For Paralegals
Strip Hidden Metadata Before Filing a PDF
A PDF can carry hidden information beyond what's visible on the page — the author name, the editing software used, creation and modification timestamps, search keywords, and internal document identifiers. Remove PDF Metadata strips the PDF Info dictionary, XMP metadata, document IDs, and page-level metadata references, and can also clear hidden author and timestamp fields from non-form annotations.
Pages themselves aren't rasterized in this process — text, images, links, forms, bookmarks, and accessibility structure all stay intact. This is specifically a metadata-cleaning step, not a full document rebuild, so the visible content and functionality of the PDF are unaffected.
One thing this doesn't cover: specific court e-filing systems sometimes have their own formatting and metadata requirements beyond general privacy hygiene, and those rules vary by jurisdiction and court. Check the relevant court's own e-filing rules for what's specifically required before submission — this tool handles the general cleanup, not a guarantee of meeting any particular court's filing standard.
How to handle this workflow
Launch the Remove PDF Metadata and load your document. No account creation or software installation is required.
Select your preferred settings. Core processing runs on your device, keeping your documents confidential and private.
Inspect the output to confirm page quality and formatting, then save your updated PDF directly to your device.
Does removing PDF metadata meet court e-filing requirements?
It handles general metadata cleanup (author, timestamps, XMP data, document IDs), but specific court e-filing systems can have their own formatting requirements that vary by jurisdiction — check your court's own rules for what's specifically required.