CETTEC Insights

Fonts causing issues on press? Learn when to embed, when to outline, and how to prep clean, print-ready PDFs that match what you see on screen.

Court deadlines don’t move, and registries don’t make exceptions for print errors. When timing matters, the safest approach is: Secure file submission Clear print instructions Early confirmation A printer experienced with court materials CETTEC works with legal professionals who need accuracy under pressure. Orders are reviewed before production so issues are addressed early—not at the deadline. Submit securely here: https://www.cettec.ca/legalorder

How Saddle-Stitched Booklets Shape Perception Before a Product Is Used Here’s something you start to notice when you pay attention to printed materials: Instructions are rarely just  instructions. They’re often the first physical thing a customer touches after opening a box. And in that first moment, people form an impression—about the product, the brand, and how much care went into what they’re about to build. You can see it happen. Loose sheets. Tight layouts. Everything cr

If you work in litigation, you’ve probably spent more hours than you’d like to admit wrestling with a Table of Contents (TOC) and Table of Authorities (TOA) in Word. Recently, I saw a great LinkedIn post from Julie Enez  at Beyond Paralegals  about creating TOCs and TOAs and properly marking citations. That’s the part everyone talks about. From the printer’s side, we see the next part: The TOC and TOA look perfect in Word… and then things go sideways at the PDF and print stag

Saddle-stitched booklets (folded and stapled along the spine) are a great way to package information: manuals, programs, catalogues, training materials, and small magazines. They’re also one of the easiest formats to misjudge if you’re not thinking like a press. Here’s a practical guide to getting them right the first time. 1. Page count: always in multiples of 4 Saddle-stitched booklets are made from folded sheets. Each folded sheet gives you 4 pages , so your total page cou

Even when the content is final, printing issues can cause delays if instructions are incomplete. To produce court-ready documents, printers need: Court and document type Number of sets Print sides Binding and tabs Cover colour requirements Required date and time CETTEC’s legal order form is designed to capture this information clearly, while allowing flexibility for non-court or tribunal work. If something needs clarification, our team confirms details before printing begins.

More and more source material lives on the web: online reasons for judgment, government policies, guidelines, and regulatory pages. But when that content needs to end up in a printed  court record or book, simply “print to PDF” from your browser can give you: Tiny, hard-to-read text Cropped margins Missing sections or broken page breaks On top of that, the BC Court of Appeal expects PDFs to meet certain technical standards: searchable text, consistent page numbering, and the

If you send artwork to print, you’ve probably seen a request like: “Please supply a PDF/X-1a” or“Export as PDF/X-4 with bleed and crop marks.” It sounds technical, but PDF/X is simply a set of rules that make PDFs safer for print. Once you understand the basics, it’s one of the easiest ways to cut down on file problems, surprises on press, and back-and-forth with your printer. What Is PDF/X? PDF/X is a family of PDF standards designed specifically for graphic arts and printin

Legal documents are confidential and often privileged. Email is not built for handling large court PDFs or protecting sensitive information. A proper legal print workflow should include: Encrypted file transfer Restricted access to authorized staff No public or shared links Clear separation between client files and jobs CETTEC’s legal print submission process uses secure file upload technology designed for legal professionals. Files are accessed only by staff working on the j

The Court of Appeal’s updated Filing Directive changes how you file, but one thing hasn’t changed: for most civil appeals you now have to think in two formats at the same time – electronic and paper. From the print side, we’re already seeing where this creates stress: tight timelines for stamped paper copies, large PDFs bumping into size limits, and big appeal records that need to be managed well before the hearing is set. This Tuesday Tip looks at the new directive from a pr

You design a piece with a big, dramatic black background.On screen it looks deep and inky.In print it comes back… charcoal. In most cases, nothing “went wrong” on press. That’s just what happens when you treat black on screen (RGB) and black on paper (CMYK) as if they’re the same thing. If you remember one rule from this post, make it this: Use K-only black for small text, a controlled rich black for big areas – and never use registration black in your design. Why “100% K” o

Court filings are often delayed for reasons unrelated to legal argument—incorrect binding, missing tabs, wrong cover colours, or unclear print instructions. A clean print submission reduces back-and-forth, avoids last-minute corrections, and keeps filings on schedule. When submitting legal print jobs, it helps to clearly identify: Document type (factum, appeal book, authorities, etc.) Quantities and number of sets Single- or double-sided printing Binding and tabs Firm deadlin

You finally get your court books or factums back from print, and you see it right away: soft text, fuzzy Bates numbers, a key photo that looks like it went through a fax machine twice. On screen, the PDF looked fine. The usual culprit is simple: someone hit “Reduce File Size” or “Save as compressed PDF” and then used that version as the print master . This Tuesday Tip is generic and straightforward enough for almost any court system: Compressed PDFs are for emailing and e-fil

You open a fresh box of brochures, flip one over, and see it: the old web address, the previous logo, last year’s promo line. The printer did exactly what it was told. The problem wasn’t the press. It was the file. Most expensive reprints come down to one simple issue: someone grabbed the wrong version. If you use print regularly, cleaning up your artwork is one of the easiest wins you can give yourself this year. Here’s a practical, no-drama way to get your files under contr

The end of the year is often treated as a time to summarize wins, tally numbers, and move on. For us, it’s more useful as a moment to slow down, look honestly at how the business operated, and decide what should carry forward—and what shouldn’t. At CETTEC Printing, 2025 was not about chasing growth at all costs. It was about tightening focus, strengthening execution, and building a business that clients can rely on without hesitation. What 2025 Reinforced One thing became ver

The Court of Appeal for BC is very specific about how civil factums and replies must look. The templates and completion instructions spell out the font, spacing, margins, structure, and covers. The trouble usually starts later—when the file goes to print and the details get lost. Here are practical, print-focused tips to turn those rules into a clean, court-ready factum. 1. Build from the official factum template Start with the Court’s civil factum/reply template, not an old

When you are preparing for an appeal, the Court of Appeal for BC is very clear about how your Book of Authorities must look under Civil Rule 27. The challenge is not the rules themselves – it is translating those requirements into a clean, print-ready PDF and an instruction set your print partner can follow without guesswork. This post focuses only on the Book of Authorities and turns the Court’s expectations into practical, production-ready steps. 1. Start with the Court’s c

A lot of print headaches can be avoided simply by asking the right questions up front. Before you sign off on your next job, ask your printer: Is my file truly print-ready? Are size, bleed and margins set correctly? Any low-resolution images or font issues you can see? Is this the right paper for how we’ll use it? Will this stock fold well, mail well, or hold up in a binder? Is there a better option for the look/feel we’re after? How will colour be handled? Is this printing C

The Court of Appeal for BC tells you exactly how your paper appeal book must look under Civil Rule 26 – but those details often never make it into the print order. Using the “Paper Filing Completion Instructions: Appeal Book – Civil Rule 26” as an example, here’s how to translate the rule into clear, practical directions for your printer. 1. Page numbering and table of contents The court expects: Pages numbered sequentially at the top centre A table of contents that matches t

Canva is great for quick design work, but it wasn’t really built with commercial presses in mind.If you’re sending Canva designs to a print shop, here’s how to keep things running smoothly. 1. Start with the right size and bleed Set your Canva document to the final print size  (8.5" × 11", postcard, etc.) Turn on Show print bleed  and Show margins Extend backgrounds and images right through the bleed area so there are no white edges after trimming 2. Make sure your images hav