docket

American  

[dok-it] / ˈdɒk ɪt /

noun

dockets plural

1. Also called trial docket.  a list of cases in court for trial, or the names of the parties who have cases pending.

2. Chiefly British.

   1. an official memorandum or entry of proceedings in a legal cause.

   2. a register of such entries.

   3. any of various certificates or warrants giving the holder right to obtain, buy, or move goods that are controlled by the government, as a custom-house docket certifying duty has been paid.

3. the list of business to be transacted by a board, council, legislative assembly, or the like.

4. British. a writing on a letter or document stating its contents; any statement of particulars attached to a package, envelope, etc.; a label or ticket.

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verb (used with object)

dockets, present (3rd person singular) docketed, past participle, past docketing present participle

1. Law. to enter in the docket of the court.

2. Law. to make an abstract or summary of the heads of, as a document; abstract and enter in a book.

   judgments regularly docketed.

3. to endorse (a letter, document, etc.) with a memorandum.

docket British  

/ ˈdɒkɪt /

noun

1. a piece of paper accompanying or referring to a package or other delivery, stating contents, delivery instructions, etc, sometimes serving as a receipt

2. law

   1. an official summary of the proceedings in a court of justice

   2. a register containing such a summary

3. 1. a customs certificate declaring that duty has been paid

   2. a certificate giving particulars of a shipment and allowing its holder to obtain a delivery order

4. a summary of contents, as in a document

5. a list of things to be done

6. law

   1. a list of cases awaiting trial

   2. the names of the parties to pending litigation

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verb

1. to fix a docket to (a package, etc)

2. law

   1. to make a summary of (a document, judgment, etc)

   2. to abstract and enter in a book or register

3. to endorse (a document, etc) with a summary

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• undocketed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• dockets
  plural

Participles

• docketing
  present
• docketed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• docket
  simple
• dockets
  simple
• have docketed
  perfect
• has docketed
  perfect
• am docketing
  progressive
• are docketing
  progressive
• is docketing
  progressive
• have been docketing
  perfect progressive
• has been docketing
  perfect progressive

Past

• docketed
  simple
• had docketed
  perfect
• was docketing
  progressive
• were docketing
  progressive
• had been docketing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will docket
  simple
• will have docketed
  perfect
• will be docketing
  progressive
• will have been docketing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of docket

First recorded in 1475–85; earlier dogget, of obscure origin

Explanation

If someone asks you what’s on your docket for the day, she really just wants to know what you’re doing today. Likewise, if someone complains that he has a full docket, he’s saying that he is very busy. While docket, as used above, is another word for agenda or schedule, it is most commonly used to mean the calendar for a court of law, specifically, the schedule of pending cases. In the United Kingdom, a docket is a list or label affixed to the outside of a package detailing what is inside.

Example Sentences

Appeared in the May 16, 2026, print edition as 'Mifepristone and the Shadow Docket'.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

On this week’s Amicus podcast, Dahlia Lithwick talked with election law gladiator Marc Elias, chair of Elias Law Group and founder of Democracy Docket.

From Slate • Feb. 10, 2026

The Docket: Since 2002, roughly 780 detainees have been held at the American military prison in Cuba.

From New York Times • Jun. 17, 2024

Jumpstart your morning with top legal news delivered straight to your inbox from The Daily Docket.

From Reuters • Oct. 23, 2023

And different lawyers would get up and say, "Docket number 8020" or somethin'.

From Mitch Miller by Sloan, John