To lodge a document at the court, usually by sending it by post or DX (see post of 15th June).

What happens when the court office receives the document depends on what the document is. It may require action – for example, if it is a divorce petition the court office will open a file, officially start (‘issue’) the proceedings, bank the accompanying cheque for the court fee, allocate a case number and post a copy of the petition to the respondent and a ‘notice of issue and postal service’ to the petitioner. Sometimes the document is just placed on the court file for future use, for example a written statement made during the course of a case will be placed on the court file and will be there for the judge to read before the next hearing.