Tuesday Tips for Legal Professionals: Don’t Use Compressed PDFs as Print Masters

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-filing. Your printer should get a high-quality master.

At the same time, many courts publish checklists or guides that tell you to check your PDF file size, reduce it if needed, or split it into volumes for their e-filing system. That is fine. The key is to separate what you do for e-filing from what you use for printing.

1. The core rule

If you remember nothing else, remember this:

• Keep a high-quality PDF as your master.

• Create compressed copies only when you need them for email or e-filing.

• Always send the master (or per-volume masters) to your print partner – not the compressed copy.

Most ugly print problems disappear if your printer always works from the master.

2. What “compressed PDF” really does

When you choose options like “compressed,” “reduced size,” or “smallest file size,” your software often:

• Lowers the resolution of images and scans

• Applies strong JPEG compression to photos and exhibits

• Sometimes turns sharp text or vector graphics into rough bitmaps

• May subset or tweak fonts in ways that can cause subtle issues later

All of this is aimed at shrinking the file for storage or upload, not at producing a clean print.

For quick on-screen viewing, it might be good enough. For large print runs of court materials, it usually isn’t.

3. How over-compressed PDFs fail in print

Over-compression shows up in all the wrong places:

• Scanned exhibits look soft or slightly out of focus

• Seals, signatures, and stamps look blocky or muddy

• Small Bates numbers and page numbers blur at normal reading distance

• Maps, plans, charts, or technical diagrams lose fine detail

If you have to squint at a printout or guess what a number says, the wrong file was used as the starting point.

4. How this fits with typical court checklists

Many courts now provide checklists for creating combined PDFs – for example, for appeal records, application books, factums, or books of authorities.

Those checklists often say things like:

• Convert scans to text-searchable PDFs (OCR).

• Combine multiple documents into a single PDF (or a set of volumes) with a title page and an index.

• Apply sequential page numbering (or Bates numbers) and make sure the index matches.

• Use clear bookmarks for sections and documents.

• Check the file size against the court’s e-filing limit.

• If the file is too large:

  • Split into volumes, each with its own title page and index; or

  • Reduce file size using PDF tools.

All of that is reasonable. The important point for printing is this:

• The court’s instructions about file size are aimed at e-filing, not at lowering print quality.

• You can still follow the checklist and keep a separate high-quality master PDF for printing.

For example, a court might say: “The e-filing system accepts one PDF up to [X MB]. If your file is larger, reduce the file size or file multiple volumes.”

That does not mean you have to give your printer the heavily compressed version. It means:

• Meet the size limit for e-filing, and

• Keep an uncompressed or lightly compressed master that matches the same structure for printing.

5. A safer workflow that works in most courts

Here is a generic workflow that will keep you in line with most court checklists and still protect print quality.

A. Keep two versions on purpose

• Build your combined PDF properly:

  • OCR where needed

  • Combine documents into one “book” or into clear volumes

  • Add a title page and an index

  • Apply sequential page numbering or Bates numbers

  • Add bookmarks if required

• Export it as a high-quality master PDF once everything is correct.

• From that master, create a second, compressed copy only if you need to:

  • Meet a court e-filing size limit

  • Email to opposing counsel, client, or another party

Name them clearly, for example:

• Record_Vol1_Master.pdf

• Record_Vol1_EfileCopy.pdf

The Master goes to your print partner. The EfileCopy goes into the portal or out by email.

B. Follow the court’s guidance on volumes and size

Typical patterns you will see in court guides:

• “If your file exceeds the size limit, you may file it in multiple volumes.”

• “Each volume should have its own title page and index.”

• “Page numbers should remain sequential and match the index.”

• “Bookmarks should be clear and consistent across volumes.”

For e-filing, you may need to compress each volume to fit under the size limit. For printing, you can send the same structured volumes at a higher quality.

In other words:

• Use the same structure for both e-filing and printing.

• Use different compression levels depending on the purpose.

C. Use compression only where it’s actually needed

It’s fine to apply reasonable compression to the e-filing copy if:

• The court’s portal has strict file size limits; or

• You need to email the file, and the recipient cannot accept large attachments.

Just avoid:

• Using “Smallest File Size” as your only version.

• Letting that heavily compressed file become your default print source.

D. Do a quick quality check on anything you plan to print

Before you send files to your printer:

• Confirm you are sending the master PDFs (or best available versions), not the small e-filing copies by mistake.

• Open the master PDF and zoom to 200–400% on:

  • Bates numbers or page numbers

  • Seals, signatures, and stamps

  • Fine text in exhibits, maps, or diagrams

If those details look clean and sharp at that zoom, you are usually safe for print.

6. How a print partner can support this

A good print partner should understand that courts:

• Need manageable file sizes for their systems, and

• Still expect clean, legible hard copies on paper.

At CETTEC Printing, for example, when legal teams send us files, we can:

• Confirm we are working from the master or best-quality PDFs

• Flag obvious compression-related issues before printing large runs

• Work with your volumes, indexes, and bookmarks so the printed books match what you filed

You stay within the court’s e-filing limits and get clean, readable materials in print.

Summary

• Courts often tell you to combine, label, and sometimes shrink your PDFs so they work in their e-filing systems.

• That is compatible with good printing practice, as long as you keep a separate high-quality master for print.

• Use compressed PDFs for viewing, email, and uploading.

• Use high-quality PDFs as print masters for factums, records, appeal books, and books of authorities.

If your team builds this “two-version” habit into its standard litigation workflow, you’ll see fewer fuzzy exhibits, cleaner books, and fewer last-minute print headaches..