
Combine multiple exhibits, affidavits, and supporting documents into a single, well-ordered PDF for court submission or client review.
Split PDF
Extract specific sections
Pull out individual sections from lengthy contracts, depositions, or discovery productions. Extract only the pages relevant to your filing.
Protect PDF
Attorney-client privilege
Password-protect confidential documents before sharing with clients or co-counsel. Add RC4 128-bit encryption to privileged communications.
Sign PDF
Electronic signatures
Add legally recognized electronic signatures to engagement letters, settlement agreements, and court declarations without printing or scanning.
OCR PDF
Scanned filings & discovery
Make scanned court documents, faxed filings, and imaged discovery materials searchable. Extract text for review and citation.
Typical Legal Document Workflow
Receive Documents
Client sends scanned contracts, opposing counsel shares discovery files, or you receive court orders via email.
Process & Prepare
OCR scanned documents to make them searchable. Split large discovery sets into relevant sections. Merge related exhibits into packages.
Review & Annotate
Search through OCR-processed documents. Extract relevant pages for briefs. Organize exhibits in filing order.
Protect & Secure
Password-protect privileged documents. Add electronic signatures to engagement letters and declarations.
Compress & File
Compress final documents to meet court e-filing size limits. Merge all components into a single filing package and submit.
Why Browser-Based Processing Matters for Legal Work
When you use cloud-based PDF tools, your documents are uploaded to third-party servers. For legal professionals, this creates real risks:
- No confidentiality breach risk — Files never leave your device, preserving attorney-client privilege
- No third-party data retention — No server logs, no stored copies, no data breach exposure
- Ethical compliance — Meets ABA Model Rule 1.6 obligations to protect client information
- No audit trail concerns — Opposing counsel cannot subpoena processing records that do not exist
PDF Smaller processes everything using JavaScript and WebAssembly running locally in your browser. Your documents are never transmitted anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are electronic signatures from PDF Smaller legally valid?
Electronic signatures created with PDF Smaller are embedded directly into the PDF. In most jurisdictions, electronic signatures are legally recognized under laws like the ESIGN Act (US) and eIDAS (EU). However, some courts may require specific digital signature standards. Always check your jurisdiction's e-filing requirements.
How secure is the PDF encryption?
PDF Smaller uses RC4 128-bit encryption, which is the standard encryption supported by PDF viewers. All encryption happens locally in your browser. Your documents and passwords are never transmitted to any server.
Can I compress a PDF without losing text quality?
Yes. Our compression primarily targets embedded images, not text. Text, vector graphics, and fonts remain crisp. For court filings where readability is critical, even high compression preserves all text at full quality.
What court filing size limits does this help with?
Most federal and state courts enforce e-filing limits between 5MB and 35MB per document. For example, many federal courts cap at 25MB. Our compressor can reduce image-heavy filings by 80-95%, making it straightforward to meet these limits.
Is it safe to use for attorney-client privileged documents?
Yes. PDF Smaller processes all files entirely in your browser. No documents are uploaded to any server, no data is transmitted over the internet, and no copies are stored anywhere. This makes it suitable for handling privileged and confidential legal materials.
Can I merge exhibits and maintain page order?
Yes. The merge tool lets you drag and drop files into your desired order before combining them. You can also reorder pages after merging to ensure exhibits appear in the correct sequence for filing.
Process Legal Documents with Confidence
Free, unlimited PDF tools that keep your client files private. No sign-ups, no uploads, no limits.
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